01Working With Me

Working With Me

I help founders, investors and leadership teams turn ambitious technology into companies that can execute.

I work with technology companies that are turning technical promise into commercial and operational reality. This includes AI-native organisations, B2B software, marketplaces, and autonomy, particularly where growth depends on execution discipline, stakeholder trust, capital strategy and the ability to scale without losing focus.

The common thread is not sector. It is consequence.

When the company has real technical promise but needs the operating system, commercial discipline and capital strategy to scale, I help make it shippable, saleable and fundable.

Read how I think

02Intro

Operator support for scaling companies

Through Decimus Innovation Investments, I work with founders, investors and technology companies navigating the difficult middle ground between technical promise and institutional readiness.

That might mean helping a founder move from heroic execution to an operating cadence the team can actually run. It might mean helping investors understand whether a company's plan is fundable, deliverable and sequenced correctly. It might mean stepping in as a fractional or interim executive when the business needs experienced operator leverage, not another advisory deck.

I am most useful when product, operations, GTM, governance and capital all have to work together.

I am not a passive advisor. I work best close to the operating reality: with the founder, the executive team, the board, the customer pipeline and the delivery constraints in view.

03Who I Work With

Who I work with

Founders

Technical and commercial founders who have a real product, a serious market and a growing execution burden. Useful when early traction exists but execution is too founder-dependent, the roadmap and funding narrative are not aligned, or the company needs to move from pilot activity to repeatable delivery.

Investors

VCs, angels, family offices and strategic investors who need operator judgement on execution risk. Useful for diligence, portfolio support, raise readiness, operating cadence and pressure-testing whether a company can deliver what it is selling.

Leadership teams

Early-stage and growth-stage teams operating in complex environments. Useful when product, commercial and operations teams are moving at different speeds, regulation or compliance is becoming a constraint, or commercial commitments are outpacing delivery readiness.

Accelerators, universities and venture programs

Founder programs that want practical operator input on execution in regulated, physical-world and AI-enabled businesses. Relevant for founders coming through programs like Brinc or NYU Startmate who need stronger operating discipline before scaling.

04Where I Create Leverage

Where I create leverage

M.0101 / 06

Operating cadence and execution systems

For companies where the founder is still the operating system.

Includes

Weekly operating rhythm, metrics stack, decision rights, management cadence, functional accountability, roadmap discipline, meeting architecture, executive reporting, board/investor visibility, escalation pathways, hiring tied to milestones.

Typical outputs

90-day operating plan, weekly exec cadence, KPI dashboard, decision-rights map, hiring and capability plan, board-ready reporting template, execution risk register.

Useful when

The company is moving fast, but no one can clearly answer what matters this week, who owns it, what is blocked, and what has to be true before the next raise.

M.0202 / 06

Regulated GTM and lighthouse customer strategy

For companies selling into markets where trust is the sales motion.

Includes

Stakeholder mapping, lighthouse customer selection, enterprise/government/strategic-account motion, partner-led GTM, commercial narrative, pipeline qualification, procurement pathway mapping, regulatory trust-building, customer success and delivery alignment.

Typical outputs

Lighthouse customer strategy, stakeholder map, GTM operating model, partner/channel plan, pipeline qualification framework, commercial narrative, sales-to-delivery readiness gates.

Useful when

The product is credible, but the company is struggling to move from interest to signed demand, or from signed demand to reliable delivery.

M.0303 / 06

Fundraising readiness and capital strategy

For companies preparing for a raise or trying to stay fundable.

Includes

Fundable milestone planning, use-of-funds logic, burn discipline, capital sequencing, unit economics, margin and payback visibility, investor narrative, diligence preparation, board reporting, strategic outcome planning.

Typical outputs

Fundraising readiness review, milestone-to-capital plan, investor narrative, diligence checklist, unit economics dashboard, board pack structure, risk and sequencing memo.

Useful when

The company is raising soon, but the operating plan does not yet make the raise feel inevitable, credible or properly sequenced.

M.0404 / 06

Fractional C-suite and interim executive support

For founders who need an operator inside the business for a defined period.

Includes

Interim C-suite support, founder operating partner support, board-facing execution leadership, commercial/operations integration, capital-readiness execution, strategic advisory with execution accountability.

Typical outputs

Operating rhythm installed, priorities clarified, teams aligned, reporting improved, hiring plan defined, execution risk reduced, next raise/readiness milestones made visible.

Useful when

The company is not ready to hire a full-time executive, but the founder is already carrying multiple executive-level loads.

M.0505 / 06

Venture building and strategic advisory

For investors, founders and institutions forming new ventures or entering new markets.

Includes

Market and operating thesis, business model design, venture architecture, founder/team requirements, GTM wedge, regulatory path, capital plan, build/buy/partner decisions, early customer and partner mapping, first 12-month execution roadmap.

Typical outputs

Venture thesis memo, operating model, commercial model, partner map, risk register, fundable milestone plan, first 90-day execution plan.

Useful when

There is a strong opportunity, but the path from idea to operating company is still too abstract.

M.0606 / 06

Speaking, mentoring and founder workshops

For accelerators, universities, venture programs and leadership teams.

Includes

Regulated Execution: building companies where trust, safety and auditability are part of the product · Speed of Learning Is Competitive Infrastructure · From Pilot Theatre to Diligence-Grade Proof · Building the Operating System Before the Raise · What Hard-Tech Founders Learn the Expensive Way · Decision Velocity: using OODA loops to make better calls under pressure.

Typical outputs

Cohort sessions, leadership workshops, executive offsite facilitation, founder office hours, written frameworks tailored to the cohort.

Useful when

A founder cohort or leadership team needs practical frameworks grounded in lived operating experience.

01 / 06

05Engagement Formats

Engagement formats

F.01

Diagnostic session

A focused working session for founders, investors or leadership teams who need an operator's view on where the company is stuck. Best for founder-office-hours follow-up, investor diligence, pre-raise readiness, GTM or operating-model stress tests, and board/investor preparation.

F.02

Advisory sprint

A short, structured engagement focused on one high-priority operating problem. Best for fundraising readiness, GTM redesign, operating cadence installation, board pack redesign, 90-day execution planning, decision rights, commercial-to-delivery alignment.

F.03

Embedded operating engagement

A fractional or interim executive role for companies that need deeper support over a defined period. Best for interim COO support, founder leverage, scale-up operating discipline, capital-readiness execution, cross-functional alignment, turnaround or reset, and MENA/Gulf expansion preparation.

F.04

Investor and board advisory

A recurring advisory relationship for investors or boards who want operator judgement on execution risk and company-building priorities. Best for portfolio support, founder coaching, diligence, operating-model review, post-investment execution support and strategic inflection points.

F.05

Workshops and talks

Founder-facing sessions for accelerators, universities, venture programs, offsites and private investor communities. Best for accelerator cohorts, venture studios, MBA/startup programs, founder retreats, investor portfolio days and leadership offsites.

06Fit

Good fit

Product has technical depth, but the business needs more operating discipline.

Between pre-seed and Series B, or preparing for a strategic outcome.

Need to align product, GTM, operations, governance and capital.

Entering MENA or building a MENA-first business with global potential.

Want direct, operator-led judgement from someone who has built, raised, scaled, restructured and learned from the full cycle.

Not a fit

Generic pitch-deck polish without operating change.

Low-friction SaaS growth hacking.

Passive advisory with no access to the real constraints.

No willingness to make decision rights, metrics or execution gaps visible.

Encouragement more than candour.

No execution-quality consequence around trust, capital or customer outcomes.

07Start

Bring me in when execution quality starts to matter.

The best first note is short.

What are you building?

Who is the customer?

What stage are you at?

What has to be true in the next 90 days?

Where is execution currently stuck?

Read my writing on execution