Claus Karthe has a strong Nokia background, mixed with an entrepreneurial streak and a love of the sea. A German by birth, he nevertheless considers himself to be Asian, having lived and worked in Asia since 1994.

Claus was actually the first employee of the German subsidiary of Nokia in 1991, where he began as a Sales & Engineering Manager. After three years, he moved to the Philippines and incorporated Nokia Philippines as a full subsidiary. After another three years, he decided it was time to develop his business skills further, “I applied to IMD, after seeing the quality of the learning and the professors during customized programs at Nokia.

“My MBA year, 1997, was tough, but the interaction among participants was excellent – we had some really good fights in the most positive sense and gained a lot of respect for one another.”

During recruiting, Claus had interviews with several telecom companies, but when Nokia offered him a chance to build up new business in Asia, he accepted, “I knew I was returning to a good company versus an unknown entity and the prospect of growing the telecom business during the Asian Financial Crisis was an exciting challenge.”

In 1999, he added to the challenge by participating in the incubation of a start-up, whilst his career at Nokia continued to progress. After working in Taiwan, Korea and Japan he left Nokia in 2002. At the time, he was Vice President & General Manager of Nokia Networks, heading a major customer business team, as well as President of Nokia Philippines Inc. and Business Board member for Nokia Networks Asia Pacific.

“I took on an interim CEO position for a Philippine-based mobile content company, of which I was an "angel investor", and expanded the company internationally.

"In mid-2005, being free of commitments, I decided to fulfill my childhood dream of sailing around the world.” Claus joined the Asian team on the “Uniquely Singapore Clipper” for the Clipper 2005/06 Round World Yacht Race, where he was watch leader and responsible for navigation, communications and engineering. “I love the sea and the 14 months of hardship and excitement on board a racing yacht, crossing oceans in all weathers, paradoxically taught me how to relax. It also offered a perfect time to re-evaluate my life and create plans for the future.”

In fact, the experience led to the idea for a new business. “Much of the communication gear on the boat was unreliable, clumsy and expensive. Being an engineer entrepreneur from the world of communications, I’m currently developing a new product that will revolutionize communication at sea. Stay tuned!”

Published: 2007