Josef Kotrba

Partner

In his professional life, Josef Kotrba focuses mainly on mergers and acquisitions and the energy sector. He is currently the CEO of the Czech Gas Association and remains active in M&A.

After graduating from the University of Economics, he began his career in economic research at the then Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences. In the 1990s, he studied economics at the University of Pittsburgh, where he also received his Ph.D. After his return, he worked at CERGE-EI and at Česká spořitelna. Subsequently, he spent more than twenty years at Deloitte, where, in addition to his management roles (he first headed the financial advisory department and then the entire firm in the Czech Republic), he focused on transactions and energy.

He brings his experience in both areas to his investments in Behind Inventions.

Diana Rádl Rogerová

Partner

Diana is a Czech senior executive turned investor. She is a partner at Behind Inventions and former managing partner of Deloitte Czech Republic, where she also held the role of Chief Strategic Officer for Deloitte Europe.

She graduated from the University of Economics in Prague in 1996. For her managerial and innovative activities she was included in the TOP 25 Women of the Czech Republic, published by the media company Economia, and Forbes magazine has repeatedly included her in the list of the most influential Czech women. In 2022, she won the Manager of the Year award and in 2023 she won the CEO magazine's Most Successful Women award in the "Consulting" category.

Diana is also very involved in activities in support of the state. She is the creator of the conference CzechSetGo! with a focus on the digitalisation of the state. Thanks to this and her experience, she became a member of the Digital Team of the Czech Republic and is a member of the Advisory Team of the Deputy Prime Minister for Digitalization. She is also a member of the team of the Minister of Health.

Jan Balatka

Partner

Jan Balatka specializes in technology projects. After his studies, he started working in the Cyber Risk Management department at Deloitte. Over time, in addition to cyber threats, he focused on analytical and forensic technologies for fraud investigation services. He then led the Analytics, Artificial Intelligence and eDiscovery division for the Central Europe region at Deloitte.

During his 18-year involvement with Deloitte, Honza has participated in and later managed a number of projects outside the Czech Republic, especially in Switzerland, Canada and Germany. In addition to project activities, he was also responsible for leading and developing divisions related to data analytics or machine learning. This included building alliances and partnerships not only with big brands, but especially with local subcontractor teams, startups and innovative technologies.

This key experience was a major factor in Honza's joining Behind Inventions as a technology partner. Here, he is responsible for identifying new and innovative technologies, assessing technology companies for their business potential and alignment with customer needs, as well as developing Behind Inventions' portfolio of AI-related technologies or services.

Stanislav Pavlín

Partner

Entrepreneur and investor Stanislav Pavlín was at the very birth of Behind Inventions. With his international experience in corporations, innovative companies and education, start-ups couldn't ask for anyone better to stand by their side on their way to becoming one of the big players.

At Vodafone's global headquarters, he was responsible, among other things, for the global procurement strategy for technology. In this role, he also moved to China for a time to work on developing strategic partnerships in the Far East. He has a wealth of experience in starting successful businesses and building companies that have global potential. In Luxembourg, he founded a company for Vodafone that owns part of the technology assets of the entire group. It is in this area that his work has been recognised with several international industry awards. Since 2008, he has been co-owner of a number of companies mainly in the education, technology and pharmaceutical sectors. His experience at small and large companies led him to the idea of creating Behind Inventions, a group that will operate with respect for the former and with the experience of the latter.

The fact that it all starts with education is proven by the many successful educational projects behind him - whether it was the largest educational group with a focus on languages and soft skills (EDUA group), the largest private college in the Czech Republic (AMBIS) or his most recent project, the Fostra Gymnasium.

In addition to his intensive efforts to contribute to the evolution of Czech education, Stanislav Pavlín is involved in various pro bono activities and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Charter 77 Foundation.

Partners

We are Behind Inventions. We are your partners in starting a business and entering global markets. Together, we have over 100 years of experience to draw from.

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Years of experience

Our philosophy

Helping exceptionalideas come to life

All our values have common denominators:
fairness and responsibility.

We are fair to partners, employees and the company as a whole. Before we decide on any project, we consider its societal benefits. And every asset must be based on a mutually beneficial agreement.

We want to actively change established habits and bring about positive change. We stick to a simple motto: "The most prosperous society is the best educated." Speaking into the shape of Czech education is thus our great ambition - both for children and adults. This is the way we can best positively influence the development of the Czech Republic for years to come.

We care. We never just chase a profit. We always evaluate every project on the basis of what it brings to our country, how it helps and moves society forward. And we want to lead by example. We are committed to donate a minimum of 5% of our future profits to help deal with social issues and risks and to support charitable activities.

Synergy between
partners and founders

Collaboration, communication and great relationships are the foundation for success. The greatest potential in the world is in people.

"The experience, knowledge and contacts that come with Behind Inventions to FLOWBOX are of great value and I believe we will be able to capitalize on them in the near future. At the same time, this is a very rewarding collaboration for me and my colleagues at FLOWBOX."
Tomáš Rendla - founder of Flowbox

Tomáš Rendla

Co-founder, Flowbox

“The business landscape is full of growth accelerators and advisors, but I’d be hard-pressed to find a more powerful partner than Behind Inventions for growing my business. Their network, expertise, and business acumen have been key in getting my company where it stands today.”
Thomas De Bruyne - Founder of BeInX

Thomas De Bruyne

Founder, BeInX

Latest news

Read what's happening at Behind Inventions and at our portfolio companies.

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