Kendra Rauschenberger “fell in love” with the impact that corporate venturing can have when done right, when she was part of a small entrepreneurial team dealing with business development and marketing additive manufacturing. So, when the opportunity came to build the venturing unit for Siemens Energy in 2020, she did not hesitate to accept the role.
For her, CVC is the perfect way to combine her “passion for entrepreneurship, investment and helping make the world a better place for generations to come”.
Since then, the major highlight in her role as general partner at Siemens Energy Ventures was building a team that systemically drives startups’ partnerships to tackle what she calls one of the biggest challenges of this generation: the energy transition. She values having the chance to work with “many different people across Siemens Energy and the ecosystem, who are truly passionate about what they are building”.
“Build the operating model that works for your corporate context. Get to know the people in the business and try to understand their needs, hopes and fears.”
Rauschenberger also cares deeply about furthering diversity in the energy industry and strives to “make the systemic shifts we need to get to gender parity – step by step”.
She says you need to have patience and perseverance to anchor a corporate venturing unit, as she reflects on how it can be a bit of a niche compared with other parts of the business. She says it is important to align with the parent company by “speaking the same language” and finding ways to integrate into the core business strategy.
She wants to assure newcomers that it is okay to rewrite the rules and find the operating model that works for them. “Build the operating model that works for your corporate context. Get to know the people in the business and try to understand their needs, hopes and fears. Let these insights guide how you build your operating model and create value for people in your business first.”
See the full list of GCV Emerging Leaders for 2024 here.