Hey,
Episode 17 of the podcast is live!
This week, I sat down with Theresa Gschwandtner — former LinkedIn and Qonto product marketing leader, and now founder of Kundra — to explore a journey that blends global leadership, career pivots, and building something deeply impactful:
Why product marketers are perfectly positioned to become founders.
Theresa’s career spans five countries, iconic companies, and one of the fastest-growing PMM teams in Europe. We talk about how she transitioned from launching features at lightning speed to launching her own company, why personal branding is not optional anymore, and the overlooked business impact of parental leave.
Listen on:
What we talked about:
How Theresa went from LinkedIn to launching her own startup, Kundra.
The cultural lessons from working across Austria, the US, Ireland, and France.
Why product marketing is the ultimate training ground for founders.
How she scaled Conto’s product marketing team from 0 to 20+ and launched features every 2 weeks.
The difference between Product PMMs and Market PMMs — and why both matter.
What GEMBA is and how it helped her lead a large team without constant 1:1s.
Why personal branding isn’t just a nice-to-have (especially as a founder).
The overlooked business risk of parental leave mismanagement — and how Kundra is solving it.
How she’s building her company in public, without being a parent herself.
Theresa Gschwandtner
“Careers are jungle gyms, not ladders. The winners will be those who keep adapting.”
A few key learnings:
How Theresa transitioned from LinkedIn and Qonto to founding her own startup, Kundra.
What working across Austria, the US, Ireland, and France taught her about leadership and localization.
Why product marketing gives you all the tools you need to eventually become a founder.
How she scaled Conto’s PMM team from scratch to 20+ and launched new features every two weeks.
The difference between Product PMMs and Market PMMs — and how splitting those roles unlocked speed and clarity.
How she replaced constant 1:1s with GEMBA sessions to stay close to her team while managing scale.
Why building a personal brand is no longer optional — especially if you’re starting something new.
Why parental leave mismanagement is a real business risk — and how Kundra is reframing it as a retention and productivity challenge.
How she’s building Kundra in public, co-creating with users, and challenging assumptions — even without being a parent herself.
Episode Chapters – Theresa
00:00 – Intro & Theresa’s background — From Salzburg to LinkedIn, WeWork, and Conto
04:00 – Cultural differences: US efficiency vs. EU localization
08:10 – Big brands vs. startups — what really matters early in your career
11:00 – Public speaking as a learnable skill (and why it’s underrated in Europe)
17:00 – How to get into top companies: strategy, networking, and posture
26:00 – Scaling a PMM team from 0 to 20+ at Conto
34:00 – Managing large teams with GEMBA instead of constant 1:1s
36:30 – Launching features every 2 weeks using “standards”
41:00 – Product marketers as future founders — why it’s a natural fit
44:00 – Building a personal brand that doesn’t feel fake
47:00 – The silent crisis of parental leave — and how Kundra is solving it
53:00 – Kundra’s solution and vision for HR teams
57:00 – The biggest surprise about becoming a solo founder
59:00 – Where to find Theresa online
Say "Hi" to Theresa:
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/theresagschwandtner
Website: https://kundra.ai
Podcast: Kundra
Substack (Newsletter): https://kundra.substack.com
Instagram: https://instagram.com/kundra.ai
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P.S. Do it Your Way 🧭
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Ivan
