Authors

Maximilian Ciasto

In November 2019, I joined dotSource – my first step into the professional world. I manage the company’s full spectrum of English-language output, ensuring consistency across all channels. Whether it is white papers, success stories or blog articles: My goal is to create compelling content that resonates with international audiences while reinforcing dotSource’s credibility as a forward-thinking digital agency.

Trained as a translator and interpreter in Germany and the United Kingdom, I hold an MSc in Interpreting from Heriot-Watt University. My academic background has sharpened my expertise in cross-cultural communication, refined editorial judgement and persuasive messaging – skills I now apply to the digital business landscape.

What I enjoy most about my role at dotSource is making the extensive service portfolio accessible to professionals around the globe. From e-commerce and customer relationship management to brand experience: Behind every project is a story worth telling. By shaping these narratives, I connect the strategic potential of digital transformation with the real-world challenges and pain points of modern businesses.

For me, language is more than just a means of expression – it is a way to foster understanding and drive action, allowing me to bridge the gap between complexity and clarity. That is what I strive for in every Handelskraft article: delivering value through originality, coherence and precision.

Catharina Meyer

As part of dotSource’s marketing team, I create content that informs, inspires and makes digital business trends more accessible. Since January 2023, I’ve authored a variety of formats – from white papers and success stories to the annual Trend Book – with a focus on combining solid research with engaging storytelling.

I hold a Master’s degree in Global Communication, Politics and Society from the University of Erfurt, where I focused on making complex scientific topics understandable to the public. That foundation still shapes my work today: analysing and contextualising developments in the digital world for a broad audience of current and future clients.

Before joining dotSource, I gained work experience in a variety of sectors ranging from automotive and energy to foreign policy. These experiences gave me a clearer view of the challenges different industries face – and how digital solutions can help make work safer, smarter and more efficient. For the Handelskraft formats, I enjoy breaking down abstract topics and bringing them to life in a way that’s both comprehensible and compelling.

Having grown up in the US and later Germany, I’m at home in both cultures – and both languages – which helps me create content with an international audience in mind.

Franzi Kunz

I have been part of the dotSource marketing team since April 2018. As a digital business analyst and content creator, I research and write for the Handelskraft blog and trend book together with my colleagues and moderate the Digital.Business.Talk and the Handelskraft conference. In the area of personnel marketing and employer branding, I maintain and monitor dotSource’s social media channels.

Since 2021, I am a tech lead and mentor for new employees in these areas.

I studied English/American Studies, German and Romance Philology at Friedrich Schiller University Jena. Graduating from FJS Berlin with a degree in journalism set the stage for turning my passion for writing into my profession.

Before joining dotSource, I was a mouthpiece and writer for a small label from Gotha as well as a content contributor at one of the big players in e-commerce. In the past, I was able to see both sides of the e-commerce scene. These experiences have helped me throughout my career – and as a blogger at Handelskraft, I can now also look at them from a new and (more) exciting perspective.

As a child of the eighties, the Internet, e-commerce and Co. were incredibly exciting developments for me, too. Digital transformation is still a long, impressive journey with many stops and destinations. I’m all the more pleased that I can now officially set out on this journey and take you along with me in my Handelskraft articles.

Birthe Struffmann

I’ve been part of the dotSource marketing team since July 2021. As Head of the Handelskraft Blog, trend book author, and challenging partner for numerous marketing campaigns, I work with the latest trends in the digital business world every day.

In my role, I get to unleash my creativity while also indulging my love of numbers by continuously monitoring and optimising our campaigns. That combination, by the way, is exactly why I chose to study Business Administration with a focus on marketing at Friedrich Schiller University in Jena. After five years of study, I earned my master’s degree in October 2020.

During my studies, I worked as a tutor for the marketing department at FSU Jena, managed social media for a fitness studio, and even got my first look into dotSource marketing during an internship.

It seems I just can’t stay away from marketing—or from dotSource. And with good reason! I’m constantly inspired by the rapid pace of digital change and by the knowledge and expertise of my colleagues. I look forward to sharing that enthusiasm with you, exchanging ideas, and exploring how to make the most of what the digital world has to offer.

Luise Beyer

I’ve been supporting the dotSource team since February 2016. I started as an intern and wrote my master’s thesis on »Marketing Automation« with the help of dotSource.

I studied Business Administration with a focus on marketing at Friedrich Schiller University Jena and completed both my bachelor’s and my master’s degree there. After six years of traditional business studies, however, my focus at dotSource is now on e-commerce.

As a digital native, I’ve been fascinated by the world of the Internet since my childhood and I’ve always been able to follow its exciting development. What fascinates me most is how digital technologies and social networks have changed our lives in recent years – the way we live, communicate and, last but not least, shop.

Sara Herrera

I joined the dotSource marketing team in December 2015 to keep on rocking e-commerce. My main task is to create content for our blogs Handelskraft.de and Handelskraft.com. Blog marketing, SEO and writing white papers is also part of my job.

Before I took up my exciting new role as a blogger at Handelskraft, I had worked in customer service and social media roles for a multinational online company in the UK for three years. I’m passionate about social media and online marketing, which is why I graduated from Carlos III University of Madrid with a degree in journalism and decided to do a master’s degree in Communication and Marketing Management afterwards.

As a digital native, I’m fascinated by everything the Internet has to offer in terms of interaction, socialisation, commerce and communication. Since I want to stay up to date and am very eager to learn new things, I acquire new knowledge about these topics every day.

At Handelskraft, I continue to examine the latest trends and developments in e-commerce – both on a national and international level. I also want to share my point of view with you so that we can engage in a dialogue and build bridges between you and Handelskraft. However, irony, sarcasm and fun are still welcome, especially on Fridays.

Christian Otto Grötsch

In 2006, I founded the digital agency dotSource together with Christian Malik. With the help of our young and constantly growing team, we provide consulting services to medium-sized companies as well as international corporations with regard to strategies and technologies in digital business.

Over the course of 14 successful years as an agency, we opened three more offices in Berlin, Leipzig and Dresden and welcomed the 300th employee to our large international family in 2020. Both internally and externally, being human is our top priority. This way, we manage to maintain our start-up spirit despite the growing number of employees and offices. This is felt by our employees as well as our clients and partners.

As my professional career as a

• graduate of EAH Jena (bachelor’s degree) and Steinbeis-Hochschule Berlin (master’s degree) in business and engineering
• project manager at auXion and NavPunkt
• software developer and pre-sales consultant at Intershop
• founder and managing director of dotSource and Digital Business School
• blogger at Handelskraft

shows, I’ve turned my passion for e-commerce and digital business into my profession and I’m very happy to be the initiator, co-creator and facilitator of large projects, unique events and (digital) customer relationships.

Besides the agency business, I’m also engaged in various social, economic and political projects. It’s close to my heart not only to help shape the digital transformation for our clients, but also to invest in the future of young e-commerce talent in Jena. Together with other players in Jena’s digital landscape and the Thuringian Ministry for Economic Affairs, Science and Digital Society, we are committed to encouraging more and more young people to pursue an academic career in e-commerce.

In 2013, we co-initiated the establishment of the e-commerce bachelor’s degree programme and actively helped shape its content. In 2018, we also launched the e-commerce master’s degree programme at Ernst-Abbe-Hochschule (EAH) Jena together with more than 20 partners.

My active blogging days on Handelskraft are part of my personal dotSource story, too. The blog team has also grown and has been providing exciting articles and analyses of current topics and trends day after day since 2007. Since my heart beats for marketing as well, I’m all the more pleased to contribute to this blog from time to time.