K&S

What K&S does

K&S GmbH Projektmanagement is a privately held German professional services firm, founded in 2003 and headquartered in Munich (registered in Aachen), that operates as an expert-led PMO for large, cross-border, publicly funded R&D consortia across DACH and the EU. With a bench of nearly 20 practitioners — most with 10+ years in funded R&D — and leadership including Managing Directors Dr Richard Kahle and Dr Matthias Unbehaun, the firm serves industrial primes, research institutes and universities coordinating 15–40 partner projects in four named specialisms: semiconductors and microelectronics, industrial data ecosystems, clean energy/hydrogen/batteries, and defence & dual-use. Reference engagements include FASTLANE (Valeo, ~€97M, 30 partners), CHASSIS (Bosch, Chips JU, 19 partners), CX-NEXT (BMW, 15 partners), CHEM-X (BASF, 15 partners) and MODABAT (Fraunhofer IISB, Clean Aviation JU).

The company productises its offering into five defined services: a flagship Consortium PMO covering full coordinator-side operations from kick-off to final audit; a Proposal Office for single-stage, two-stage and IPCEI multi-stage applications; flexible Back-Office Support on chargeable hours; Financial Management & Controlling including ögP-Controlling across BMWE, BMFTR, EU and Joint Undertaking instruments; and Secure Project Infrastructure providing per-project secure collaboration platforms — from on-premises stacks to dedicated SharePoint environments — with on-premises AI tooling available for IP-sensitive and dual-use work. Technical infrastructure is matched to data-sensitivity requirements rather than built as a proprietary product, and certifications include ISO 9001, TISAX AL3 and GDPR oversight by a qualified DPO.

K&S generates revenue through quote-based, multi-year professional services contracts (with a usage-based hourly tier for Back-Office Support), sold via direct enterprise engagement with a partner-level response within two working days. It targets premium buyers — consortium coordinators and industrial primes — who value named-senior accountability over AI-generated proposals, and positions structural neutrality (no exploitation interest in project results) as a key differentiator for consortia that pair direct competitors. The firm is privately held with no disclosed external investors or funding rounds.

Name

K&S

Legal name

K&S GmbH Projektmanagement

Website

https://ks-pm.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

K&S GmbH Projektmanagement provides expert-led PMO and consortium management services for large, publicly funded R&D consortia across DACH and the EU, serving industrial primes and research institutes coordinating 15-40 partner projects in semiconductors, clean energy, data ecosystems, and defence.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

R&D Consortium Management Services

NAICS

Management Consulting Services (54161), Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742), Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Sector & Policy Consulting (BPAHACAN)

akta.pro secondary industries

Financial Planning & Analysis Support (Budgeting, Forecasting, Management Reporting) (BPAAAGAJ), Sourcing Support & RFx Administration (RFI/RFP/RFQ) (BPAAAJAC)

Keywords

• Consortium project management
• Publicly funded R&D consortia
• PMO services
• Proposal office support
• Research consortium coordination

Headquarters

HQ city

Munich

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Consortium PMO Services: Full coordinator-side operations from kick-off to final audit for 15–40 partner R&D consortia. Includes reporting calendar, deliverables management, milestone & KPI tracking, change & risk management, consortium meetings, JU/funding body interface, and financial consolidation across national regimes.
2. Proposal Office: Supports consortia preparing single-stage, two-stage or IPCEI multi-stage proposals. Includes call analysis, partner coordination, narrative drafting, budget consolidation, evaluator-ready quality review, portal submission, and multi-stage process management.
3. Back-Office Support: Flexible, chargeable-hour support across any aspect of funded R&D work — back-office coordination, partner reporting, proposals, compliance, financial management, project-management advice. Clients draw on this pool for specific tasks without overhead of defined-scope mandate.
4. Financial Management & Controlling: Budgeting and hourly-rate methodology, cost-recovery preparation, periodic financial reporting, reallocations and amendments, audit support and audit-readiness, controlling of publicly funded projects (ögP-Controlling) across BMWE, BMFTR, EU and Joint Undertaking instruments.
5. Secure Project Infrastructure: Per-project secure collaboration platforms, on-premises AI tooling where required, optional DMS, and structured collaboration workflows.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

K&S GmbH Projektmanagement provides expert-led project management and coordination services for large, cross-border, publicly funded R&D consortia, typically involving 15–40 partners across multiple countries. The firm operates as a productised operating suite of five core services: Consortium PMO, Proposal Office, Back-Office Support, Financial Management & Controlling, and Secure Project Infrastructure. It serves coordinators, industrial primes, and research institutes across DACH and the EU in semiconductors, industrial data ecosystems, clean energy & hydrogen, and defence & dual-use sectors.

Product overview

K&S offers a productised operating suite of five core services for large, cross-border, publicly funded R&D consortia. The flagship Consortium PMO service provides full coordinator-side operations for 15-40 partner consortia, supported by the Proposal Office for application preparation, Back-Office Support for flexible assistance, Financial Management & Controlling for rigorous project budgeting and audit readiness, and Secure Project Infrastructure for IP-sensitive or dual-use collaboration. All services are expert-led by named, experienced practitioners rather than AI-generated, and the suite is anchored in twenty years of real-world consortium operations across semiconductors, industrial data ecosystems, clean energy & hydrogen, and defence & dual-use sectors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Consortium PMO
• Proposal Office
• Back-Office Support
• Financial Management & Controlling
• Secure Project Infrastructure

Quantifiable outcome

• 50+ PMO mandates delivered
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• BMW GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBMW Group is the coordinator for CX-NEXT (Catena-X follow-on, 15 partners). K&S also operated the original Catena-X PMO. This is a client relationship where K&S provides PMO services for BMW-led consortium projects.
• BoschcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBosch serves as coordinator for CHASSIS (Chips JU, 19 partners) and Bosch Sensortec coordinates VIVA (12 partners). K&S provides coordinator-side PMO for both projects.
• BASFcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBASF coordinates CHEM-X (15 partners) - the chemical-industry data ecosystem. K&S provides operating PMO and reporting support for this NextGenerationEU/BMWE funded project.
• Fraunhofer IISBcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFraunhofer IISB coordinates MODABAT (13 partners) - modular battery systems for hybrid-electric regional aircraft under Clean Aviation JU. K&S provides PMO services.
• ValeocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerValeo France coordinates FASTLANE (30 partners, approx. €97M) - boosting European SiC power electronics value chain under Chips JU. K&S supports this large-scale consortium.
• SchaefflersupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerSchaeffler is a reference client for K&S Financial Management & Controlling services. K&S provides controlling expertise for their publicly funded R&D projects.
• ContinentalsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerContinental (including Continental Reifen and ContiTech) are reference clients for K&S financial controlling services across ögP-Controlling and publicly funded R&D projects.
• Catena-X AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerK&S operated the original Catena-X PMO and now operates CX-NEXT - the Catena-X follow-on project for BMW Group. Catena-X is the automotive data ecosystem standard.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• IDEA Consult: Brussels-based consultancy supporting EU research and innovation policy implementation, including evaluation, programme design and project management support for EU institutions. Comparable in EU funding fluency though more policy- and evaluation-oriented than K&S.
• EurA AG: German innovation consultancy with strong IPCEI and EU funding expertise, providing feasibility analysis, project development and consortium management for cross-border R&D projects. Direct overlap with K&S's Proposal Office and Consortium PMO offerings.
• PNO Consultants: Netherlands-headquartered European consultancy specialising in public funding for innovation, with proposal writing, project management and financial controlling services across Horizon Europe and national programmes. Operates across similar DACH/EU geographies and similar client segments.
• accelopment Schweiz AG: Swiss research and innovation management firm providing professional PMO and proposal support services for EU-funded collaborative R&D projects (Horizon Europe, JU instruments). Closely comparable in scale, service mix and target client base to K&S.
• VDI/VDE Innovation + Technik GmbH: German non-profit owned by VDI/VDE that provides project management and programme support for publicly funded R&D projects at federal and EU level. Overlaps with K&S on funding-instrument fluency and consortium coordination for industrial primes and research institutes.
• RTDS Group: Austrian consultancy offering proposal support, project management and financial administration for EU-funded research projects. Compares to K&S on service model, funding-regime expertise and target customer profile (academic and industrial coordinators).
• Ayming: French-headquartered global innovation funding consultancy with significant presence in Germany. Provides public funding advisory, R&D tax credit services and project management support. Comparable on public-funding expertise though broader geographically and in scope.

Broad incumbents

• Steinbeis: German foundation network for technology transfer and applied R&D with embedded management of publicly funded projects. Overlaps with K&S on public-funded R&D project operations but operates across a much broader portfolio (education, transfer, applied research).
• Capgemini Invent: Global consulting arm of Capgemini with established EU funding and public-sector R&D advisory practices. Listed as a K&S client trust signal; competes indirectly on large public-sector programmes but lacks K&S's senior-led boutique delivery model.

Emerging players

• FundingBox: Pan-European digital platform provider for innovation funding ecosystems, operating accelerator programmes and managing EU-funded cascade funding. Adjacent to K&S's proposal and PMO work but differentiated by platform/scale-play model rather than senior-led advisory.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about K&S