Founder Associate - Commercial (f/m/d) | Cologne

Permanent employee, Full-time · Köln

YOUR IMPACT AT UMH

Hi, Alex, Jeremy & Niklas from UMH!

Seven years ago, we started a small system integration and boutique consulting company to help manufacturers digitize their production lines. We installed sensors on machines, built dashboards for production managers, and used AI to analyze product quality – all to improve efficiency, quality, and resource use.

Pretty quickly, we hit the same wall every project seems to hit: lack of access to clean, structured, and contextualized data. Every factory had data – but it was fragmented, inconsistent, and locked inside proprietary systems. There was no open, scalable foundation to build on.

So four years ago, we switched gears and founded United Manufacturing Hub, an open-source industrial data management platform that helps factories collect, structure, and share production data at scale.

Today, companies like HiPP, Böllhoff, and EDEKA use UMH to connect their shop floors, and we're backed by a 1,000-people-strong community and international venture capital investors who share our belief that industrial data should be open.

Our goal is simple: Build the data foundation every factory in the world can run on – to make manufacturing faster, smarter, and more sustainable.

You will love this if you want to:

Drive GTM Initiatives: Own projects across partnerships, sales enablement, market expansion, and competitive intelligence from research to execution.
Build & Manage Partnerships: Identify, negotiate, and nurture relationships with technology vendors, system integrators, and industry players who can accelerate our growth.
Support Investor & Shareholder Relations: Help prepare board materials, investor updates, and fundraising assets. Be the connective tissue between leadership and stakeholders.
Run Strategic Analysis: Conduct market research, build financial models, and develop business cases that inform key decisions.
Work Directly with Management team: Report to the CCO, with exposure to product, finance, sales, and operations. No two weeks will look the same.
Shape Company Building: Contribute to internal processes, culture, and the operational backbone of a company preparing to scale across Europe.

YOUR PROFILE

First years of experience in a High-Performance Environment: Experience in consulting, VC, investment banking, or a high-growth B2B SaaS startup. You've operated at speed and delivered under pressure.
Extreme Ownership: You own outcomes, not tasks. No handoffs, no excuses, no "not my job." You see a problem, you fix it even if it's outside your scope. The extra mile isn't extra, it's the standard.
Low Ego, Fast Learning: You seek feedback before you're asked. You change your mind when evidence says you should. You're more interested in being right than being seen as right.
Business Value Orientation: Every hour needs a clear "why this matters." You know what to prioritize and what to kill. Saying no isn't failure, it's the job.
Analytical & Structured: Strong skills in research, financial modeling, and translating data into actionable insights. Comfortable in Excel and building investor-ready presentations.
Excellent Communicator: Proactive updates, clean communication, flags issues early. You can write a compelling investor memo and present to executives with equal confidence.
Team Player: You help others succeed, share context, and unblock teammates. You're reliable, prepared, and keep your commitments.
Tech Curiosity: Interest in industrial technology, open-source, or manufacturing is a plus but not required. We'll teach you the domain.
Fluency in German and English.

WHAT WE OFFER?

Learning Curve: Expect steep growth. Direct exposure to founders, investors, and strategic decision-making. We give 360° feedback, full ownership, and real responsibility – making this likely the fastest learning environment you've ever been in.
Career Path: This role is a launchpad. Depending on your strengths and interests, you could grow into partnerships, strategy, operations, or even a Chief of Staff track.
Benefits: A well-designed office in the heart of Cologne, free drinks & snacks, and access to Urban Sports Club / EGYM Wellpass.

If you want to help build the commercial engine behind UMH and shape how the world's factories manage data – let's talk. Apply through Personio by uploading your CV.

Apply for this job

About us

United Manufacturing Hub is an equal-opportunity employer and welcomes applications from all qualified individuals regardless of ethnicity, sex, disability, religion/belief, sexual orientation, or age.

Apply for this job

Your application!

We appreciate your interest in United Manufacturing Hub. Please fill in the following short form. Should you have any difficulties in uploading your files, please get in touch with jessica.schwarz@umh.app.