Join the fast lane:
Accelerate your projects with entrepreneurial spirit .

PowerLab provides practical, in-depth mentoring from TenneT and external startup coaches to bring speed and clarity to your current or upcoming projects.

AIM OF THE PROGRAM

Learn innovative ways to efficiently and effectively tackle important TenneT projects

We offer mentoring, honest feedback, leadership attention, fast decisions and the possibility of securing a sponsor for your project. By joining the program, you will undergo a series of workshops and mentoring sessions with your external coach, culminating in pitches to key decision- makers.

Work like an entrepreneur within TenneT

YOUR BENEFITS

Make “project results” your middle name

Join PowerLab and make a 360° assessment of your project. We will guide you through the proven way forward and connect you to valuable internal stakeholders.

Fast decisions

Leadership attention

Budget

Innovative way to tackle projects

Coaching and Mentoring

Learnings valuable for career advancement

MEET YOUR COACHES

Get supported by an experienced startup coach

Georg Horn

Georg is an experienced two-time founder and business consultant who knows how to speak startup and corporate. With his founding experience spanning from e-commerce to SaaS and machine learning, Georg is versed in all venture steps from ideation to market launch or even exit. Georg has a strong passion for ventures, business models and innovation. He will help your and your team achieve your targets.

Federica Succio

Federica is a seasoned expert in guiding corporate project teams through the intricate landscapes of corporate innovation. With a successful track record in executing market validation and market entry strategies — resulting in customer acquisition across 15 countries globally — she has demonstrated her prowess in navigating the global market. Her expertise and supportive coaching approach empower project teams to achieve their objectives and drive meaningful innovation within the corporate framework.

Mario Eibl

With over 15 years of engineering experience, Mario not only successfully established and scaled his own international electric mobility company to seven-figure revenue with a team of 20, but he also played a crucial role in guiding numerous startups, either as their first team member, consultant, or during M&A processes. His passion for environmentally impactful startups is deeply intertwined with his background in engineering and management.

Caroline Wenninger

With a background in coaching, facilitation and project management, Caroline brings a unique combination of skills and perspectives to PowerLab teams. She has designed and facilitated workshops on strategy, team development as well as management and has supported interdisciplinary teams to achieve their objectives. Her experience in corporate intrapreneurship and project management in the energy sector makes her a versatile inspiring coach for our teams.

Jannis Kuhrt

Jannis is passionate about entrepreneurship, be it at TenneT or his own Venture. With 14+ years of experience at national and international levels, Jannis excels in efficiency, innovation, and business growth. His vast network at TenneT and deep knowledge of the intricacies of bringing a project to success in our organization make him an excellent mentor for your team.

Dr. Christian Stumpf

Christian is an expert in intrapreneurship and sustainable performance, with a strong background in developing corporate and startup innovations. Having coached and trained hundreds of employees and startup founders, Christian is a great mentor to guide your project at TenneT to success.

WHAT TO EXPECT

Detailed program

PowerLab seamlessly integrates into your schedule ensuring proper flexibility with an individual approach and requiring a maximum of 20% of your regular working hours. Since this time is primarily dedicated to a project you would be anyway working on, it helps you focus your efforts, make faster progress and save time in the long run. The program is structured into three phases: Explore, Develop, and Establish. After completing the Bootcamp, you will begin in either the Explore or Develop phase, depending on the maturity of your project.

Step 1

Submit your application

We welcome all projects and ideas. You do not have a team yet? No problem – we will support you in finding the right setup as you progress through the program.

Step 2

Join PowerLab Bootcamp

The PowerLab Bootcamp is your starting point of the program. Over three days, you will work preferably on-site with your coach to conduct a comprehensive 360° assessment of your project. You can join the Bootcamp according to when better fits your projects: we will identify together the suitable date for your Bootcamp.

LEARN MORE

Objectives of the Bootcamp:

✔ Define your challenge
✔ Map (internal) customer profiles & journeys
✔ Design your roadmap and plan
✔ Pitch to the PowerLab core team

During the Bootcamp, you will focus on clearly defining the challenge your project addresses for TenneT and collecting evidence to show why it is worth solving. The Bootcamp concludes with a short pitch to the PowerLab core team, who will decide whether the project advances in the program and, if so, at which phase (Explore or Develop).

Step 3

Form your team

During the ramp-up phase (lasting maximum three weeks) you will focus on assembling your project team. If your team is already in place, this phase will be quicker.

Step 4

Realise your project

Using the 'Lean Startup' approach, you will refine your project and advance its implementation through three key phases: Explore, Develop, and Establish. Over the course of four to five months, you will participate in three half-day remote workshops (KickOff, MidTerm, and WrapUp) and benefit from weekly coaching sessions.

You will individually schedule, in agreement with your coach, the dates of these workshops, in a way that your journey flexibly adapts to your team- and project-specific paces.

LEARN MORE

Explore Phase

✔ Desk research
✔ Customer interviews
✔ Stakeholder mapping
✔ Business model coaching
✔ Networking
✔ Development of entrepreneurial mindset
✔ Proof of desirability
✔ First solution definition
✔ Definition of further validation hypotheses

Develop Phase:

✔ Development of a prototype of your solutions
✔ Testing of the prototype with potential internal and external customers
✔ Feedback collection
✔ Improvement of your solution based on the feedback
✔ Coaching by an external venture architect
✔ Support from technical experts

Establish Phase:

✔ Launching a small-scale pilot of your project
✔ Testing all aspects of your solution
✔ Growing your project

Step 5

Pitch on decision day

You will individually schedule, in agreement with your coach, the dates of these workshops, in a way that your journey flexibly adapts to your team- and project-specific paces.

DON’T TAKE OUR WORD FOR IT

What others say about the program

PowerLab really helped our team to make great progress with our project.

Hi, I’m Annelie. Together with my colleagues Jakob and Christian we wanted to execute our initiative that focuses on improving the knowledge access for new employees. PowerLab showed us how to validate our project, which helped us to save time and generate valuable learnings with just one day per week on this topic.

Annelie Grömer, Team Brain Connectors

Advisor Competence Management, Grid Field Operations Excellence, Strategy & Business Support

I see the benefit of PowerLab two-fold.

On one hand, PowerLab helps to advance and implement projects with high relevance and great potential for success. On the other hand, it provides TenneT employees with the opportunity to work with innovative methods and tools, execute projects like entrepreneurs and ultimately drive their own careers forward.

Christine Schneider

Head Board Office, TenneT

SUCCESSFUL POWERLAB PROJECTS

Get inspired by our projects

Smart Joint

The hybrid offshore subsea converter is an invention-based asset design for offshore wind energy integration. It is improving the state-of-the-art technology towards a simple, modular, and scalable solution. Unlike the platform of today, most on the technical inventory can be exchanged and maintained at land.

Offshore Subsea Converter

TenneT Basic Week & Training Center

The project helps new employees perform their work 30% faster and more effectively. We have identified the knowledge that new team members truly need and provide it precisely when it is required. Our goal is also to make knowledge more accessible in general and reduce dependency on individual experts.

Accelerate the Circular Economy

Reuse of (materials of) high voltage transformers to accelerate the circular economy within TenneT. With this solution we aim to stabilize the material prices and have better and faster availability of the transformers.

Lessons Learned

Relaunching ‚Lessons Learned‘, LPO‘s central knowledge management repository, with significantly improved usability for submitters and those seeking to benefit from past learnings, plus — most importantly — reviving the spirit of sharing across all LPO project teams.

ChatGIP

ChatGIP is a large language model-based chatbot that provides instant answers to process-related questions for buying indirect goods and services, including materials, standard services, and consultancy services. The chatbot aims to speed up the indirect procurement process for TenneT employees by reducing waiting times for queries.

NEED A BIT MORE CONVINCING?

PowerLab was recognized amongst the best innovation programs in Germany in 2023

We are extremely proud of this achievement and want as many TenneT employees as possible to experience the benefits of the innovative way of working.

Apply now with your project and work like an entrepreneur within TenneT

REACH OUT TO US

Still have questions?

We got you covered!

Who is eligible to apply?

PowerLab is for all TenneT employees who want to unleash their entrepreneurial spirit. Whether you are already working on a project or just starting to develop your idea, PowerLab supports you in moving forward faster and turning your idea into reality.

Do I need to have a team to apply?

While having a team (up to four people) is preferred, it is not mandatory. A team allows you to share the workload and leverage diverse skills to achieve a common goal, so we encourage you to consider building one. However, individual applications are equally welcome and we will support you in finding the right setup during the program.

What do I need to bring to the table?

A project or an idea for a project that will solve a challenge for TenneT. If this project is already known to and is supported by a manager, this is a plus.
Most importantly, passion for working in a start-up-like environment to bring your project to life and motivation to learn new methods and approaches.

What types of projects can I apply with?

You need a project or an idea that aims to solve a relevant problem for TenneT. Having a manager's support for your project is a plus but not mandatory. Most important are your passion for working in a start-up-like environment, your drive to bring your idea to life, and your motivation to learn new methods and approaches.

How do projects get selected?

Once the application phase ends, a committee of cross-divisional experts and the PowerLab core team will evaluate all projects and decide which ones will be shortlisted. The shortlisted teams are then notified and invited to the first phase of PowerLab – either Explore or Develop, based on your project’s maturity.

What happens with my current position?

Your current position remains unaffected by your participation in PowerLab. There are no changes to your salary, benefits, or contract. PowerLab integrates seamlessly into your schedule, requiring a maximum of 20% of your regular working hours. However, since this time is primarily dedicated to the project you are already working on, it actually helps you focus, streamline your efforts and save you time in the long run. This arrangement is aligned with your manager to ensure a smooth integration.

Where can I get additional information about PowerLab?

You can download the PowerLab pitch deck here herunterladen, um detaillierte Informationen zu erhalten. Teile es gerne innerhalb deines TenneT-Netzwerks mit dem Link zu dieser Webseite. Wenn du noch offene Fragen hast, melde dich beim PowerLab-Team unter powerlab@tennet.eu.

Hi, I’m Chris from TenneT PowerLab. Your question is still not answered? Fill in the form or call me directly at +49 151 1674 2870 .

Join the fast lane: Accelerate your projects with entrepreneurial spirit .