On March 5th, 2021, SAP acquired Signavio for a billion dollars – this marks one of the largest Tech Exits in the German market to date.How does a university side project become a billion-dollar acquisition? In this episode, Gero Decker, co-founder of Signavio, shares the incredible journey of building the company – from its roots as an open-source project to bootstrapping, scaling, and eventually being acquired by SAP for over a billion dollars. Learn about the pivotal moments, the role of timing, and how a strong team culture propelled Signavio to success, even when the odds were against them.What you’ll learn:

How a university project turned into a profitable company

Why customer feedback and bootstrapping were critical in the early days

How creative lead generation methods (like the "Hare Krishna Method") made a difference

Why team culture and timing played a vital role in success

How the billion-dollar SAP acquisition unfolded and the dynamics of negotiation

MORE UNICORN BAKERY:https://zez.am/unicornbakery More about Gero Decker:LinkedIn: https://de.linkedin.com/in/gerodecker Website: https://www.signavio.com/de/ Where to get the Book: Amazon: https://links.unicornbakery.de/signavioSpotify Audio Book: https://links.unicornbakery.de/signavio-audio-book Join our Founder Tactics Newsletter:Twice a week, you’ll get the tactics of the world’s best founders delivered straight to your inbox.https://www.tactics.unicornbakery.de/ Marker:(00:00:00) Why were so many coincidences necessary for Signavio to even be founded?(00:05:00) How did the Signavio story unfold?(00:12:10) From open source to profitable company: The milestones(00:21:22) Equity & founding team: The starting point for Signavio(00:27:54) Prioritization & team spirit in a small team(00:31:11) Product & growth in 2010(00:34:46) Lead generation & the failure of conversion(00:42:02) First Go-to-market motion at Signavio(00:46:52) First customers: The challenges with Customer Success(00:52:42) From bootstrapped to VC case – why now & what changed?(00:59:13) Fast-growing company: How do you maintain focus?(01:07:54) The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Signavio(01:13:04) The Path & Negotiation to the SAP Acquisition (01:17:14) The Future of SAP Signavio(01:21:37) The Lesson: Lifting Up Each Other