The Tunisian Nouha Schönbrunn has founded a company with her husband, specializing in IT security. The office is located in the commercial area Neue Ramtelstraße.

Nathalie Mainka

Nouha Schönbrunn leads through the spacious business premises of about 600 square meters on the sixth floor of a semi-circular office building on Leonberger Riedwiesenstraße. There is plenty of space for meetings, training, and everyday work. There is also a children's room with toys – family-friendly working is highly valued. Not only an impressive black-and-white photo of Leonberger Marketplace hangs on the walls, but also some motifs from the Tunisian homeland of the 32-year-old managing director. She leads Schönbrunn TASC GmbH with her husband Jan-Sebastian, which specializes in IT security. TASC stands for Training, Audit, System, and Consulting and forms the four pillars of the company's offerings. “We offer the entire portfolio in the field of information security. From consulting to the implementation of systems and know-how to subsequent support in everyday life,” says Nouha Schönbrunn.

“Especially small and medium-sized enterprises must still do quite a bit, as the topic of security is becoming increasingly relevant, yet many think they are too small and thus not exposed to any risk,” says Schönbrunn. This is a big misconception when she looks at the outdated servers, obsolete software, or the operating systems. All the knowledge of an organization is stored there – and perhaps never checked for errors or possible vulnerabilities. “There is always the possibility that data could be lost or hackers could be at work. Our experience, however, is that many entrepreneurs see the topic of IT security as a necessary evil.” She wants to change this together with her clients. Because: Many companies are increasingly receiving security requirements from their clients.

Nouha Schönbrunn works in a male-dominated profession. According to a cyber security study from 2024, the share of women in this field worldwide is currently only 24 percent. In Germany, it is only 14 percent. “In school and career orientation, girls are hardly inspired to pursue technical professions. It quickly heads towards psychology, business administration, or social sciences – but not IT or mechanical engineering,” she regrets. Therefore, she, along with two other women, founded the She@ISACA initiative. “We want to encourage women to become speakers, to be present at conferences, to be proud of their work – and not just organize in the background what nobody else wants to do. Visibility creates self-confidence.”

Nouha Schönbrunn's parents, born Loukil, studied in France. Her mother is a financial mathematician and university professor. Daughter Nouha attended a French school and graduated in 2014 in Tunisia with a diploma in management and financial mathematics from the University in Sfax. “Back then, I already dreamed of becoming an entrepreneur. I was fascinated by analyzing conversations, thinking strategically, and never losing my long-term perspective.” She could have, as tradition dictates, stayed in Tunisia, gotten married, had children, and continued working. “The economy in my home country relies on women.” However, she wanted to leave, see something new, and decided to go to Europe. In 2014, she initially moved to Speyer to a cousin of her mother. In an intensive course, she learned the German language. “It went quite well because I am a logical person, and that’s how I mastered the language.” She then went to Stuttgart, where she studied technology management – a mix of mechanical engineering and business administration.

As a research assistant at the Fraunhofer Institute, she met her future husband Jan-Sebastian, who worked as an information security consultant. Nouha Schönbrunn gained work experience in various companies in the areas of quality and process management. In 2020, her husband, who grew up in Leonberg, had the idea to start his own business in the field of IT security. Everything started in their attic apartment in Sindelfingen. The company was founded in January 2021. Then it went from strength to strength.

They developed an applicant management tool. In 2022, the company moved to Warmbronn. In the same year, their son was born. The office space became too small, and they found a suitable property in Riedwiesenstraße, where they moved in October 2023. Currently, the company, with 20 employees, serves over 200 clients from all sectors, mainly in the regions of Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. In her homeland, Nouha Schönbrunn is currently building the business.

“It was a small project that has grown step by step. Our combination – man and woman, technology and strategy, German and non-German – has never been an obstacle, but our strength,” says the Tunisian.