Founder's Associate / Chief of Staff

EQL Edtech; Cardiff; Hybrid; GBP 40,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

A dynamic educational technology company in Cardiff is seeking a Founder's Associate / Chief of Staff to support the Founder & CEO across several ventures. This unique role requires an ambitious individual who thrives in fast-paced environments and desires direct mentorship. Responsibilities include managing relationships, executing strategic initiatives, and supporting business operations. Candidates should possess strong organisational and communication skills and be eager to engage with AI, education, and workforce innovation.

Benefits

Competitive salary

Flexible hours

Direct mentorship from the CEO

Annual learning & development budget

Qualifications

• Ambitious, curious, and optimistic.
• Demonstrated excellence academically and/or professionally.
• Thrive in environments with high autonomy and expectations.

Responsibilities

• Drive execution on cross-company initiatives.
• Manage high-value relationships and draft proposals.
• Prepare materials for key conferences.

Skills

Strong writing and communication skills

High organisation and attention to detail

Ability to multitask

Comfortable with senior stakeholders

Excited by AI and automation

Job description

About the role

We’re hiring a Founder’s Associate / Chief of Staff to work directly with our Founder & CEO and their teams across multiple ventures operating across education, recruiting, AI, talent development and workforce innovation. These include Equal Teaching, EQL Edtech and Equal Education Partners.

This is a role for someone who thrives in fast-moving environments, thinks like a founder, and wants an accelerated path to leadership or future entrepreneurship. You’ll contribute across strategy, operations, systems, relationships, content, and execution - from day one.

Responsibilities

Strategic & Operational Execution

• Drive execution on cross-company initiatives
• Build systems, workflows, SOPs and automations
• Identify patterns, bottlenecks and opportunities to improve operations

Client, Partner & Investor Engagement

• Help to manage high-value relationships
• Draft proposals, memos, contracts, decks and materials
• Support global client and partner communication

Brand, Content & Communication

• Manage and triage high volumes of correspondence
• Draft and refine content for LinkedIn, newsletters and events
• Build websites, pages and MVPs using AI & no-code tools (working with Marketing colleagues)
• Maintain brand consistency across multiple ventures (working with Marketing colleagues)

Events & External Representation

• Coordinate presence at key conferences (BETT, SXSW, ASU+GSV, etc.)
• Prepare materials, logistics and communications
• Represent the Founder & CEO, the MD and the company in meetings

Business Operations

• Support invoicing, payroll coordination, vendor management
• Help run efficient operations across systems and teams
• Improve and implement SOPs across the organisation

Founder Enablement

• Prioritise, triage and manage workflow
• Operate across WhatsApp, Slack, email, Asana, voice notes etc. with ease
• Remove blockers and help keep the Founder & CEO and MD focused on what matters most

Why this role is different

• Work directly with the Founder across multiple ventures
• High ownership from day one
• Accelerated exposure to leadership, strategy & global networks
• Learn how to build AI-enabled organisations
• Craft a career path toward future founder, chief of staff or senior operator roles
• Gain active mentorship & guidance from experienced colleagues and build an enviable network across regions and sectors
• Operate across the UK, US and Europe

Successful Applicant

• Ambitious, curious, optimistic and grounded
• Operate with founder-level ownership, pace and resilience
• Have demonstrated excellence academically and/or professionally
• Strong writing and communication skills
• High organisation, attention to detail and ability to multitask
• Care deeply about impact, social mobility and the future of work
• Comfortable with senior stakeholders as well as frontline staff
• Enjoy building: systems, relationships, processes, prototypes
• Excited by AI, automation, talent development and modern education
• Thrive in environments with high autonomy and high expectations

How to apply

• CV or LinkedIn
• 3–5 sentences on why this role
• Examples of writing, projects, or automations
• (Optional) 90‑second Loom intro

1. Core Compensation & Support

• Competitive salary (benchmarking against founder’s office / CoS roles depending on experience & location)
• Additional performance based pay
• Pension / 401(k) contributions (depending on jurisdiction)
• Employer-covered equipment (laptop, accessories, workspace setup)
• Phone allowance / mobile reimbursement
• Technology + AI tools budget

2. Professional Growth & Career Acceleration

• Direct mentorship from the Founder/CEO
• Exposure to leadership across multiple ventures (education, AI, talent, workforce)
• Dedicated annual learning & development budget (books, courses, conferences)
• Attendance at major global events
• Opportunity to sit in on strategic calls with investors, founders, government leaders
• Clear career progression path (FA/Chief of Staff → Director/Head of a team → future founder)
• Opportunities to lead cross-company special projects
• Access to advisory boards, investor networks, and partner organisations

3. Work-Life Flexibility & Autonomy

• Hybrid / flexible working in Cardiff (Wales), London or Austin
• Flexible hours focused on high performance, not time logged
• Ability to travel for events, client visits, and international expansion
• High‑trust environment with autonomy from day one

4. Perks, Culture & Mission-Aligned Extras

• Work directly at the centre of impactful ventures in education, AI, talent & social mobility
• Small, high-trust, low‑politics environment
• Opportunity to shape systems, processes and culture across multiple teams
• Access to co‑working spaces or our own offices (Austin, London, Cardiff, etc.)
• Opportunities to collaborate with world‑class operators, educators, founders and policymakers
• A role where your work rapidly becomes visible and meaningful

5. Long-Term Alignment

• Structured pathway to progression for the right candidate
• Opportunity to take ownership of strategic units or spin‑out initiatives
• Become part of the Founder’s trusted team working across multiple ventures
• Long-term support in your own founder journey if you choose to build something