Work With Me
After three exits and a decade of building, the work I keep getting pulled into, and the work I'm best at, is being the person in the room with a founder or CEO when the hard call needs to be made.
Not running a function. Not coaching from the sidelines. Sitting across from the principal, reading the situation fast, naming what's actually going on, and helping them move.
"As a Founder, I needed someone to help support me to grow into the best CEO and leader of our company. Helaine intuitively understood not only the business and dynamics with investors, vendors, the team and even the board, but also my personal growth needs to step into the next phase of not only my leadership but also unlock the next level of success for the business." — Helya Mohammadian, Founder & CEO, Slick Chicks
What I bring to the table
Three exits. Over $20 million raised. A decade of crises, hard decisions, and pivots no playbook could have prepared me for. But the thing my clients keep coming back for isn't the resume: it's the combination of sharp business instincts and deep human awareness. I don't just diagnose the problem on the table. I understand the person carrying it. How you think, how you move, what's actually holding you back. That combination is rare, and it's the work.
I'll tell you the truth. I'll tell you when I think you're wrong. And I'll do it in a way you can actually hear.
For founders and CEOs running real companies through a stretch of complexity they don't want to navigate alone. Fundraises. Pivots. Big hires and harder fires. Board dynamics. Co-founder tension. The decisions that keep you up at night.
A weekly standing conversation. Async access in between. Real involvement in the decisions that matter: people, strategy, communication, sequencing. I'm not in your team meetings. I'm the seat across the table from you, with no agenda except your success.
Every engagement starts with a paid diagnostic. Four to six weeks where I go deep on you, the company, and the situation, and produce a written assessment plus a recommendation on whether ongoing work makes sense for both of us.
I take on a small number of these at a time.
02
Monthly Coaching
For leaders who want a sharp, experienced thought partner alongside them, without the embedded engagement. Two private sessions per month, ongoing text access between sessions, no 90-day commitment required. The relationship model, not the transactional one.
Best for founders in a season of growth, change, or transition who don't need or aren't ready for a strategic partner relationship.
03
Board & Advisor
For a small number of companies each year, I take on paid board or advisor seats where the fit is right and the work is meaningful. Typically growth-stage companies with the revenue to support meaningful comp, where I can have direct impact on the trajectory: strategy, fundraising, people, and the hard calls. By inquiry.