Founders Associate

The role

You will work directly with the founders to manage their inbox, calendar, and research. You will coordinate across the team and handle strategic projects to support the founders.

What you will do

• Run the CEO's inbox and calendar with judgment
• Produce pre-meeting research and advance briefs for investor, partner and government meetings
• Travel with the founders to DC and sit in on meetings with federal agency leadership
• Turn meeting notes into next steps
• Coordinate across the team on the founders' behalf
• Track investor, partner and customer follow-ups
• Take on strategic projects with no obvious owner
• Use AI tools to draft, research and synthesize

Required qualifications

• 2 to 4 years of experience in a startup, consulting, banking or a role where you supported a founder or senior executive, or equivalent experience
• A bias to act first and check in after
• Comfort operating with incomplete information and shifting priorities
• Tight, clear writing under time pressure
• Willingness to travel on short notice and to work from the NYC office 4 days a week

Nice to have

• Worked with or alongside federal agencies, defense stakeholders or public sector partners
• Use AI tools as a core part of how you work
• Earned real trust from a founder or senior executive before

Benefits

• 100% medical coverage through Oxford/United
• 100% dental coverage through Guardian PPO
• 100% vision coverage through Beam
• 100% coverage for dependents
• $100,000 in fully paid life insurance
• FSA and Dependent Care FSA
• One Medical membership
• Fertility and family-building support through Carrot
• 401(k) with a 2% company match
• 16 weeks of fully paid parental leave for birthing parents
• 10 weeks fully paid for non-birthing parents
• Unlimited PTO with a two-week minimum

About the company

Kaizen powers America’s application layer by replacing legacy systems federal agencies run on with modern software. Founded in 2022 and based in New York City and DC, Kaizen has raised $35 million from NEA, a16z, Accel, 776, and Carpenter Capital.