How VC-Backed Startups Can Master Their Legal Processes

That was exactly the focus of the “From Chaos to Clarity” webinar, where three experts shared their experiences and strategies: Lydia Kothmeier (SVP Operations, Storyblok), Peter Lasinger (Founder and Partner, 3VC) and Constantin Wintoniak (Co-Founder, fynk).

Lydia Kothmeier

Lydia Kothmeier is Senior Vice President of Operations at Storyblok and one of the company’s earliest employees. She played a key role in building the company – in a fully remote setup spanning Europe and South America. Lydia oversees compliance, finance, and people operations, and brings hands-on experience in topics like ESOPs, GDPR, and ISO certifications. She also previously worked on the investor side.

Peter Lasinger

Peter Lasinger is founder and General Partner at the venture capital fund 3VC. He invested in Storyblok in its very first funding round, when the team consisted of just three people. As a board member and close advisor to many portfolio companies, he knows the challenges of growing startups inside out. He also manages internal growth at capital300 – giving him a dual perspective as investor and internal operator.

Constantin Wintoniak

Constantin Wintoniak is co-founder of fynk, a platform that automates and simplifies contract workflows. Before founding fynk, he had already built and successfully sold a company. As a VC-backed founder and business angel, he knows contracts and their pitfalls from all angles – from term sheets and ESOP structures to exit negotiations.

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Why Legal Structure Is Not a Luxury

Startups launch with energy, vision – and a certain amount of chaos. But this chaos can become dangerous quickly when contracts are missing, responsibilities are unclear, or compliance is neglected.

As Peter emphasized during the webinar:

As your company grows, so does the chaos—and that’s actually a sign that something’s happening.

The solution? Create a digital foundation – as early as possible. When contracts are clearly stored, processes documented, and roles defined, a company gains not only efficiency but also resilience.

Start Early – But Stay Pragmatic

All three speakers agreed: You don’t have to set everything up perfectly from day one. But you should focus deliberately on the next 6 to 12 months – and lay the groundwork for that.

Lydia emphasized:

You can’t build the rocket while you fly it—but you should at least plan for what you’ll need in the next 6 to 12 months.

For her, implementing a CRM and HR system was essential – along with contract standards: Who is allowed to negotiate what? Where is approval needed? It saves time, reduces risks, and relieves the leadership team.

Investors Look for Structure

A clean structure isn’t only beneficial internally. External stakeholders – especially investors – pay close attention to whether a company is professionally set up.

As Peter explained:

When I start trying to bring structure in, it takes time and doesn’t make a great impression. [...] Because of course every investor, partner, bank – whoever it is – expects you to have your house in order.

A solid setup is a signal: This team is ready to scale. Those who prepare structured data rooms for due diligence show reliability – and increase their chances of successful funding rounds.

Templates, Approvals, and the Power of “No”

Young startups often feel the need to say yes to every customer request – just to close the deal. But Constantin warned against too many exceptions:

What really helped us was introducing the templates Lydia mentioned early on – and building in negotiation leeway from the start.

Only when there are clear approvals and frameworks in place can processes scale. Constantin stressed the biggest danger: that uncontrolled changes creep into templates – and with each new contract, the risk grows.

Remote-First Needs Process-First

Especially in a decentralized, digital setup, clean documentation is key – for compliance, transparency, and efficiency.

Lydia summed it up:

That’s essential for me in a remote setup – setting the right expectations. I can definitely agree with that.

And culturally, it requires role models. Structure only works when it’s lived:

It’s no use having beautiful policies [...] if the CEO or the top leadership just does things differently.

Final Takeaway: Structure Isn’t a Barrier – It’s a Lever

The webinar clearly showed: process and structure are not the opposite of agility – they are the foundation for it. Those who lay the right tracks early on avoid headaches, negotiations, and risks later.

With digital signatures, templates, CRM systems, and a strong sense of ownership, every startup can grow more professionally and at scale.

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We will collect, use and protect your data in accordance with our privacy policy.

And take the first step – from chaos to clarity.

Please keep in mind that none of the content on our blog should be considered legal advice. We understand the complexities and nuances of legal matters, and as much as we strive to ensure our information is accurate and useful, it cannot replace the personalized advice of a qualified legal professional.