People Roundup: Hemnet, Scout24, Tsukuruba, Qasa

This week's people roundup starts in Sweden, where a major C-Suite operation is underway...

Hemnet hires new CTO amid big leadership changes

Swedish market-leading portal Hemnet has hired Hannah Lindqvist as the firm's next CTO amid an ongoing leadership reshuffle.

Lindqvist has stepped down from her position as Executive Vice President for Technology at Schibsted Marketplaces to facilitate her move to Hemnet, and she will join the Swedish portal in January 2025.

In a LinkedIn post, Lindqvist said:

"Hemnet is a company that always have been very dear to me, even if I have lived in the same house for over 15 years.

"The concept of Hemnetknarkare [“Hemnet junkie,” the practice of regularly browsing Hemnet even if one is not interested in buying, selling or renting a home] resonates very well with me, and to get the chance to spend my working days developing one of my most used app feels really exciting."

Hemnet is currently undergoing a significant change in leadership as CEO Cecilia Beck-Friis and CPO Francesca Cortesi both resigned from their positions in the past week, Beck-Friis set to stay in her current position until a suitable replacement has been found.

Also in Sweden...Qasa cofounders all step down

Three of Qasa's cofounders have all left the company.

Qasa is a sub-letting platform based in Sweden and is chasing an international expansion—and it will do so without three of its original team members, Fredrik Stromsten, Mattia Lilienberg Tosti and Ludvig Persson Lejon.

A post on Qasa's LinkedIn page commented:

For over ten years, Fredrik Stromsten, Mattia Lilienberg Tosti and Ludvig Persson Lejon have poured their hearts and souls into building this company.

Their vision was clear from the start: to solve the housing crisis. With over a million rented homes, we can say that Qasa has made significant progress. As they now choose to move on, we promise to keep up the entrepreneurial spirit and keep working to help more people find a home.

CEO Frederik Strömsten told Swedish outlet Breakit, "We still firmly believe in the company, but now we are eager to test new things."

Qasa was founded in 2014 and says it is the biggest marketplace for renting out homes in the Nordics on both sides of the transaction, i.e. for both tenants and landlords.

The firm offers rental management services, guaranteed rent, property protection and automated lease creation and signings.

Germany: Scout24 appoints new CTO

Scout24, which operates popular real estate marketplaces in its native Germany and Austria, has appointed Gertrud Kolb as its new Chief Technology Officer.

Kolb's resume speaks volumes, with over 20 years of experience in the technology and product management spaces. She joins from adtech company Eyeo, where she also served as CTO.

She will lead the firm's technology strategy with immediate effect, specifically AI development, data analytics, architecture and information security—reporting to Chief Product and Technology Officer Ralf Weitz.

Kolb commented:

"ImmoScout24 has been revolutionizing the industry for over 25 years and is already using state-of-the-art technologies to tailor its products to the needs of its customers. I am very much looking forward to contributing to Scout24 in the future and taking AI-driven product development to the next level.

Tobias Hartmann, CEO at Scout24, said:

"Gertrud Kolb is an absolute expert with more than 20 years of experience in tech and product management. She is a recognized leader and impresses with her strong business acumen. She shares our passion for first-class tech products and solutions. Together with her, we will further develop our networked marketplace for real estate."

Japan: Tsukuruba promotes from within for new CPO

The Tokyo-based, publicly listed company Tsukuruba, which operates the Japanese real estate marketplace and real estate services provider Cowcamo, has promoted Kenji Mizoguchi to the role of Chief Product Officer after six months in the company.

In a statement, Tskuruba said:

"Mizoguchi has a wide range of experience and achievements. He will play a central role in the launch of new businesses and the evolution of products and services that Tsukuruba will pursue in the future and will continue to grow the housing distribution business even more strongly."

France: SeLoger #2 to depart? It's hard to tell...

L'informé has alleged that Franck Le Tendre, vice-president of operations for the Aviv France group, which owns the SeLoger site and MeilleursAgents, has left the company.

According to union sources, he could be replaced by Baptiste Capron, Head of Europe at the delivery company Stuart.

However, Le Tendre's LinkedIn profile still shows him as working for Aviv France.

Some question marks on this one...