Lisa Selke

Lisa serves as Executive Assistant to Simon Schmincke, and Head of Creandum's Executive Support, overseeing the support function across the whole firm. In her role, Lisa is responsible for ensuring that the firm’s leadership operates at its best amid the constant pace of deals, board meetings, and founder support.

I considered several different career paths when I was younger. I debated between being a stewardess (I was too small at the time), a vet (spending a lot of time at farms put me off), or a teacher (my dad was a teacher, which felt uncool), but eventually realized what excited me most was languages - especially French - and the prospect of working internationally.

I began my career working at large companies, supporting managers, and quickly realized my real passion: enabling people to achieve better results through my support. Freshfields became my professional bootcamp in my early twenties - two formative years defined by relentless time pressure, zero tolerance for mistakes, and uncompromising standards.

While I'm grateful for everything I learned during the years that followed in roles at Boeing and Porsche, I found myself increasingly drawn to environments where I could move faster, be more hands-on, and take greater initiative. When Simon offered me a job at Creandum, I was ready to jump into new waters. Even though I didn’t know exactly what working at a VC fund would look like, I knew it was the right move - and I haven’t been disappointed to this day. One of the things I love most about my job is recruiting and onboarding new team members, because I firmly believe our culture is unique and worth actively shaping.

Fun fact: I am still loyal to my Swabian roots as half of the "Schupfnudeln" sold at my go-to supermarket are probably thanks to me.