nilsjeners consulting

You know that moment when everything just clicks? When you realize you're exactly where you're meant to be? That's where I am right now as a self-employed consultant.

It's not about the glamorous "laptop lifestyle" that floods your social media feeds. It's about something far more valuable: alignment.

Here's what that looks like for me:

- Collaborating with clients who inspire me and challenge my thinking
- Experiencing a constant stream of learning through different industries, company cultures, and business challenges
- Building meaningful relationships across various organizations and sectors
- Having the flexibility to be there for my family and kids

Every new project is like opening a different book, each with its own story, characters, and lessons. The beauty? I get to write my own chapter in each one.

The best part? This isn't a destination - it's an evolving journey. Each new company, each new challenge, each new culture adds another layer to my professional DNA.

Innovation Management and Agile Business Design

TH Köln

I teach several courses at the Technical University of Cologne:
- Business Design in the Master's program Media Informatics
- Cooperation Systems in the Master’s program Web Science

Adjunct Professor

Technical University of Munich

A coincidence of my consulting position was teaching in the Executive MBA program at Technical University of Munich (TUM). 

My students? Up to C-level executives and senior managers who challenge every concept, question every assumption. They force me to evolve my teaching with each batch. Their real-world experience adds layers to theoretical frameworks that no textbook could provide.

The best moments? When a student's perspective completely shifts my own understanding of a concept I've taught for years. That's the magic of executive education - everyone in the room is both teacher and student.

It reminds me: True expertise isn't about having all the answers. It's about staying curious enough to recognize that every interaction is a learning opportunity.

Uniper

Ever notice how learning curves flatten over time? That moment when your daily "aha!" moments become monthly, then yearly? That's not stagnation - that's your growth compass pointing to change.

My entrepreneurial heart was beating louder again, but this time, I was determined to make a smarter exit. No dramatic leaps - just strategic steps.

A one-year interim management contract, three days a week. Simple math: that left two days to build my freelance practice. Who said transitions had to be cliff jumps?

But here's the plot twist: Those years in an 11,000-employee corporate giant? Pure gold. They taught me three invaluable lessons:

The View from Inside: Transforming from "outside consultant" to "internal manager" completely rewired my understanding of corporate dynamics. I earned corporate DNA: Understanding how large organizations actually work (not how consultants think they work) became my secret weapon. Network Architecture: Learning to build and leverage vast corporate networks - a skill that pays dividends daily in my freelance life.

Sometimes, the best way to embrace your entrepreneurial spirit is to first master the system you're leaving.

Innovation Consultant (external)

Orange Hills GmbH

When my startup hit a dead end, so did I. Rock bottom makes every path look equally appealing - or terrifying. One wrong turn could have sent me spiraling into a completely different career trajectory.

But here's what made all the difference: I didn't just accept the first lifeline thrown my way. Before joining a boutique consulting firm, I met EVERY. SINGLE. EMPLOYEE. Yes, you read that right. Because when you're rebuilding, the foundation matters more than the facade.

What I discovered was more than a job - it was a masterclass in everything I wish I'd known during my startup days:

- A methodical framework that addressed precisely where my startup had stumbled
- A team where every single person had something unique to teach
- The ability to dive deep into multiple industries, each with its own lessons

The irony? Sometimes you need to hit rock bottom to build something stronger. Those startup "failures" became valuable war stories in consulting. That entrepreneurial spirit? It transformed into innovative solutions for clients.

Years later, I realize that not knowing what comes next isn't a weakness - it's an opportunity to adapt and grow. Every industry, every project, every challenge adds another tool to your toolkit.

Senior Innovation Consultant

Qwingo – Sports & Performance Analysis

My $0 MBA: What building (and failing) a startup taught me

I am enthusiastic about creating things and didn't want to make innovation solely. That burning desire led me from the structured halls of academia into the wild west of startup life. Little did I know I was enrolling in what I now call my "Private MBA" - except this one came with real stakes and real consequences.

The highs? Landing that dream client everyone in the industry knows. The lows? Watching my company hit a dead end. But here's the thing about startup life - every moment, even failure, is a masterclass in business.

Three expensive lessons I'll never forget:

1. Diversity isn't a buzzword - it's survival. We were three IT nerds with similar mindsets. Great for tech talk, terrible for challenging assumptions. Today, I know: diverse perspectives aren't just nice to have - they're essential for innovation.
2. Tight budgets are secret weapons. When resources are scarce, you learn to execute fast, think lean, and never lose sight of your goals. No theoretical framework can teach you what a dwindling bank account can.
3. Product development isn't just about the product. Building from scratch taught me that great products aren't built in isolation - they're born from understanding markets, users, and business models simultaneously.

Years later, these lessons still shape every business decision I make. Sometimes the most valuable education comes without a diploma.

Founder & CEO

RWTH Aachen University

What seemed like a formal transition to RWTH Aachen turned into one of the most transformative chapters of my professional journey.

As a research assistant, I discovered three passions that would shape my career forever:

First, the joy of teaching returned to my life. There's something magical about standing in front of eager minds, sharing knowledge, and watching that 'aha moment' light up in students' eyes.

Then came the challenge of managing complex projects independently. No safety nets, no hand-holding - just pure responsibility and the thrill of steering projects from concept to completion.

But the most unexpected turn? This role planted the seed for my PhD journey. What started as a position soon evolved into a calling.

They say the best career moves often don't feel like massive leaps when you make them. Sometimes, it's those "simple switches" that lead to the most profound transformations.

Research Assistant

Fraunhofer FIT

You know: Choose your boss, not your job!

It couldn't have been more true for my first real job. The opportunity to work with Professor Prinz wasn't just a job offer – it was an invitation to join an inspiring journey to learn and grow.

What made this so special?

First, there was the incredible diversity. Imagine working alongside people with vastly different experiences and backgrounds, each bringing their unique perspective to every challenge. It wasn't just about what we knew but how differently we thought.

Then there was the environment itself. Not just an office but more a creative lab. The open mindset paired with the resources fostered innovation and collaboration.

But what really made the difference? Working on industry projects that went beyond theoretical concepts. Every day, we were creating solutions that made real impact in the real world.

Looking back, my first job already led to my enthusiasm for innovation.

I support corporates in all activities focusing on INNOVATION: 
Creating new ideas and transforming them into businesses, products, or services.

IDEATION
With my help, you and your employees will come up with new ideas to move your business forward.

INNOVATION SPRINTS
I support your team in the concrete implementation of ideas from project planning all the way to the market.

INNOVATION STRATEGY
Together we develop an innovation strategy to lead your company into the future.

INNOVATION ECOSYSTEM
I assist in building an innovation culture and an innovation ecosystem, which fosters creative work and implementation of innovation in your company.

INNOVATION TRAINING
I train your employees to enable them to perform better innovation activities.


My background: 

I am a digital native with over ten years of experience in the field of innovation. I support companies in implementing innovation strategies and new business models. I catalyze ideas from corporate leaders in the areas of strategy and innovation and provide advisory from the initial thought to market entry.

I have studied computer science and business administration with a focus on human-computer interaction and management accounting at RWTH Aachen University. I continued as a scientist at the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Information Technology FIT. I hold a Ph.D. (Dr. rer. nat.) in computer science and founded a start-up for algorithmic sports performance analysis based on big data.

Furthermore, I hold several teaching positions at the TU Munich, TH Cologne, and TU Dortmund. 

Dr. Nils Jeners

Stephen Parkins

🌍 International Growth & Innovation Leader 🙋🏼‍♂️ I help ambitious innovators like you become industry leaders ✨ Innovation Management, Leadership & Culture

I help business leaders turn innovation into a strategic asset for long-term growth, with demonstrable ROI.

I firmly believe that in a volatile, uncertain world, innovation is the single most powerful driver of productivity and rising living standards.

But innovation requires structure and discipline. 

Over the past 20+ years, I’ve supported startups, scaleups, listed corporates and global giants in building the systems, the tools, the portfolios and the capabilities required to turn innovation into a source of growth, focus and measurable returns (ROI).


My focus is on:

• Corporate Innovation as a system

• Innovation portfolio management (Explore-Exploit balance, real options, advanced metrics, ROI)

• Corporate innovation strategy (from Innovation Mandate to Innovation Thesis to decision-making)

• Venture-building, Intrapreneurship & business model design

• Innovation governance (ISO 56000-aligned systems, with additions)

• Strategic decision-making (including agent-based simulations)


I've worked with everything from one-person experiments, to startups, to scale-ups, to 100,000+ employee organisations.

Some highlights:

My team and I helped ABN AMRO Bank redesign the business model of its most famous innovation product (Tikkie).
↓ What they said:
"Stephen's business savviness and commercial skills allow him to turn ideas into products that deliver real value to customers and to the organization"


I established SGS's global innovation function and guided its Business Units to create Innovation Strategies
↓ What they said:
"Stephen's insights and expertise have had a lasting impact on our business, setting us on a path of sustained growth and innovation."


I have also:
• Built, scaled, killed countless corporate ventures
• Led market expansions (e.g. Enerfip in Benelux)
• Trained and coached hundreds of professionals & business leaders
• Generated millions in P&L in high-volatility derivatives markets


I'm based in Europe, but I serve clients across the world - in English, French, German, Dutch and Spanish.

Open to punctual assignments as a fractional Head of Innovation, senior advisor, or product owner (I'm PSPO I certified).

If you're serious about building strategic, measurable, and above all, investable innovation, let’s connect.

Global Head of Corporate Incubation / Innovation

My team and I are building SGS's global incubation lab & innovation lab, from which we nurture and launch disruptive new business ideas.

Currently hiring Innovation Coaches and Service Designers / Innovation Strategists with an international background and mindset

AI won't replace you. But someone less sloppy in their AI usage will.

Innovation Strategist | Fractional Head of Innovation | Founder - Culturedge™ & Strategy Quest | Podcaster & Public Speaker

Most companies fade away because they don't treat innovation as a system.

They invest in a range of respectable, but disjointed, elements in the hope of driving innovation.

An internal venture-building operation here, a CVC arm there.

Once in a while, they organise a hackathon. Or when a business unit needs fresh ideas, they set up a spontaneous design sprint.

These activities aren't "wrong" by any means, but they need to be connected to function as an engine that produces profitable growth. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝘀 𝗮 *𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺*.


I. The first element your system needs is a clear 𝗜𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗲. Without this, your innovation lacks legitimacy and there's no coherence between the objectives of innovation and the risks and resources the company deploys. Simply put: You can't innovate without a mandate.

II. From a value perspective, innovation is fundamentally about placing bets on uncertain outcomes. You can't just improvise this, nor "ask someone from Finance to deal with it". Any professional organisation that invests capital needs serious 𝗜𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲.

III. Unlike executing waterfall projects, the 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 of innovation need to be highly 𝗮𝗱𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲. This means you have to do lots of "boring" things well - like having documented processes, clearly-defined accountabilities within the system, training for specific competences and designing smart incentives.

IV. Unless you make innovation measurable on multiple levels, through clear 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗠𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘀, there's no way of knowing what value (if any) your innovation activities contribute to the company's long-term prosperity. This isn't just about tracking a few project KPIs; it also requires you to run structured evaluation cycles at portfolio- and company level. And ultimately, these metrics need to convert into dollars or euros.

V. And rather than coming from a silo or an ivory tower, strategic innovation decisions (at project or portfolio level) need to be driven not by a senior innovator, nor by a top-down management budget, but formed through consensus among an 𝗙𝗕𝗜 𝗧𝗿𝗶𝗼 (representing Finance, Business and Innovation). An FBI Trio can operate at project level, at C-level or any level in between - wherever appropriate to the decision being made.


With a coherent system in place, maybe you do conclude that hackathons are an ingredient in your recipe for success.

But it will be because you can demonstrate their value within the system.

When strategy becomes a p1ssing contest
🍌

When you debate a new direction, it's normal for leaders to tackle "unknowns" - how customers will react, how fast markets will change, how competitors might respond.

But these discussions can quickly descend into argument. I've been both victim and perpetrator of this myself.

Each person brings a lifetime of experience, so their uncertainty feels smaller than it really is. They don’t see it as uncertainty.

In low-trust environments, where psychological safety is thin, saying “I don’t know” signals weakness.

So the only rational move is to sound like you're certain - even when you’re not.

From there, ego takes over and backing down becomes impossible.

Eventually, someone “wins” the argument - not through evidence (because there is none yet), but through rhetoric or politics.

But your strategy loses.

When discovery gives way to debate about things that haven't happened yet, the company stops learning and quickly loses the ability to adapt.

You stop looking for truth, because you're now only looking for confirmation.


However in any kind of emergent strategy –whether it's a new corporate direction or an innovation programme or a reorganisation– humility is a major competitive advantage.

There's nothing weak about curiosity, or being explicit about what you know and don't know.

Quite the contrary: this is how you *capitalise on* uncertainty.

Across industries, we see innovation teams being cut. Not because they failed, nor because they don’t produce value.

But because they can’t *prove* what they’re worth.

Can you prove the value of your innovation lab? Not in “impact” or “learning” terms, but in dollars, euros or pounds?

If the past few years have taught us anything, it’s this: If you can’t express your contribution in numbers, then someone else will
1. Miscalculate it using NPV
2. Round your personal value down to zero
3. Close you down

NPV is an automatic killer of innovation. It’s fundamentally flawed.

Unfortunately it’s the only valuation method that many companies use for innovation projects and portfolios.

However, as I explain in this article, Real Options might be the only way left to put a credible -and positive!- financial value on the adaptability, experimentation and learning that characterise innovation management done well.


👍 If you enjoyed this article, share it with a flexible friend
👎 If you didn’t, share it with a rigid enemy

Across industries, I continue to witness innovation teams disappearing. What began a few years ago as a necessary clean-up of corporate vanity project

Open article: Unless you Quantify your Value, you won’t Survive by Stephen Parkins • 5 min read

Unless you Quantify your Value, you won’t Survive

Henrik sees right through your innovation theatre Quatsch.

If your team needs to become more effective at pitching new ideas, maybe it's time they met him.

Henrik will give you honest feedback (in a German accent) 10, 20, 100 times – if you can handle it.

Because forget business books and online courses. The only way to learn something is to practise.

And when it comes to high-stakes business decisions, there's only one safe space where you can do that:
Strategy Quest | AI Business Simulations & Foresight

🔥 Unless your funding is as agile as your product development, your P&L is on fire at both ends (and not in a good way) 🔥

Most companies still run on waterfall funding: a system that assumes certainty, locks budgets in early, then measures success by your adherence to the plan rather than by any genuine learning about the market.

It all looks tidy on paper or in Excel, but it's the reason why your portfolio economics suck.

It's the reason why the ROI from innovation is such a disappointment to its parents.


Here are the two parallel ways waterfall funding is burning your P&L (profit & loss):


𝗜. 𝗜𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 (= 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝘀𝘀)

- Budgets get locked in at the start, based on assumptions that haven't been truly tested
- When reality diverges from plan, teams can’t adapt, so they push forward to use up the approved budget instead of pausing. There's no incentive to hand back cash.
- Change requests pile up, sunk costs grow uncontrollably
- The process rewards spending what was planned, not learning what’s needed


𝗜𝗜. 𝗜𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲𝘀 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 (= 𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗶𝘁)

- When funding is released only after fixed milestones, teams can’t redirect capital toward emergent opportunities or validated experiments
- Promising signals appear but teams ignore them because they fall outside the original scope
- The approval cycle is just too slow to back agility and jump on new opportunities

This is how companies destroy their P&L twice: by executing obsolete plans AND by forfeiting upside they were never able to pursue.


Many innovation teams think they’ve escaped this trap because they use “innovation funnels” and “stage gates.” (Sound familiar?)

But these are essentially waterfall with pauses. They still reward prediction over adaptability.


👍 𝗥𝘂𝗹𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗯: 𝗔𝘀 𝘀𝗼𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲’𝘀 𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘁𝘆 𝗮𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗼 𝗮 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗱𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴, i.e. one that treats learning as progress and reallocates capital each time evidence emerges.

Sometimes this can mean allocating more than was promised, ahead of schedule.

Other times this means killing a project, 2 months before the regular check-in meeting.

But never based on someone's gut feel or a change in the wind direction.


Sadly, most companies have no idea what that looks like.

They let the financial stewards of the core business allocate funds to explorative innovation in exactly the same, competent, tested, way they always have: through forecasts, milestones, plans, pre-commitments and annual cycles. Elements designed for predictability, not for discovery.

Because this feels safe! And reasonable!

But until companies learn to change this, to 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗱𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘆, even the smartest innovation strategy will keep burning money from both ends.

Your corporate innovation project is worth nothing until executed, right?
⚠️ Actually no, that's wrong!

If your project contains true optionality, it almost certainly has real value for your company.

Intuitively, this makes sense to most people. Because it's an asset.

But few would venture so far as to put a hard number on this valuation. (Surely any number is pure fiction at this early stage, right?)

Well let me stick my neck out here and make this wild claim:
𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗮𝗯𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝗮 𝗰𝗮𝘀𝗵 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆-𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀.

→ You can express their *current valuation* in dollars, euros, pounds or any other currency.

There are a few prerequisites though:
- You need to make the assumptions in your business case explicit;
- You need to express revenue as a formula, again with clear hypotheses around the drivers;
- You must be able to design experiments that will test these hypotheses;
- You need an adaptive plan, with agile funding conditional on certain proof (to be discovered);
- Crucially, you need investment discipline. If experiment 1 is successful, you proceed to experiment 2 without further pitching. If experiment 2 is unsuccessful, you stop the project without internal squabbling. If this investment discipline is lacking, if people make ad hoc decisions based on the wind direction, you destroy the valuation.

(It's worth noting by the way that having a clear Innovation Mandate, signed off and in place, gives you the required assurances above almost automatically.)

In the end, this valuation isn't witchcraft. Nor is it an valuation imposed by an "external authority". It's not a case of "Stephen Parkins says our project is worth $190k".

Doing it this way (using Modern Real Options) makes it YOUR valuation.

All you're doing is formulating a *company-accepted* expression of what the project is worth, today, to the company - accounting for both the potential and the uncertainty of the innovation.


What this means is that when pitching new ideas internally, you now have:
- No need to resort to fantasy stories about disruption and Silicon Valley
- A technique to compare multiple projects according to their cash valuation (including projects at different stages of maturity)
- Best of all: the ability to say, confidently, "today this project is worth x"

So many companies are paralysed by uncertainty.
While others, recklessly, are going all-in on their "big bet strategy".

However, neither approach will save you.

Standing still isn’t safe. Your cheese is being moved, whether you like it or not. "Wait and see" is a one-way ticket towards terminal decline.

Meanwhile, betting the farm on a hunch is reckless. That's no way to run a business.


So what should a company do? Play it safe or go all-in?

What about if you lead innovation, a strategy team or a CVC unit?


Thankfully there's a smarter approach: Leaders who are truly future-focused can, and should, 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗼𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆.

Optionality means you capture the upside (the opportunity) while limiting your downside (your risk of going bankrupt).


The clip below gives a taster of how you can achieve this. But if you're curious to learn more, Claus Hirzmann and I explain this further in the full video.

taplio

The Battle

Dr. Nils Jeners

Stephen Parkins

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance ScoreStephen Parkins's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

taplio

The Battle

Dr. Nils Jeners

Stephen Parkins

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Stephen Parkins's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreStephen Parkins's LinkedIn Performance