Chief of Staff in London

About Cortea

We're Cortea, a European audit-tech company, born in Berlin, rebuilding how audits are done everywhere. Audits are still driven by spreadsheets, checklists, and manual reviews in one of the most regulated, high-stakes areas of business. We use AI to automate audits end to end, so highly educated auditors no longer spend 60+ hour weeks on manual work and can focus on judgment, trust, and choices that matter. With €15m+ in funding, a live product, and paying customers across Europe, we're at a stage where your choices will directly shape Cortea's future, and how audits are done.

The Role

As Chief of Staff, you are a core member of the leadership orbit, working directly with Valentin (Co-Founder) to translate high-level vision into operational reality. You will sit at the intersection of Growth, Strategy, Finance, and Operations. Your mission is to tackle some of our most complex, ambiguous challenges at Cortea: in the first instance, architecting our UK and international expansion. You may also take on other strategic priorities for the business, such as refining our AI-driven unit economics. This role is a springboard. You will gain a "CEO-level" view of building a category-defining AI company, based in London while working in close, frequent contact with our founders and team in Berlin.

What You'll Do

• UK Market Building: Spearhead Cortea's UK market entry. Help grow team and presence, working closely with the founders and Berlin team to adapt processes, hiring, and local go-to-market.
• Founder Force Multiplier: Act as a proxy for the founders in internal and external meetings, ensuring decisions are made and projects stay on track even when the founders aren't in the room.
• Strategic Initiatives: Lead high-impact projects from conception to completion. While in the first instance, this role will be focussed on Cortea’s UK market entry, the CoS may also take on other strategic initiatives (e.g. designing an AI-era pricing model or optimising the sales-to-onboarding funnel).
• Scaling the AI-Native Operating System: Build the repeatable processes, meeting cadences, and communication loops, supercharged with AI agents and automation, that allow Cortea to scale toward €100m+ ARR without losing speed. You'll treat internal workflows as products, deploying AI wherever it removes friction.

Who You Are

• 4+ years of experience in high-velocity environments (top-tier strategy consulting, investment banking, or a high-growth VC-backed startup).
• Strategic Operator: You can think at 30,000 feet about market positioning, but you have the grit to dive into a spreadsheet or a legal contract to get a deal over the line.
• Financial Fluency: You have a deep understanding of P&L management, financial modelling, and SaaS metrics.
• Exceptional Communicator: You can distill complex AI concepts and financial data into clear, persuasive narratives for investors and the team.
• High Agency: You don't wait for a playbook; you write it. You are comfortable with the ambiguity of a "zero-to-one" environment.
• Native in English, German is a plus.
• Willingness to travel to Berlin frequently to work in person with the founders and team.
• Right to work in the UK required; we are unable to offer visa sponsorship for this role.

How We Work

• Founder mindset: Everyone acts like a founder. You're encouraged to take on any topic you believe is worth improving, with team and founder support.
• Thoughtful decision-making: Collaborative problem solving, concise written thinking, and deep in-person discussions to reach the best result.
• Speed over perfection: We value progress and learning, preferring strong 80/20 solutions over perfection.
• Feedback & learning: We give and ask for feedback weekly, not monthly.

What Success Looks Like

• In 3 months: You have worked through our UK ops, deployed workflow automations across the company, and offloaded 20% of the founders' highest-priority tasks.
• In 6 months: You have strengthened Cortea's UK operations into a foundation that scales on its own, and you are ready to lead the next big strategic bet.
• In 12 months: You have helped institutionalise the "Cortea Way" in the UK, creating a scalable operational foundation that supports our next major funding milestone.

What we offer

• Impact: A seat at the table during the most critical growth phase of a well-funded AI startup, with the opportunity to help grow Cortea's UK team and presence.
• Growth: Mentorship from experienced founders and close collaboration across the company.
• Compensation: Competitive salary plus meaningful equity.
• Benefits: 25+ days holiday allowance, pension contribution, private medical insurance.
• Perks: Learning budget, team lunches, off-sites, and regular trips to our Berlin hub.

Interview Process

• Intro call with Gamila (Talent Acquisition Lead at Dawn Capital).
• Strategy & finance interview, real-world scenario, with Valentin (Co-Founder).
• Culture interview, values and collaboration fit, with Philipp (Co-Founder).
• On-site day (Berlin): meet the team and work through a real, current problem.