The Senior Connect team matches energetic senior citizens with companies looking for skilled labour.
From Old to Gold
Samuel Keitel and Tim Findeiß founded a start-up named Senior Connect to bring together energetic senior citizens and
companies seeking talent.
Three years ago, the two students of Management & Technology at TUM Campus Heilbronn were contes-tants in the Corporate Campus Challenge. Hosted by start-up incubator Campus Founders, the event offered workshops and opportunities to solve actual problems companies face, which whetted their appetite. Keitel says: “The conditions for creating something here at the Campus are very different from the conditions I had to meet when establishing a virtual marketplace for regional products all on my own. It doesn’t get better than this.”
Granny as a role model
Inspiration for Senior Connect came to Findeiß from his personal life: “When my grandmother retired, she continued volunteering for the local library, and many of her retired friends also wanted to stay active.” The spark turned into a fire. “We spoke to senior citizens on the street, and the feedback we received confirmed our initial assumption.” Keitel adds: “Through Campus Founders’ network we were able to contact unions and stakeholders and ended up speaking with the HR departments of Audi and Schwarz Group.”
From their market research the students found that many people over the age of 60 want to continue working and have the energy to do it, and that companies have a need for expertise. These findings are the cornerstone of Senior Connect. However, for lack of technical know-how Keitel and Findeiß sought the help of Stael Wilfried Tchinda Kuete, a former student of computer engineering and now TUM graduate. They coveted Kuete’s machine learning skills because they wanted the updated website to bring together employers and employees through AI.
“When my grandmother retired, she continued volunteering for the local library, and many of her retired friends also wanted to stay active.”
Successful elevator pitch
Keitel and Findeiß expanded their horizons in the startup and pioneer paradise Silicon Valley. Their successful elevator pitch to Mercedes Bankston of the Founder Institute – that actually took place in an elevator – and the flexible study program at TUM Campus Heilbronn made this research trip possible.
The most important insight from their semester abroad is summarized by both as follows: Start your distribution activities as early as possible. They are aware of the importance of drawing attention to their business. “So far, we are the only ones offering complete matchings that extend beyond CVs and take candidates’ personal interests into consideration,” Findeiß explains. Their plan for the next few months is set: “To attract users to the platform and leverage networking effects.”