Welcome to the EVP Talent blog! This fortnightly blog series exists to demystify common startup roles, create clearer pathways into startup roles, and tell the stories of exceptional operators within the EVP Portfolio.
Interested in joining one of Australia's leading B2B SaaS Startups? sign up to Talent_OS now.
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Kon Knafelman is the Chief of Staff at Particular Audience – an AI-driven product recommendation engine. It provides e-commerce businesses with a no-code personalisation engine that can be embedded within their customer-facing website.
1 // What is the Chief of Staff role and what does a Chief of Staff do at Particular Audience?
The Chief of Staff is an extremely broad ranging role here at Particular Audience. It covers all things strategy, operations and administrative within the business. This includes raising capital, managing cash flow, commercial analysis, monitoring of our cost base,building out our finance and HR functions, dealing with investors, and general analysis and reporting.
2 // What does a day in your life look like working at a Series A stage startup?
No two days are alike. A key focus for me lately has been cost optimisation initiatives and working with investors to secure our next capital raise. Some days involve working on super interesting operational initiatives, but others can involve mundane tasks crucial to running a business, invoicing customers, monthly reporting, and taking out the bins
3 // What is your professional background, and how did it lead you to becoming a Chief of Staff?
I come from a corporate finance and private equity background, where I specialised in the acquisition and turnaround of businesses in the retail sector. Throughout the acquisition and integration process, I was always most interested in working with management teams to set and implement growth strategies. After a number of years sitting on the investment side of things, I made the jump into startups and have never looked back.
4 // Are there specific experiences that you needed to have to be hired for the role?
You can typically learn anything on the job with the right attitude and sense of curiosity. Chief of Staff is no different. The role is almost one of a “specialist generalist”. You need to be both analytical and commercial, and you need to be able to pivot between different tasks quickly. A genuine interest in running and growing a business would be the foundation.
5 // What are complementing professional backgrounds that could be suitable pathways for getting into the role?
It’s super broad, and I wouldn’t want to limit it to specific backgrounds, but it could be any job with an analytical background including M&A, consulting, engineering, law, or accounting
6 // What are the characteristics or skills that would help someone stand out in pursuing this career?
Curiosity and a genuine interest in the intricacies of running a business is the best base. Beyond that, you can learn anything.
7 // How did you determine which startup to join? What did you look for?
I joined PA after a few meetings with James (CEO). My previous retail investment experience was highly complementary, and he sold me on the product and growth of the business.
If you’re aiming for Chief of Staff (or any role) at a Seed-to-Series B startup, you first need to ask yourself whether you believe in the product or service that the business is selling. After that, you need to ask yourself if you get along with the founder(s). Once you’re happy with those elements, always ask how much runway they have. This is one of the toughest tech environments in the last 15 years and in this market, runway is the most vital metric to look for before joining a startup. They need at least 12-18 months runway if they’re scaling up their team.
8 // What are the best resources to read or listen to about becoming a Chief of Staff?
These days I use ChatGPT for everything!
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Here are five current active roles in the EVP portfolio:
- Ignition is hiring an Account Executive in Australia
- Shippit is hiring an Engineering Lead in Sydney
- Hnry is hiring a Partnerships Specialist in Sydney
- ClearCalcs is hiring a Senior Software Engineer in Australia
- Practifi is hiring a Data Engineer in Australia
Interested in one of the above positions or getting an operation role in a Startup? Reach out to Fred or Charmaine from EVP's Talent Team or sign up to Talent_OS.
Welcome to the EVP Talent blog! This fortnightly blog series exists to demystify common startup roles, create clearer pathways into startup roles, and tell the stories of exceptional operators within the EVP Portfolio.
Interested in joining one of Australia's leading B2B SaaS Startups? sign up to Talent_OS now.
***
Kon Knafelman is the Chief of Staff at Particular Audience – an AI-driven product recommendation engine. It provides e-commerce businesses with a no-code personalisation engine that can be embedded within their customer-facing website.
1 // What is the Chief of Staff role and what does a Chief of Staff do at Particular Audience?
The Chief of Staff is an extremely broad ranging role here at Particular Audience. It covers all things strategy, operations and administrative within the business. This includes raising capital, managing cash flow, commercial analysis, monitoring of our cost base,building out our finance and HR functions, dealing with investors, and general analysis and reporting.
2 // What does a day in your life look like working at a Series A stage startup?
No two days are alike. A key focus for me lately has been cost optimisation initiatives and working with investors to secure our next capital raise. Some days involve working on super interesting operational initiatives, but others can involve mundane tasks crucial to running a business, invoicing customers, monthly reporting, and taking out the bins
3 // What is your professional background, and how did it lead you to becoming a Chief of Staff?
I come from a corporate finance and private equity background, where I specialised in the acquisition and turnaround of businesses in the retail sector. Throughout the acquisition and integration process, I was always most interested in working with management teams to set and implement growth strategies. After a number of years sitting on the investment side of things, I made the jump into startups and have never looked back.
4 // Are there specific experiences that you needed to have to be hired for the role?
You can typically learn anything on the job with the right attitude and sense of curiosity. Chief of Staff is no different. The role is almost one of a “specialist generalist”. You need to be both analytical and commercial, and you need to be able to pivot between different tasks quickly. A genuine interest in running and growing a business would be the foundation.
5 // What are complementing professional backgrounds that could be suitable pathways for getting into the role?
It’s super broad, and I wouldn’t want to limit it to specific backgrounds, but it could be any job with an analytical background including M&A, consulting, engineering, law, or accounting
6 // What are the characteristics or skills that would help someone stand out in pursuing this career?
Curiosity and a genuine interest in the intricacies of running a business is the best base. Beyond that, you can learn anything.
7 // How did you determine which startup to join? What did you look for?
I joined PA after a few meetings with James (CEO). My previous retail investment experience was highly complementary, and he sold me on the product and growth of the business.
If you’re aiming for Chief of Staff (or any role) at a Seed-to-Series B startup, you first need to ask yourself whether you believe in the product or service that the business is selling. After that, you need to ask yourself if you get along with the founder(s). Once you’re happy with those elements, always ask how much runway they have. This is one of the toughest tech environments in the last 15 years and in this market, runway is the most vital metric to look for before joining a startup. They need at least 12-18 months runway if they’re scaling up their team.
8 // What are the best resources to read or listen to about becoming a Chief of Staff?
These days I use ChatGPT for everything!
****
Here are five current active roles in the EVP portfolio:
- Ignition is hiring an Account Executive in Australia
- Shippit is hiring an Engineering Lead in Sydney
- Hnry is hiring a Partnerships Specialist in Sydney
- ClearCalcs is hiring a Senior Software Engineer in Australia
- Practifi is hiring a Data Engineer in Australia
Interested in one of the above positions or getting an operation role in a Startup? Reach out to Fred or Charmaine from EVP's Talent Team or sign up to Talent_OS.