Realized projects

Thinking positive and staying focused

I have been working on media and IT projects for more than 20 years. At the beginning of my career, I worked as a freelancer for various multimedia agencies. Then in 1997 I started my own business with my media agency Starconcept. There we implemented projects for a wide variety of customers, not all of which were directly related to the Internet. The projects included websites, printed documents, books, annual reports and multimedia presentations.

In 2004 I founded a global real estate database and built the company into a market leader in its niche. At that time, I was mainly responsible for product management and the programming of websites and databases. Later KfW Bankengruppe and the VC investor Neuhaus Partners invested several million euros. As managing director, I was responsible for numerous technical and contractual issues. In my role as IT manager and innovation officer, I coordinated the creation of web solutions. Today, the company belongs to a group that is listed on the NASDAQ stock exchange. I have since sold my shares in the company.

In 2011 I started working for a company in the Burda Digital group as an IT expert and a link between management and marketing. I was responsible for the programming of numerous e-commerce shops, including shops for REWE and Lidl. During this time I built up extensive knowledge of front-end programming, conversion optimization and analytics.

When Policen Direkt needed a digital expert, I switched to insurance in 2016. There I built a digital insurance manager with colleagues, implemented several website launches and relaunches, and coordinated various IT projects concerning insurance contracts and life insurance. Among other things, this included setting up extensive AWS infrastructure from 2018. From 2019 I was also involved in building up know-how in Angular, .NET Core and Entity Framework. Here too, organizing, designing and communicating are my personal strengths.

I worked at the Frankfurt-based company Blocksize Capital from 2022 to October 2024, where I coordinated the development of IT projects, especially those related to blockchains. This included setting up and operating blockchain nodes, providing real-time market data, and coordinating employees from several teams (development team, infrastructure team, product team, sales team). One focus of my role as Chief Information Officer was creating and implementing the product vision and launching financial products.

Since December 2024, I have been working as a Senior Consultant for Gateflow. Here, my work focuses on technology-driven solutions in financial innovation. I identify opportunities, translate them into concrete concepts, and support companies in turning them into real-world business initiatives. The name Gateflow stands for the smooth flow of information, processes, and execution. I combine strategic thinking with technical implementation and long-term operational support, and I guide projects from the initial idea through their continued development.

A core part of my role is the combination of consulting and hands-on implementation. This covers business development and go-to-market strategies, as well as the development of websites, API architectures, AI workflows, automation systems, and scalable applications. I also work extensively with Claude Code and am taking part in the Claude Certified Architect Foundations (CCAF) certification program.

In early 2025, I co-founded the fintech community Finance Loop, which now has over 4,000 members.

Implemented IT projects

For the projects listed here, I was usually involved in both project management and implementation.

Financial market data

Concept, coordination, and successful rollout of a product that provides real-time market data on digital assets via WebSocket and RPC endpoints. Design of product marketing and communication with decision-makers from stock exchanges, banks, and other financial market participants. Onboarding of institutional and professional customers and related cooperation partners.

Operation of blockchain nodes

Takeover of the operation and internal documentation of an oracle price data network that provides market data to smart contracts. Hands-on management of the servers, building up the node operation team, and improving performance. Later migration of the IT infrastructure from Azure to another cloud provider and setup of a failover infrastructure.

Realization of websites

Concept, design, maintenance, and development of more than 20 corporate websites, as well as contributions to the further development of e-commerce shops with multi-million revenues for companies such as Lidl, REWE, and Valentins. Extensive expertise in integrating APIs and data sources.

Booking systems

Concept and programming of shopping carts and order funnels, and connection of payment systems such as PayPal, WorldPay and Amazon Pay.

Managing Linux operating systems

Setup and support of Debian/Ubuntu servers from 2007 until today. Extensive knowledge of operating servers of all kinds.

Digital insurance manager

Front-end programming in Angular and project management for a digital insurance manager where thousands of customers can upload and manage their insurance policies. Offers from external partners can also be ordered through the insurance manager.

Life insurance portals

Concept and programming of systems for the administration and presentation of study results such as sources of income, profit sharing, solvency ratios, and status reports in the area of life insurance. Direct contact with the chief actuary.

Monitoring and testing

Implementation of monitoring and log evaluation. Automated testing of applications in the frontend and backend. Setup of notifications in the event of an error.

Data center infrastructure

Installation of servers, switches, firewalls and backup systems in various data centers in Germany as well as in the USA, including setup, cabling, provisioning and commissioning.

Mobile e-commerce shops

Concept and programming of dedicated mobile online shops for selling goods to end customers, and optimization of UI/UX.

Multimedia presentations

Concepts for multimedia presentations using PowerPoint and Adobe Flash.

Notification service

Concept and programming of a date-based reminder service that informs hundreds of thousands of customers about holidays and recurring events by email.

Web community

Concept and programming of a community system. The system included hundreds of page templates and a 12 GB database as well as several terabytes of image data. Setup of 40 servers to balance traffic, set up load balancing and optimize database performance.

Company websites

Concept and programming of at least 10 websites (corporate websites, blogs, online shops, etc.). Use of WordPress as a content management system since 2016, and implementation of at least 10 other websites since then. Performance optimization of delivery through caching mechanisms. Extension of WordPress with plugins and templates I programmed myself.

Third-party awards:

• N-TV: Best online shop for ordering convenience
• TU Dresden: Insurance Blog of the Year

Money Laundering Act portal

Concept and programming of a portal that provides a financial services group’s documents on the Money Laundering Act (GWG) to hundreds of companies. Secure access is granted through user logins over the Internet.

Rating system for warehouses

Concept and programming of a system for assessing the locations of warehouses. Updating of the evaluation results based on changing formulas and presentation of the results in the form of statistics.

Near real-time search

Implementation of Elasticsearch as a near real-time search for a real estate database. Millions of data records were captured and made accessible to users within milliseconds.

AWS and Azure clouds

Use of numerous AWS Cloud and Azure Cloud services. Setup of at least 20 production and test servers using autoscaling, load balancing, DNS failover and content distribution.

And many more projects…

Thanks to my experience, I can explain complicated issues in an easy way.

Other projects and activities

Through my work at various multimedia agencies and my experience of founding a startup, I have a very wide range of experience. I worked on the following projects outside of my IT roles:

Pitches and business plans

When I started my business, a global real estate database, writing a business plan and financial plans was also part of my job. As a result, KfW Bankengruppe and Neuhaus Partners invested many millions of euros in the company. As part of raising capital, I gave pitches to investors and partners. Years later I sold my shares in the company.

Due diligence and contract management

Years of experience in drafting and structuring contracts. Carrying out due diligence on the buyer or seller side.

Data protection

A thorough understanding of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other legal frameworks that cover the protection of personal data. Documentation and implementation of the related protective measures. Participation in the preparation of legal documents.

Human resources and coaching

Over 10 years of experience in leadership, onboarding and offboarding. Leadership experience with teams of up to 50 employees. IT management experience and instructor license from the Frankfurt Chamber of Commerce (IHK Frankfurt) in the field of application development and system administration.

Printed presentations and business reports

Design, concept and/or collaboration in the creation of printed presentations, including annual reports for Deutsche Bank.

Exhibitions and events

Organization of exhibitions as part of project presentations, for example in the German Architectural Museum (Deutsches Architektur Museum). Concept and implementation of an international skyscraper award in numerous cities worldwide, including the presentation of trophies to well-known project participants who were involved in the construction of tall buildings.

Journalism and working with the press

Publication of numerous articles in niche media in the real estate, finance and insurance sectors. Author of a book on real estate projects in Germany. Concept and launch of an information portal where I have been writing about Frankfurt’s urban development since 2016.

Several interviews with me in the national press, such as FAZ, ZDF, Manager Magazin, BILD Zeitung, Handelsblatt, and others. Guest author for several blogs and specialist media.

Press relations for the projects I manage. Communication with the press and use of social media. Building of social media channels on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube with thousands of followers.

The likelihood of failure is greatest when you have no specific plan.

Michael Wutzke, Digital Solutions Expert

Fields of research

My personal activities in the area of data management and distributed ledgers are not primarily relevant to my daily work.

I have been working intensively on cryptocurrencies since 2015 and have also invested in Bitcoin, Ethereum and altcoins. In the past I also had my own miners and a Bitcoin full node in operation.

I am currently working on the design of a system for the automated acquisition, evaluation and management of structured information using AI/ML technologies.