Patrick R.

COO and Head of Business Development

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Munich, Germany

Experience

May 2025 - Present
8 months
Munich, Germany
Remote

CEO and Founder

Crux Consulting

Crux Consulting is a young consultancy with the motto "We reshape time in your favour with AI." We help SMEs across Europe automate their processes with custom AI solutions. We reached 5-digit revenues in the first 6 months by offering tender search, process automation, automated content creation, and data enrichment and analysis. As the founder, I built the company from the ground up and now lead a team of three to scale faster.

Oct 2024 - Mar 2025
6 months
Sofia, Bulgaria

COO and Head of Business Development

Fast Track Europe Ltd

  • Implemented a new operations system to give the team clear visibility into company priorities and project tracking
  • Built a framework for global expansion through partnerships, covering legal, hiring, and development
  • Set up a scalable, measurable data infrastructure
  • Joined as Head of Partnerships and promoted to COO after six weeks
May 2022 - Jun 2024
2 years 2 months
Berlin, Germany

Head of Business Operations

Vanguard Group Europe GmbH

  • Led a team of seven across the Project Management Office, Financial Crimes, and the RPA automation team I built
  • Transformed workflows by rolling out new tools for better planning, collaboration, and reporting
  • Introduced RPA automation, freeing up the workload of 7 full-time employees in months
  • Oversaw initiatives to scale offerings for customers
  • Built relationships with key strategic partners
  • Managed the statutory audit, halving findings year over year and keeping strong auditor relations
  • Turned around a struggling team, boosting effectiveness by 200%
  • Planned and laid the groundwork for strategic expansion across Continental Europe
  • Led the operational wind-down during business closure, covering vendor relations, third-party contracts, and client offboarding
  • Created an automation offboarding team that saved around €600,000 in months
Jan 2021 - Apr 2022
1 year 4 months
Berlin, Germany

Chief of Staff and Program Manager

Vanguard Group Europe GmbH

  • Improved cross-company collaboration and automated reporting
  • Served as program manager for the Vanguard Invest go-to-market in Germany, leading the local project team and managing side projects like tool implementation, GDPR compliance, and new hire onboarding
  • Wrote the go-to-market strategy for Vanguard's new D2C business, setting OKRs and KPIs
  • Revolutionized regular reporting to senior management on project progress, OKRs, and other key metrics with new systems
  • Acted as main corporate contact for strategic partnerships and vendors
  • Recruited 50 employees and drove culture at Vanguard Germany
  • Mentored five colleagues in their career development
  • Planted over 9,000 trees
Jan 2018 - Dec 2020
3 years
London, United Kingdom

Chief of Staff in European Distribution

Vanguard Asset Management Ltd

  • Represented European Sales at the London HQ on projects across the business, such as ESG product and strategy development
  • Facilitated sales leadership decision-making and took ownership of implementation
  • Developed management reports for leadership and oversight
  • Coordinated business planning, like European expansion, and key initiatives for the European Distribution team
  • Handled critical, escalated client requests to ensure the best outcomes
Jan 2016 - Dec 2017
2 years
Munich, Germany

Junior Wealth/Asset Manager

Quirin Privatbank AG

  • Advised individual clients about their financial plan, including the management of their advisory portfolios
  • Prepared investment research, portfolio analyses and financial life plans
  • Specialized in ETFs and a global investment approach
  • Supported senior consultants in their daily work, e.g., opening accounts, adjusting investment strategies, organizing client events
  • Invented and implemented a new traineeship program
  • Responsible for the branch regarding the German Securities Trading Act (WpHG)
Nov 2014 - May 2015
7 months
Newcastle, Australia

Trainee in Project Management

Moly Cop

Summary

I'm a dynamic, results-driven senior manager who uses my deep financial services experience to drive success across organizations. As a versatile generalist, I blend strategic problem-solving with an entrepreneurial mindset, creating environments where teams thrive and deliver great results, even in tough situations. I live by the principle 'I find a way or build one', and I've turned around underperforming divisions and reenergized teams, driving major improvements. My strategic vision and hands-on approach to innovative solutions have advanced Fast Track Europe and Vanguard Europe's goals and boosted team performance overall.

Languages

German
Native
English
Advanced
Spanish
Intermediate

Education

Oct 2015 - Jun 2017

European College of Business and Management

M.Sc. · International Business and Management · London, United Kingdom

Oct 2010 - Jun 2014

Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelm University

B.Sc. · Economics · Bonn, Germany

Oct 2001 - Jun 2010

High School Landschulheim Kempfenhausen

High School Diploma · High School Diploma · Munich, Germany

Certifications & licenses

CFA ESG Certificate

CFA Level 1

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