Christoph Magnussen, Blackboat | Founder Stories

About this episode

From Student Startup to New Work Consulting

Christoph Magnussen embodies the modern entrepreneur: simultaneously CEO of a successful digital consultancy, content creator, and New Work advocate. With his company Blackboat, he has built a team of over 30 employees who advise companies on internal collaboration.

Early Founding Experiences Shape the Path

Christoph's entrepreneurial spirit showed early: during high school, he built an event company together with Alexander Graf, who is now the founder of Spryker. These early experiences laid the foundation for his later career as a serial entrepreneur.

His studies in St. Gallen brought another important encounter: here Christoph met Adrian Locher, now known as the founder of Merantix. The two took the entrepreneurial leap together but had to shut down their first startup due to poor timing – an experience many founders know and that provides valuable lessons for the future.

2010: The Breakthrough with Blackboat and asgoodasnew

2010 marked a turning point in Christoph's entrepreneurial journey. That year, he founded two companies simultaneously: Blackboat, his current digital consultancy, and asgoodasnew, a platform for used hardware.

Blackboat developed into a successful consultancy for collaboration and New Work. The company helps other firms modernize their working methods and establish more effective collaboration – a topic that's highly relevant, especially in times of digital transformation.

Content Creator with a Mission

Parallel to his main business, Christoph has established himself as a content creator. Together with Michael Trautmann, he hosts the podcast "On The Way To New Work," where they discuss the future of work. Additionally, he regularly produces content for his personal YouTube channel.

This combination of entrepreneurship and content creation is no coincidence: Christoph uses his reach to share his expertise while simultaneously spreading his mission – advancing the transformation of the working world.

Balancing Creator and CEO Roles

One of the most fascinating questions for modern entrepreneurs is balancing different roles. Christoph must juggle daily between leading his 30-person team at Blackboat, producing content for various channels, and his role as a thought leader in the New Work space.

This versatility reflects a trend we observe among many successful founders: they don't limit themselves to a single role but use various channels and business models to realize their vision and maximize their impact.

Insights into the Future of Work

As a New Work advocate, Christoph intensively deals with the question of what tomorrow's working world will look like. His consulting work at Blackboat gives him direct insight into the challenges companies face when transforming their work culture.

The combination of practical consulting experience and theoretical engagement with the topic makes his perspective particularly valuable for other entrepreneurs and executives who want to position their organizations for the future.

Lessons Learned for Other Founders

Christoph's journey reveals several important lessons: First, that early "failures" like the discontinued startup with Adrian Locher are valuable learning experiences. Second, that timing can be crucial in the founding world. And third, that different entrepreneurial activities can mutually reinforce each other when strategically aligned.

His story is an example of how early founding experiences, the right amount of perseverance, and the willingness to take on different roles can build a successful company.