Munich Startup: What does NetZero do? What problem do you solve?
Johannes Dörr: We are a Educational institution and platform for sustainability with a focus on decarbonization and energy efficiency. Our mission is to achieve the European Union's ambitious goal of Green Deal by 2030: training one million additional skilled people to achieve the EU's decarbonisation targets.
Munich Startup: But that has been around for a long time!
Johannes Dörr: That would be great, because the more people are active in this field, the faster we can master the energy transition. What sets us apart is that we not only offer continuing education at our NetZero Academy, but also support our graduates in their daily work. We do this with the NetZero Community. At the same time, our continuing education has a very strong practical focus. This way, our graduates can hit the ground running immediately after graduation and make a decisive contribution to reducing emissions.
NetZero: Measurable CO2 reduce by training skilled personnel
Munich Startup: What is your founding story?
Johannes Dörr: Dominik Albicker and I are good friends and have been motivated for many years by the vision of making a decisive contribution to the energy transition. We both previously founded companies in the energy sector. We recognized the key role skilled workers play in implementing the European Green Deal. The decision to establish the NetZero Academy was made during a ski tour at Spitzingsee. And we've been on a growth trajectory ever since.
Munich Startup: What have been your biggest challenges so far?
Johannes Dörr: The biggest challenge for the NetZero Academy is that we have to make our program highly practical and personalized, while simultaneously developing a scalable educational offering. Only in this way can we ensure that our graduates can immediately implement the energy transition and that their overall contribution makes a measurable contribution to CO2 reduction. This requires outstanding instructors, dedicated employees, and customers who help us continue to develop.
Munich Startup: How are things going?
Johannes Dörr: We measure our success in CO2 savings. Since we're still young, we won't be able to truly measure our success until the coming years. However, we're very confident. To date, we've already trained over 200 specialists for climate-related jobs.
Strong impact-driven network in Munich
Munich Startup: How have you experienced Munich as a startup location so far?
Johannes Dörr: The Munich location is particularly important to us. We are proud to be part of Munich's impact-driven startup network and maintain an excellent working relationship with TUM. We also value the proximity to the mountains and the Isar River, which offer us opportunities for relaxation outside of work.
Munich Startup: Outsource or do it yourself?
Johannes Dörr: We prefer to take the first step ourselves. While we value external support, we initially develop our learning concepts, content, and platforms, as well as all other aspects we require as a leading academy in the field of energy efficiency, in-house. This allows us to optimally tailor our offerings to the needs of our customers.
