Helping venture-backed startups navigate founder conflict, governance challenges, investor coordination, and operational complexity.
Discuss an EngagementKimberly Waite Strategic Operations provides fractional CEO and COO leadership to venture-backed startups at Seed and Series A. We work with founders during critical operational moments—governance challenges, founder conflict, board coordination, investor relations, and organizational restructuring.
We step in when companies are stuck, whether conflict is slowing execution, decisions aren’t getting made, or founders need senior operational support without a full-time hire.
We work directly with founders, boards, and legal teams to establish clarity, align stakeholders, and maintain operational continuity while key decisions are resolved.
We work with a small number of companies at a time, by design.
Operational leadership embedded within your team. We bring executive-level structure, decision-making, and accountability to Seed and Series A startups that need senior leadership without a full-time hire.
Helping founders and boards navigate difficult decisions—equity disputes, role transitions, governance breakdowns, and the conversations that need to happen but haven’t yet.
Executive leadership during consequential company transitions—restructurings, leadership changes, investor-driven transitions, and periods of instability that require calm judgment, rapid clarity, and operational control.
“She brought clarity to a situation that had paralyzed our leadership team for months. Within weeks, we had a path forward.”
“Kimberly operates with the kind of calm authority that you need when everything else feels like it’s on fire.”
“We brought her in during a governance crisis. She stabilized the company and rebuilt trust between the founders and the board.”
“The kind of operational leadership that most startups don’t know they need until they’re in crisis.”
Companies rarely stall because of a lack of ideas. They stall when decisions aren’t getting made, roles are unclear, and tension goes unaddressed. We work with founders and stakeholders to resolve what’s blocking progress and move the company forward.
Identify the real issues beneath the surface—misaligned incentives, unspoken conflict, structural weaknesses, and decisions that have been deferred too long.
Create clarity around roles, authority, governance, and next steps so difficult conversations can lead to actual decisions.
Build the operational structure, communication cadence, and accountability systems needed for the company to move forward with coherence.
Kimberly leads high-stakes engagements for venture-backed startups navigating founder conflict, governance challenges, and operational instability. She works directly with founders, boards, investors, and legal teams to surface what is actually happening, establish clarity, and move companies forward.
Christopher supports execution, coordination, and operational continuity across all engagements. He ensures that decisions translate into action, stakeholders stay aligned, and the operational infrastructure we build actually holds.
If your company is navigating a difficult operational moment and needs experienced executive leadership, we’d like to hear from you.