who is next in the Coffee section?
Issue #137 (17 Feb) – 20+ jobs with HR focus; Coffee with Karl; air quality; top current exhibitions; Jamie against WFH; software engineering hype dead?
Make sure to never miss another issue. Subscribe:
Programming note #137: I'd like to feature more founders, creators, artists and in general good people in the "Coffee with" section. You can nominate yourself or send me a suggestion for someone. Here are all the 50 people and their links featured until today.
Also, join the discussion on our r/handpickedberlin subreddit, we are now 182, and I am still waiting for the second organic post. 👀
🌟 Handpicked community
is a place where we meet, share projects and ideas and look for help.
Meet — handpicked events:
🇩🇪 Future talk: Start-up hub Deutschland: Chancen und herausforderungen im globalen vergleich | Wed, 19/02 18:00 | BETTERTRUST* (use Handpicked50 for 50% discount)
Berlin - Generalist world meetup | Tue, 18/02 19:00 | after registration
AI liability: What businesses have to know now | Tue, 25/02 17:30 | Merantix AI Campus
Gezellig sessions #46 — Live music concert @ rooftop (indoors) | Fri, 28/02 18:00 | after registration
Shut up & write Berlin celebrates ten years | Sat, 29/03 19:00 | Improvworks*
this could be your event - submit it here
Show cool stuff or Ask for something:
Nicole is looking for online or print Berlin publications that publish essays & short stories in English—small/niche publications that may not come up in a general search. She's also interested in creative writing workshops.
📨 Submit your input for the community here. This section is also featured on LinkedIn in the weekly post.
👀 Handpicked jobs
is a rotating selection of jobs from companies I’d check out.
5️⃣ from the rotation this week: Data, Analytics & Finance
The remaining jobs (also outside rotation) are in the Handpicked online database.
Are you looking for new colleagues or work in HR? Submit a job.
✨ Handpicked deals
is where you find good stuff. Your purchase/interest will help sustain this project.
Learn German at SmarterGerman—HANDPICKED11 for 11% discount. Read on how to learn German here.
Looking for a coworking space or an office for your team? Here are Handpicked deals.
Insurance, relocation, employment law, coaching? Check our vetted experts.
☕️ Coffee with Karl Villanueva
is where my guest contributes three links and I write a short bio.
I've met Karl, co-founder and CMO/CPO at Ostrom, a couple of times and really appreciate his openness and pragmatic attitude. Originally from the Philippines, now a Berliner for nine years. Here is what he prepared for you:
Startup: Article on what company-wide metrics VCs care about for startups and founders. But always build the best company for you and your customers, not for investors.
Jobs: Why headcount can be a bad metric for both startups and job applicants. Overhiring = future layoffs (luckily we've been automation-focused at Ostrom).
Berlin: El Sol, Filipino restaurant in Mitte (only 1 of 3). Food is OK, dessert is good, karaoke vibes 10/10. Go on a Saturday.
🗞 Snippets
is a selection of links focused on Berlin/Germany, career, timeless content and business.
Berlin & Germany, career & timeless
I posted the article on landlord/tenant tricks on r/berlinsocialclub and there are some new comments. Be careful out there and join Mieterverein before you sign a contract. You can still send me your own input, I will update the article.
A brief reminder to check all the 50 published Coffee interviews. In total 150+ possibilities to get inspired.
Berlin sometimes has terrible air quality, particularly during winter months. The situation is worst around Mariendorfer Damm (south of Tempelhof), where the 50 µg/m³ limit was breached 4 times this year. Emissions from heating and traffic get trapped by high-pressure systems, with additional pollution from easterly winds carrying Polish fine dust. The Federal Environment Agency (UBA) advises against outdoor exercise when particulate levels exceed 50 micrograms. (RBB, 🇩🇪)
What's your take on museum cafés? Sometimes they can feel good to reflect after an exhibition: here are the Top 11 Museum Cafés. Pair with a great overview of current exhibitions by the Berliner.
(Hidden) gem: (cheese)cakes at Barcomi's, a Kreuzberg institution.
Politics matters: If you can vote on the elections this Sunday, this website can help you pick the best option for your first vote, so that it doesn't get wasted for the parties with no chances.
Migration is one of the most important topics in the current campaign. A study shows migrants' net fiscal contribution to Germany is positive - meaning they pay more in taxes than they receive in benefits. The advantage disappears when adjusting for age, as migrants tend to be younger. Second-generation migrants contribute similarly to natives. The analysis included both direct and indirect taxes, as well as benefits like healthcare and education and was based on data from 2018.
Career: In this leaked audio, Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, is vocally against working from home. Does he have a point? Drop a comment on r/handpickedberlin. His opinion is relevant because they are also hiring in Berlin and other CEOs listen to what he says.
Career: If you are still thinking of doing a bootcamp to become a developer/software engineer, have a look at this chart. Software engineering as we know it peaked hard unless Indeed became extremely unpopular and companies stopped posting their jobs there: I doubt it.
Career: Here are a few good career tips, summarized from a verbose article by Casey Handmer. It highlights one of the rules I broke several times at Mercedes and that ultimately lead to this newsletter: Always uphold the golden rule – always make your boss look good.
Timeless: Excellent predictions for 2025 by Dave Kellogg, worth a read. Number 10: LinkedIn enters the social media death cycle. is a great one in combination with Number 6: Working for the algo. What's coming next?
Briefly
Bad news: Corporate bankruptcies in Germany were up 14% in January YoY. November saw 1,787 filings (+18% YoY) with creditor claims rising to €2.8B from €1.5B.
Porsche -1900 until 2029.Stats: Almost 1000 Berliners changed their gender registration since the 1st of November (based on the Self-Determination Act). Most cases were in Neukölln (174), followed by Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf (155) and Pankow (117). (RBB)
Karneval der Kulturen will be moving from Kreuzberg to Friedrichshain (Frankfurter Alle) this year (5-9. June).
The third strike of BVG is coming according to Verdi, the timeline will be known this week. More strikes are also foreseen for Deutsche Post but after the elections.
From today on HbF Berlin will be partially closed for two months due to construction work.
US-founded Blue Man Group is leaving Berlin at the end of August after running the show for 21 years. No idea if their show is worth seeing.
Consulting firms in Germany hit a record €50B revenue in 2024, with one-third of projects in operations and 24% in IT. Cybersecurity and AI drive growth while ESG & diversity topics declined. The automotive industry was the top client at €6.4B. (Manager Magazin)
Flaconi’s competitor Douglas Q1: revenue up 5.8% to €1.65B, below the 7% target. Lowered profit forecast for the year. Stock dropped 15%.
Michael Wax, Forto co-founder, is stepping down as the CEO and will “transition into the role of Chairman of the Board”. Likely not a good sign? They raised $500M and generated $1.2B in revenue (in 2024?).
If you are interested in why we lack bus drivers (44% are at least 55y old!), read this interview (🇩🇪)(A bus driver can earn up to €3,500 net monthly, but the licence itself is €14k). Related: almost 20% price increase of Deutschlandticket didn’t cause additional cancellations in January as some expected.
Helsing and Mistral (french Gen AI) started a partnership to develop AI solutions for the defence industry.
Lilium, a Munich-based air taxi company, was again in the media because the promised €150M didn’t yet hit the accounts. What a mess.
Weekly social
Instagram: BVG bus in Berlin winter.
TikTok: Der Ton passt mir gar nichts.
Twitter/X: Noch ein Pils bitte! #Kanzlerduell
Reddit: Obesity rates EU vs. USA.
💸 Funded in Berlin & Germany
is a list of companies that received funding over €1M.
Lanch | Berlin | Next-gen food brands platform | €26M Series A | Careers.
Integral | Berlin | SME accounting automation platform | €6.3M Pre-seed | Careers.
Spark e-Fuels | Berlin | Sustainable aviation fuel technology | €2.3M Pre-seed | Careers.
Inhubber | Berlin | AI contract management platform | €1.14M | Careers.
Finn | Munich | Car subscription service | €1B Credit | Careers.
FTAPI | Munich | Secure data workflow solutions | €65M | Careers.
comstruct | Munich | Construction industry communication platform | €12.5M | Careers.
Planted | Cologne | ESG management software | €5M Seed | Careers.
😅 Meanwhile
the craziest timeline of our generation
*sponsored
Handpicked footer with a treat:
Join the discussion on our r/handpickedberlin subreddit.
Do you like what you read? You can drop a rating on Google or send a testimonial.
The best coworking spaces and the best cafés to work from in Berlin
Thinking of joining a startup? 12 things to know before you do
CV writing guide: insights from 6 tech recruiters and CV Template for Germany
Signing a new employment contract in Germany? Read this before.
Football in Berlin: where to play, watch and how to get involved?
Berlin Salary Trends Reports: How do you compare?