Frederik Fahning’s entrepreneurial journey is nothing short of remarkable. His is a story interwoven with ambition, resilience, business experiences where he faced challenges like almost running out of runway and layoffs, and an unwavering commitment to values.
As co-founder of Zenjob, one of Germany’s leading staffing platforms, Frederik’s insights reveal the highs and lows of entrepreneurship and provide a masterclass in navigating the challenging yet rewarding world of startups.
Listen to the full podcast episode and review the transcript here.
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The Foundations: A Childhood Steeped in Entrepreneurial Influence
Born and raised in Hamburg, one of the world’s most beautiful cities, Frederik grew up in an environment ripe with entrepreneurial inspiration. His parents owned a small fashion house, and dinner table conversations often revolved around economics and politics.
This exposure cultivated an early appreciation for the risks and rewards of running a business.
Frederik credits these formative years with helping him embrace risk-taking as a natural part of life.
“It’s more about understanding opportunities than dwelling on what can go wrong,” he says. This mindset became the bedrock of his entrepreneurial endeavors, instilling in him the confidence to face uncertainty head-on.
The Road Less Traveled: From Law to Entrepreneurship
Initially, Frederik pursued law, inspired by his grandfather. However, it didn’t take long for him to realize that his true passion lay elsewhere. “When you study law in Germany, it’s a long and arduous journey. I quickly realized I didn’t want to be a lawyer,” Frederik recalls.
To build a career in law, he would have had to study for seven to eight years, learning several different topics that were unimportant for economics. Two years into the course, Frederik decided to take the call and switch to a more business-related line.
This pivotal decision led him to switch to a field where he could combine his interests in corporate law and economics. Although challenging—especially seeing friends continue down the path he had abandoned—it was a move that paved the way for his entrepreneurial success.
Frederik went to Cologne with the objective to do some kind of business internship and get exposure while figuring out the next path to follow.
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Working at SHAMS Coffee
During his studies, Frederik took a working student position at a small startup selling mobile espresso bars to corporates, consultancies, universities, and events. The founder had the idea for a fancy coffee wagon and service with good beans. The company employed about 10 to 15 people.
This hands-on experience was invaluable. From brewing coffee in a pinch to discussing the founder’s vision, Frederik learned the importance of delegation and empowering others. “If you don’t find people smarter than you, you won’t scale your business,” he observes.
During their conversations, Frederik learned important lessons on how to start a business from scratch and that everything is achievable.. He enjoyed the diversity of tasks he was doing in between inspiring 30-minute talks.
“Entrepreneurship involves different kinds of problems and issues, but you can be successful as long as you have the right mindset and timing, with a dose of good luck. You should also strive to understand what motivates and drives people,” Frederik points out.
Soon after, he moved to Berlin and took advantage of the opportunity to work in the VC sphere at ACXIT Capital Partners, an M&A advisory firm. Frederik’s next stint was at Atlantic Labs, where he met his future co-founder, Cihan Aksakal.
The Birth of Zenjob: From Idea to Execution
Frederik and Cihan started their three-month research phase around their biggest driver–education. When students wanted to find jobs, they had no digital solutions to rely on and had to use traditional search channels.
Further, the duo had an understanding of labor laws but no knowledge of the labor market. They started by screening different kinds of companies worldwide and quickly realized that very few companies offered services that took care of staffing on the B2B and B2C sides.
Soon, Frederik and Cihan also brought in Fritz Trott who had a rocket internet background. Having done their homework and research and acquiring licensing, the trio created a platform.
In the early days, their approach was scrappy yet effective. “We started with just five students and a second-hand furniture store. We used our phone contact books to organize work,” Frederik shares.
Zenjob was born from Frederik’s desire to modernize the outdated and fragmented process of short-term staffing. The co-founders identified a gap in the labor market—a lack of digital solutions to address short-term staffing needs.
Despite their modest beginnings, the trio focused on building a robust foundation: automating regulatory processes and creating a seamless user experience for both businesses and job seekers.
The Zenjob Business Model
Zenjob’s business model revolves around matching companies with students for short-term, last-minute staffing needs. Through their platform, companies can secure a student worker in as little as 20 minutes, with the entire process—from job matching to payment—fully automated.
The company caters to businesses in different segments like retail, logistics, astronomy, hotel, or any others. Staffing is done via a company software application for businesses and a mobile app for the talent.
Zenjob also has an automated matching algorithm that ensures workers get appropriate jobs in their preferred locations. Once the match clicks, the worker can apply for the position at the company, sign the labor contract, start working, and get paid.
Zenjob charges hiring companies by the hour and close to 93% to 94% of the jobs are running automatically through their systems. Zenjobbers get paid a certain amount and the company retains a percentage.
Raising Funding and Navigating Challenges
Today, Zenjob serves tens of thousands of students across Germany and has raised more than €100M ($102M) in funding over nine years. As Frederik explains, the company has a broad range of VCs on board, including German, Swiss, UK, and US investors.
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Aragon Global has participated in their last round, which totalled in €50M ($51M). However, fundraising has not been smooth. Frederik doesn’t shy away from discussing the tough moments, including times when Zenjob was on the brink of running out of money.
One particularly harrowing experience occurred in 2016 when their Series A funding fell through at the last minute. The VC due diligence process revealed a robust tech stack but an inefficient cash flow and invoicing systems.
With just weeks of runway left, Frederik and his team sprang into action, overhauling their processes and convincing investors to give them another chance. Their efforts paid off, but the experience left a lasting impression.
Frederik learned that a company should have a very strong business model, excellent metrics, and great unit economics that showcase its path to make fundraising easy. Scouting the market for competitive term sheets is another effective strategy, in his experience.
“Fundraising is selling,” Frederik explains. “It’s about being authentic, understanding your audience, and keeping connections active even when you’re not actively raising funds.” Customizing pitches for different investor classes is also crucial. For instance, German VCs are more conservative.
The challenges didn’t stop there. In 2022, Zenjob faced another tough decision: a round of layoffs. Although financially stable, the company needed to adapt to changing economic conditions.
Frederik credits their company values—honesty, helpfulness, humility, and hunger—with guiding them through this difficult time. “We had face-to-face conversations with every affected employee,” he says. “It wasn’t easy, but staying true to our values helped us maintain trust and integrity.”
The Power of Focus: Mastering the German Market
While many startups aim for rapid international expansion, Zenjob has taken a different approach: laser-focused growth in Germany. “With 2 million students and a €50B ($51B) labor market, Germany alone provides immense opportunities,” Frederik explains.
This focus hasn’t stopped them from experimenting. In 2020, Zenjob briefly expanded into the Netherlands to test their model in a new market. However, the economic uncertainties and layoffs of 2022 led them to double down on their home turf.
“Saying no to potential revenue streams was tough, but it allowed us to master our core business,” Frederik notes. Since Zenjob has a unique value proposition, he wanted to break into the global market. However, he also wanted gradual growth with more long-term and qualified work.
Frederik underscores the importance of waiting for macroeconomic conditions to improve and a robust GDP growth in the country before making any strategic moves.
The Vision for Zenjob
Frederik emphasizes the rapid growth of flexible, part-time work and the ambition to become the market leader in this space. Recognizing the increasing demand for adaptable employment solutions, he highlights the importance of scaling efforts to meet this growing market.
Frederik envisions Zenjob as providing opportunities to students to work in early jobs that can give them hands-on experience for their studies. For instance, a student learning marketing could work in a startup for a couple of years initially to understand its classified model.
In Retrospect – Lessons Learned
Reflecting on his journey, Frederik shares a piece of advice he would give his younger self before launching a business: surround yourself with people who are smarter and more experienced.
In the early stages, he admits it can be intimidating to work alongside individuals whose expertise might overshadow your own. However, Frederik stresses the value of this approach, noting that leveraging the strengths of others is essential for scaling a business.
Challenges will inevitably arise and grow in complexity as the company expands its market share and workforce. Thus, Frederik emphasizes the importance of building and scaling through the right team, underlining that people are the foundation of any successful organization.
Drawing from his experiences at Zenjob, which now boasts a workforce of nearly 300 people from over 44 nationalities, Frederik discusses the joys and challenges of managing such a diverse organization.
This diversity brings immense creativity and a variety of perspectives to the company, contributing to great outputs and outcomes. However, it also introduces challenges, such as navigating different attitudes, educational backgrounds, and cultural perspectives.
Frederik likens managing an organization to leading a football team—it’s about uniting everyone toward a common goal, eliminating politics, and fostering collaboration.
A core pillar of Zendrop’s culture is the founders’ commitment to personally conducting interviews for every new hire, from interns to senior executives.
Frederik explains that this practice isn’t rooted in the belief that founders are inherently better at hiring, but rather in the conviction that culture is everything.
These interviews are casual conversations aimed at ensuring candidates align with the company’s values and vision. Frederik draws inspiration from companies like Adyen, a major fintech firm in the Netherlands, which maintains a similar approach despite its large workforce.
Ultimately, Fahning advocates for investing in people as the most critical factor for success. When asked if such hands-on involvement in interviews is sustainable, he suggests that the question itself misses the point.
For him, prioritizing culture and building a cohesive, motivated team is not just a task—it’s the essence of leadership.
Looking Ahead
As Zenjob continues to grow, Frederik remains committed to the principles that have guided him thus far. Whether it’s navigating economic uncertainty, refining their technology, or empowering the next generation of entrepreneurs, one thing is clear: Frederik Fahning is in it for the long haul.
Through resilience, innovation, and a steadfast focus on values, Frederik’s story serves as a powerful reminder that success is rarely a straight path—it’s a journey filled with lessons, challenges, and opportunities for growth.
Listen to the full podcast episode to know more, including:
- Growing up in a business-oriented family nurtured Frederik’s risk-taking mindset and appreciation for opportunities.
- Frederik left law school to pursue his passion for business, embracing uncertainty to align with his true interests.
- Early startup roles taught him the value of delegation, adaptability, and understanding what drives people.
- Zenjob modernized short-term staffing by automating processes and creating a seamless platform for businesses and students.
- Frederik navigated funding crises by refining operations, showcasing robust business metrics, and maintaining authenticity.
- Frederik emphasizes hiring smarter people, fostering diverse teams, and maintaining a strong company culture as key to success.
- By prioritizing mastery of the German market, Frederik demonstrates the importance of scaling deliberately and sustainably.
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