Andreas Thorsheim Chair, Plancraft

Company

Plancraft is a digital platform for the craft industries, helping these professions address some of the key challenges that they face, from labour shortages to increasing bureaucratic demands. Plancraft’s SaaS solution does this by digitizing important workflows such as quotes and invoices, project management, on-site documentation, and time tracking. The result is that craft professionals can cut the time they spend on administrative tasks, enabling them to work more efficiently, save money and spend more time with their customers.

The Hamburg based company was founded in 2020 by Julian Wiedenhaus, Alexander Noll and Richard Keil. In June 2024 Plancraft raised a €12m Series A funding round, led by Creandum and including existing investors such as Bitstone Capital and High-Tech Gründerfonds.

Search Background

Having recently raised a Series A funding round, Plancraft had reached an important stage in its growth journey. Following the investment, the first Advisory Board was created, which required the addition of an experienced Chair. Plancraft’s vision is to become the first European Contractor Operating System, connecting every contractor with their project partners and customers, turning craftsmen into entrepreneurs. To achieve this, the business will seek to expand into new international markets and drive significant growth into the contractor ecosystem, with the platform already being used by over 20,000 contractors.

Requirements

Plancraft was seeking an experienced business leader, who had previous experience of operating on the Board of a high-growth SaaS company and who had ideally operated as a Founder and CEO. The candidate would bring experience of leading expansion into new international markets, and of having scaled a business that targeted the micro-SMB segment of the market. Having been a Founder themselves, the candidate will be able to provide advice and guidance to Julian and Alexander on a broad range of business related topics.

Result

Following a successful search, Plancraft appointed Andreas Thorsheim as Chair. Andreas is currently CEO at Otovo, the solar energy marketplace that connects homeowners with solar panel installers. He founded Otovo in 2016 in Oslo, with the mission of making residential solar power more accessible and affordable. Under his leadership, Otovo has expanded across multiple European countries and went public on the Oslo Stock Exchange in 2021. Before founding Otovo, Andreas was an EVP at Schibsted Media Group, a large European media company and was CEO at Finn.no, Norway’s largest classified ads website.