RootCamp’s Cross-Industry Innovation Lab (CIIL) supports startups with tailored guidance, market validation, and access to industry expertise. As an advisor in the program, Marc Junker works with founders on strategic questions and decision-making. Many founders seek advice only when something is already burning. But the strongest advisory relationships start much earlier: before the fire breaks out. In this interview, Marc Junker shares why strategic advisors should act less like firefighters and more like fire marshals.
My name is Marc Junker. Throughout most of my professional career, I have been building, leading, and scaling companies. I founded several startups and have served as a board member, advisor, and acting CIO for startups across Europe, Asia, and the US. I have also been involved in several exits, including acquisitions by publicly traded companies.
I have seen startups from nearly every angle: as a founder, angel investor, advisor, and CIO – from pre-seed through international expansion, bankruptcies, and successful exits.
Now, at 55, I have been in active retirement from operational management for the past 12 years. Today, I spend much of my time looking after a small forestry operation, which I somewhat unexpectedly had to establish after buying my property. On a day-to-day basis, that mostly means driving my little John Deere through the woods, cutting my own firewood, and reforesting open areas. I also manage our fully digitized family apiary as Chief Beekeeping Officer. In addition, I am an honorary docent for entrepreneurship and innovation at several universities and advise startups.
After stepping away from operational management, I realized that while I no longer wanted to run companies myself, I genuinely enjoy helping founders build theirs. Helping entrepreneurs think through difficult decisions has become one of the most rewarding parts of my professional life.
One distinction I always make is the difference between advisory and consulting. To me, it is simple: consultants provide answers; advisors ask questions.
A consultant is a specialist hired to implement a specific solution, such as setting up an ERP (Enterprise-Resource-Planning) system or refining a sales script. An advisor, by contrast, acts as a high-level sparring partner. Their primary output is not a checklist but food for thought and uncomfortable questions.
In my experience, successful advisors ask questions that challenge founders' thinking before the market does. A good advisory board is not there to put out fires. Its job is to make sure the building never catches fire in the first place. That is why I think of strategic advisors as fire marshals rather than firefighters.
Meetings should take place regularly. Continuous updates prevent what I call a "backstory tax," where founders spend much of the meeting explaining everything that has happened since the last discussion instead of focusing on the real issues.
The ability to listen is equally important. In many advisory sessions, I spend most of the meeting listening before saying anything. Careful listening and thoughtful questions help advisors recognize patterns and share examples of how similar challenges have been solved before.
I never expect founders to simply follow everything I suggest. There is something incredibly rewarding about seeing founders arrive at the right conclusion themselves. When that happens, the advisory process has done its job.
Just as importantly, founders and advisors will not always be on the same wavelength – and that is perfectly fine. I have declined advisory mandates in the past because I did not think the personal fit was there. It is also beneficial to build a diverse advisory board with as little overlap in expertise and experience as possible.
The best advisors have usually experienced both success and failure themselves. It is easy to give advice after reading a book, but that cannot replace having lived through similar situations. That experience is far more valuable than having a famous face on the pitch deck simply to impress investors.
Strategic advisors should sit on the founder's side of the table and are often compensated with equity, typically Virtual Stock Options to align their interests with the team. Investors and business angels can face conflicts of interest because their incentive is successfully realising a return on their investment. As a result, there are sensitive or potentially existential topics that founders may not feel comfortable discussing with someone who holds a direct financial stake in the company. That does not mean founders should exclude their business angels from important decisions. Many business angels bring outstanding networks and know-how that startups should absolutely leverage.
As a business angel, I selectively invest in startups where I see strong conviction and alignment with the team. However, I deliberately separate that role from my advisory work.The rationale is simple: investment decisions are driven by capital allocation and expected returns, whereas advisory focuses on improving the quality of founders' thinking and decision-making. Keeping these roles separate ensures that the advisory relationship remains fully independent.
In Europe, we often view Silicon Valley as the gold standard for venture building, but I’d be a bit more nuanced.
One eye-opening experience for me was seeing that American startups often establish advisory boards at the garage stage – very early and much more actively than in Europe. I have met founders who were literally working out of a garage while already receiving advice from executives of NASDAQ-listed companies. In Europe, problems are more often discussed behind closed doors and kept close to the vest until companies enter the market.
At the same time, I have noticed that American founders tend to focus heavily on their core competencies while outsourcing functions such as marketing, accounting, or even sales. That creates dependencies European founders mostly avoid. European startups may grow more slowly, but they are often more resilient. My advice is to cherry-pick from both worlds and remember, wherever you are as a founder: seeking advice is never a sign of weakness, but often the fastest way to learn.
There is an impressive number of startup events in Lower Saxony, for example, where founders can pitch their ideas early and attract the attention of experienced advisors.
Reaching out through social media also works well. I receive many requests that way and even when I cannot help directly, I am often able to introduce founders to someone in my network who can. I have also seen startups advertise advisory board seats alongside their fundraising efforts during pitch events.
The Cross-Industry Innovation Lab at RootCamp is another great place to start building an advisory board because of their "Advisory First" approach. A tailored program for each startup, built around creating lasting relationships between founders and advisors who are compensated during the program, provides an excellent opportunity for both sides to test the waters. That is a real unique selling point of the program, and I can see how well it works for the participating startups.