The bench
Operators.
You have run one of the five systems inside a company backed by private equity, venture capital or a corporation, through at least one plan that missed and one that did not.
Careers
Run the function again, this time for several companies at once.
We hire operators who have made the number inside a sponsor-backed company and want to do it again, embedded and part-time, with the authority that comes from the sponsor having asked for you.
Intensely practical and immensely accountable.
This is what the seat is, and what it is not.
The work
A seat over one system.
You own one of the five systems for one company at a time, for the length of a phase. You own the system, not a workstream.
The mandate
Authority, because the sponsor asked.
You are in the building because the capital behind the company wants you there, and that changes what you can remove and how fast.
The shape
Part-time by design.
You work with two or three companies at once, each on its own phase. The work is embedded, and the week is yours to arrange.
The standard
You leave things behind.
The measure of the seat is what runs without you, which means the playbook, the operating system and the person you recruited into your chair.
At a glance
The engagement, in figures.
Length
9–18
months per company, from Phase I through Phase III.
At once
2–3
companies per operator, each on its own phase.
Systems
5
systems, with one seat over each, and you take one.
Who we hire
Three doors.
This is who we are looking for, and which door is yours.
The firm
Partners.
You have done that several times, you bring a bench of your own, and you want to own a system across the firm’s engagements.
The client
The permanent team.
In Phase III we recruit the people who will run the system after we leave. Those seats are inside the client, and we list them when they exist.
Before you write
Questions, answered.
What does an embedded operator actually do?
An embedded operator sits over one of the five systems in a sponsor-backed company, part-time, for the length of a phase. They remove what isn’t working, prove what does, write the playbook by running it, and recruit and train the person who will take the seat permanently.
Is it full-time?
No. Two or three companies at once is typical, each on its own phase, and the work sets the days on site rather than a calendar.
How is it paid?
We pay by the phase, for the seat. The amount depends on the system and the company, and we tell you on the first call rather than making you guess.
Do I need to be in the Bay Area?
No. The firm is in San Mateo and the work is wherever the company is, so you need to be able to be in the building when the work needs it.
Introduce yourself.
Send a note, a résumé or a LinkedIn profile, and the one number you are proudest of having moved.