5 Questions for … Dr. Nele Stadtbäumer

Dr. Nele Stadtbäumer is the co-founder and CEO of the grief support service “grievy.” After earning her master’s degree in psychology from RWTH and her Ph.D. in computational life sciences and data analysis from the University of Bielefeld and RWTH, she founded her startup: grievy—modern grief support that is digital and tailored to each individual.

1. What is your current job title, and what tasks define your day-to-day work?

As the CEO of grievy—the market leader in digital grief support—I am responsible for determining the direction of our company’s strategy and content. We’ve grown through bootstrapping, meaning that in addition to leadership, I’m also responsible for sales, marketing, and partnerships. At the same time, maintaining direct contact with the grieving people we support remains very important to me—it ensures that our work stays grounded in reality and that it reflects their real needs.

My day-to-day work is therefore a mix of business decisions, product development, conversations with (potential) customers, and the ongoing refinement of our services. Our focus is on combining a scientific approach with innovation and genuine humanity.

2. To what extent did your time at RWTH inspire you to pursue your current career?

Traditionally, people don’t automatically associate psychology with entrepreneurial spirit. But at RWTH, innovation was something that you encountered everywhere. In addition to my undergraduate studies and my doctoral program, there were numerous opportunities to learn about starting a business, interdisciplinary collaboration, and entrepreneurial thinking. The culture of trying new things and taking on responsibility has shaped who I am. RWTH not only provides you with specialized knowledge, but it also fosters a certain mindset: If you have an idea, get out there and make it a reality. This mindset certainly played a part in my decision to take the plunge into becoming self-employed.

3. What is your favorite memory of your time at RWTH?

I specifically remember the strong sense of community there. I had close friendships with people in the field of psychology, but just as many friendships with people from other disciplines. This interdisciplinary dialogue has broadened my horizons tremendously. In addition to my studies, I was also very active on the snow sports team and in acrobatics. Winning silver for Aachen at the German Collegiate Snowboard Cross Championships is definitely one of the moments that most sticks in my mind. The opportunity to grow both athletically and personally while pursuing a challenging degree program really impacted my time at RWTH.

4. What are your future plans and goals—professional and/or personal?

Professionally, I’d like to continue expanding grievy—without losing the in-depth quality of our services that sets us apart from other providers. Digital grief support has enormous potential to reach even more people in an easy-to-access way and to make it more visible in society. I definitely want to play an active role in shaping this field and further improving its professional standards.

At the same time, I'm also going through an exciting phase in other areas of my life: This year, I'm excited to be publishing my first self-help book in collaboration with EMF Verlag. For me, this is yet another step towards making psychological knowledge about grief understandable, comprehensive, and accessible.

In the long term, my goal is to make an impact—both in business and in society—while leaving room for personal growth and new chapters in my life.

5. Grief and a digital app—How did the idea to combine these two things come about, and how did you put that idea into practice?

The catalyst for this was an event that happened in my own life: My father died suddenly, just one month before I started my doctoral program. I was 24 years old, and even though I was a psychologist, I felt lost. It became clear to me just how many people are left to grieve all on their own, and how little structured, well-founded, and practical support is available. That experience didn't immediately lead to a business plan, but rather to me asking myself the following question: How can I provide support to people using a medium that they access every day? The road from idea to reality was paved by conversations with people affected, initial concepts, a great deal of personal initiative, and the courage to get started. We started small, continued to develop, and grew steadily. Looking back, we have proven that digital support can promote human connections if it is scientifically sound and it is designed with people in mind.