Distressed situations, restructuring & stabilization
Bring structure to difficult situations, clarify trade-offs, and help leadership regain control.
Operator studio for special situations.
Hands-on execution for distressed situations, carve-outs, and ownership transitions.
For founders, owners, and investors who need senior operating support inside complex business situations.
Positioning
When a business is under pressure, generic advice is
too slow.
Distressed situations, carve-outs, ownership transitions, stalled growth, and pre-PMF uncertainty expose the same problem: leaders need practical judgment, operating discipline, and someone who can stay close to the work.
we are step one acts as an operator studio for special situations: turnaround support, carve-outs, ownership transitions, interim leadership, operational excellence, product-market fit, and strategic projects. The work is direct: understand the constraint, make priorities explicit, and help move the business forward.
What we do
Senior, practical support when the operating situation is unclear or urgent.
Interim CEO / COO / CFO / entrepreneur-in-residence roles
Step into temporary leadership roles where direction, coordination, and decisions cannot wait.
Operational excellence & process design
Build the operating rhythm, responsibilities, and processes needed for reliable execution.
Product-market fit & business model refinement
Clarify the use case, customer need, willingness to pay, and the model that can carry the business.
Market entry & first customers
Shape the first go-to-market motion, prepare conversations, and create traction without unnecessary noise.
Carve-outs, negotiations & execution leadership
Lead defined projects, coordinate stakeholders, and support negotiations through structured execution.
How we work
A simple operating sequence for high-pressure situations.
Understand the pressure.
Map liquidity, market, team, constraints, incentives, current operating model, and decision points.
Decide what matters now.
Set priorities, define trade-offs, create a practical roadmap, and install a visible cadence.
Drive implementation.
Work alongside the team to move decisions into delivery, accountability, and controlled progress.
Principles
- Small teams of senior operators.
- Clear cadence, clear owners.
- No retainers without scope.
- Privacy by default.
Who we’re for
Founders, owners, and investors who need calm execution under pressure.
Founders & owners · family offices & investors · succession cases · products that haven’t truly found fit yet.
Selected projects
Selected work in situations that required discretion, structure, and execution.
- Healthcare operations
Multi-site healthcare operations under time pressure and regulatory constraints.
- SME transaction
Seller-side transaction support, negotiation preparation, and diligence coordination.
- Startup validation
Feasibility, positioning, go-to-market logic, and first-customer work.
- Scaling situations
Operating structure, process architecture, and management cadence.
- Strategic projects
Complex stakeholder environments, regulated contexts, and special projects.
Further details available selectively and in confidence.
Who we are
An operator studio for special situations.
we are step one is led by Valentin Angerer. The work combines analytical judgment, leadership experience, and pragmatic execution across product, people, process, strategy, and operations.
The posture is intentionally hands-on: clarify the situation, align the people involved, build the operating structure, and keep attention on the decisions that create movement.
Based in Zürich. Quiet, selective, situation-driven.
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For founders, owners, and investors facing a special situation.
If the next move involves distress, a carve-out, an ownership transition, or operational uncertainty, start with a direct conversation.
Let’s chat
Based in Zürich. Working with startups and SMEs in Switzerland and selected European contexts.