— About us
Family friendliness as an integral part of company culture.
Real culture change needs a holistic approach and continuity.
Stephanie Höfer · Co-founder
“Managers want to help, they just often don't know how”
As a manager of many years, I know work-life balance from both perspectives. If we as a company manage to think about family friendliness in an integrated way and through systems, everyone wins. Despite a tight schedule and little room for real leadership, the manager is strengthened in their competence, painstakingly qualified benefits and EAPs are seen, and employees experience excellent support and a strong bond with their employer.
“Structured, regular exchange makes the decisive difference.”
This applies not only to parental leave. Anyone who cares for relatives also needs orientation and a company that thinks along.
KAROLIN GAẞMANN · CO-FOUNDER
“With the announcement of my pregnancy, the promotion was gone.”
As a multi-project manager in various industries I always gave my all, I simply enjoyed working. That this should change with a child was not an option for me. My manager and I never talked about our expectations back then. Becoming a parent is a sensitive time full of uncertainty.
“When companies prove to be a good partner, the return on investment is enormous.”
This applies to parents just as much as to employees with care responsibilities.
— Our journey
From our own experience to heyGuide.
Founded as heyParents, out of our own experience.
Awarded
Winners of the founders' prize “Startup Impuls” in the category Team Start (funded by Sparkasse Hannover and the Hannoverimpuls initiative).
Awarded
Winners of 3rd place in the category Social Innovation at the Durchstarterpreis 2024 of the Lower Saxony development bank NBank.
Awarded
Winners of Top 3 Family Benefits 2025 at the vereinbarkeit.jetzt Award.
Seed funding round
heyParents successfully closes seed funding round of around 500,000 euros.
Awarded
Winners of the competition “Impact of Diversity” in the category Gender Inclusion.
heyParents becomes heyGuide, now also for care situations.
— The team
— Our values
Passion
heyGuide grew out of our own experience. And we burn for change. This enthusiasm is in every piece of content, every function and every conversation we have.
Integrity
Parental leave is one of the most personal phases in life. We take that seriously. We are reliable, honest and act with integrity. Trust grows with consistency.
Perseverance
Structures don't change overnight. We know that. And that is exactly why we stay on it: continuously, consistently and agile at the same time.
Courage
We dare to take new paths, even when they are uncomfortable. For us, courage means taking responsibility when it matters.
Innovation
We think outside the box, question the status quo and actively shape new things. We are curious, experimental and open.
Cooperation
Together we are stronger. Real cooperation means using everyone's strengths and taking responsibility for each other.
— Awards
Awarded & recognized.
— Investors & advisory board
Supported by strong partners.
Ilka Hartmann
Jonas Lindemann
Matthias Brucke
Arthur Böttcher
Ulrich Gehrke
Stefan Neteler
Funded by
