Karolina Sarna — Co-Founder
Investors evaluate the market, the technology, and the team. They almost never evaluate the operating structure that has to deliver on the thesis. 65% of portfolio failures are attributed to people and organisational issues. The due diligence missed it because it wasn’t looking. That gap is where I work. I do two things for climate tech and space investors and founders: Science and technology evaluation. I stress-test the thesis behind climate tech and space deals. Not “is the technology impressive” but "where can this science actually be applied, and what would need to be true on the buyer’s side for that to happen." For family offices making direct climate investments, I translate the science into investment-grade evaluation. For VCs scanning deal volume, I filter for where the science works and where the target industry can’t yet absorb it. I built climate adaptation products at ICEYE. I worked on Earth Observation satellites at ESA. I evaluate the science directly, not through intermediaries. Operational diagnosis. When an organisation is underperforming and no one can explain why, I go in. Not as an analyst writing a report. As someone who sits with the founder, sees what’s not being said on calls, and debugs the company from the inside. I work with founders directly or on behalf of their investors. I always combine this with coaching because strategy without coaching is expensive wallpaper, and coaching without fixing the system is therapy that does’'t stick. PhD in atmospheric physics, TU Delft. Built €20M ARR in climate adaptation products. Spent years watching brilliant organisations fail for structural reasons that had nothing to do with talent. Now I diagnose what’s actually broken. karolina@rebelstrategylab.com | rebelstrategylab.com
Stackforce AI infers this person is a Climate Tech and Space Advisory expert with a strong focus on data-driven product development.
Location: Stockholm, Stockholm County, Sweden
Experience: 14 yrs 10 mos
Skills
- Strategy
- Coaching
- Data Strategy
- Product Development
- Leadership
- Technical Direction
- Data Analytics
- Data Management
- Machine Learning
- Product Management
- Research
- Data Analysis
- Geospatial Intelligence
Career Highlights
- PhD in Atmospheric Physics from TU Delft.
- Built €20M ARR in climate adaptation products.
- Expert in diagnosing organizational issues in climate tech.
Work Experience
Rebel Strategy Lab
Founder & Principal (1 yr 2 mos)
Yousician
Head of Data & Insights (5 mos)
Gallant Finland
Board Member (1 yr 3 mos)
ICEYE
Director of Product (1 yr 4 mos)
Director of Applications Engineering (1 yr)
Head of Data Infrastructure and Tooling (8 mos)
Data Strategy and Acquisition Lead (8 mos)
ESA/ESTEC
Space Systems Performance Engineer (2 yrs 11 mos)
Akvo
Data Science Manager (1 yr 8 mos)
KNMI
Researcher in Remote Sensing (3 yrs)
TU Delft
PhD Researcher in Atmospheric Physics (4 yrs 6 mos)
Megajoule
Data Analyst (11 mos)
Education
Doctor of Philosophy - PhD at Delft University of Technology
Engineering at KU Leuven
MSc at Warsaw University of Technology
MSc at Universidad de Salamanca
BSc at Warsaw University of Technology
