Discover
The Opportunity
Highline Beta and Kolab Ventures are hiring a Founding CEO for a B2B fintech lending startup, currently being developed in our venture studios. The new startup is focused on providing greater access to capital for small and medium enterprises in Latin America. There are thousands of non-bank lenders seeking to enable growth of these SMEs, but it is too expensive or too difficult to reach profiles that fit their criteria. We are working on a solution to help SMBs understand their financial information, predict future needs, and connect to the right lenders to meet those needs.
Our mission is to empower the next wave of SME growth in Latin America.
We're aiming to launch in early 2025.
Work has already begun on validating the opportunity, product scope, and more. This is a unique partnership between two venture studios: Kolab Ventures, a Mexico-based innovation and entrepreneurship lab for Grupo Koval, and Highline Beta, a venture studio and venture fund based in Toronto.
As a Founding CEO, you will:
- Lead the company with a focus on go-to-market strategy, borrower/lender acquisition and partnerships. Kolab Ventures and Highline Beta will support with product development capabilities.
- Get your hands dirty and work with a small, nimble team. This startup is going from 0 to 1 and we are not looking for a "manager" but someone that can execute work at the grassroots level.
You can be located anywhere, but will be required to travel to Mexico regularly. You will receive a salary and equity compensation (owning a significant portion of the company).
Location: Anywhere (remote wor), with frequent travel to Mexico
What you'll do
Responsibilities
- Strategic Leadership: Develop and implement the company's vision, mission and overall strategy in alignment with our goal to empower SMBs.
- Marketing & Customer Acquisition: Drive customer acquisition strategies, leveraging your expertise in sales and partnerships to build a strong borrower and lender base.
- Stakeholder Management: Collaborate with Kolab Ventures and Highline Beta to ensure alignment and support in achieving our company milestones.
- Team Building: Recruit, manage and inspire a high-performing team, fostering a culture of innovation, collaboration and excellence.
- Product Development: Use your product management experience to guide the product team, ensuring a user-centric approach to development and continuous improvement.
- Financial Management & Fundraising: Work closely with Kolab Ventures and Highline Beta to manage the company's financial health, including budgeting, forecasting and securing additional funding.
What you'll need
Qualifications
- B2B Fintech Experience: Proven track record in building, launching and scaling B2B fintech businesses; ideally from 0 to 1 and beyond. Ideally you've been a startup CEO before and/or helped grow an early stage startup to find strong product market fit.
- Sales Expertise: Strong background in direct B2B sales and partnerships, with demonstrable success in growing a customer base.
- Strategic Thinker: Ability to think strategically and execute methodically, balancing short-term objectives with long-term goals.
- Passion for Impact: A deep passion for making a positive impact on communities and enabling enterprises to grow through innovative technology solutions.
- Leadership Skills: Exceptional leadership and team-building skills, with the ability to inspire and drive a team towards common goals.
- Product Management: Familiarity with product management principles and practices, ensuring the development of a user-centric product.
- Fluent in Spanish: This role will involve customer discovery and sales conversations in Spanish and interface with teams based in Mexico.
- Familiar with the Mexican Market: Ideally you have familiarity and/or experience in the Mexican market, which will be our first target geography.
We're looking for
Core Skills
A little bit about us
Highline Beta
At Highline Beta, we celebrate our inclusive work environment and welcome members of all backgrounds and perspectives to apply. We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations and will work with you to meet your needs. If you are a person with a disability and require assistance during the application process, please don't hesitate to reach out!