Jiří Tobola: An exit is not the end. It can be a new beginning.

Article Inspiration Start-ups

The end or a new beginning?
What does a successful exit bring to a founder, their team and the wider region? With four successful exits behind him, Jiří Tobola sees selling a company as much more than closing a chapter. As a special guest at the October Velvet Innovation Meetup at Bolthalle, he shared what he has learnt along the way and why successful exits matter for Brno’s entire innovation ecosystem.

A wheel that keeps turning

Jiří admits that, for a long time, he saw selling his own company as a form of giving up. Over time, his perspective changed. Every successful exit brings not only money into the region, but also people who know how to build and sell a business. Many go on to reinvest their capital and experience as investors, mentors or founders of new ventures. As Jiří put it, the wheel starts turning. And the more experienced founders Brno has, the faster it can turn.

Lessons learned

For Jiří, selling a company is a sales process like any other. It takes time, a strong pool of potential buyers and competition between them. The process typically takes about a year, and the ideal buyer is a strategic partner. But not every opportunity has to end in a sale. In 2015, Jiří and his Flowmon co-founders decided to walk away from a deal just before signing and continue building the company themselves. The experience taught them valuable lessons that proved useful when they eventually sold the business years later. Each experience, as Jiří's story shows, can help founders grow.

Sharing what he has learnt

Today, Jiří helps other founders navigate growth, international expansion and potential acquisitions. Since 2022, he has been a mentor and member of the Scaleups Board at JIC. Among the companies he advised before their exits are Runecast, Sewio and Phonexia. His own entrepreneurial experience is now helping other promising businesses from Brno move forward.

Four successful exits

In 2007, Jiří co-founded Flowmon Networks, a university spin-off that went through two acquisitions – first by Kemp and later by Progress Software. He was also involved in the sale of Netcope Technologies to Intel. In 2024, he took over as CEO of Logmanager, aiming to help the company grow and expand internationally. According to Jiří, the new team grew the business fourfold. In August 2026, Danish company Guardsix acquired Logmanager.

What comes next?
When will he start working on another startup? “Today,” Jiří replied without hesitation. At the meetup, he also said he hoped to meet a company he could join forces with in a year, two or three. His ambition? “To build something interesting from Brno again.” Are you building a business with international ambitions and looking for an experienced partner? Get in touch. Perhaps this is where another promising story begins.

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