Founders Associate

Salary: Up to £65,000 plus share options and benefits

Location: Brentford, West London, although it may relocate to another West London location such as Ealing, Chiswick or Hammersmith.

Working arrangement: Predominantly office-based, with some flexibility and travel to customer sites, field trials and events

Employment: Permanent, full-time

MFK Recruitment is recruiting a Founder’s Associate for an innovative UK technology company developing advanced Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning solutions for defence, security and other demanding operational environments. Our client has a highly experienced team of Software Engineers, Data Scientists, Machine Learning specialists and Researchers. The company is growing rapidly and is now looking for a highly capable individual to work closely with the CEO and senior management team.

The role:

The Founder’s Associate will work directly with the CEO across a wide range of operational, commercial and strategic activities. This is an unusually varied and hands-on position. One day could involve research, analysis or supporting an important business decision, while another could involve organising a field trial, managing suppliers or helping prepare and load technical equipment.

The successful candidate will be highly intelligent, extremely organised, commercially minded and very good at getting things done. They must have a low-ego approach and be willing to take responsibility for whatever is required to help the business succeed.

Responsibilities:

• Work closely with the CEO to support the effective running and continued growth of the company.
• Develop, implement and maintain policies, procedures and processes across the business.
• Improve existing processes and internal ways of working.
• Ensure operational activities are delivered on time and within budget.
• Support the day-to-day management and development of the team.
• Assist with non-specialist HR matters and recruitment planning.
• Ensure business activities remain compliant with relevant requirements.
• Manage purchasing, suppliers and technology procurement.
• Support budgeting, cost control and wider commercial decision-making.
• Manage the office, facilities and day-to-day operational requirements.
• Organise internal and external meetings, conferences, exhibitions and events.
• Coordinate the attendance of the senior management team at conferences and exhibitions.
• Manage processes for obtaining accreditations, approvals and clearances.
• Engage with regulators such as the CAA and Ofcom in support of field trials.
• Organise technical field trials and product demonstrations, including attendees, equipment and logistics.
• Carry out research and analysis to support business decisions.
• Lead special projects from initial planning through to delivery.
• Support change and operational improvement initiatives.
• Build strong relationships with customers, suppliers and other key stakeholders.
• Help promote the company and its technology.

Essential experience:

• A strong educational background in a STEM subject such as Computer Science, engineering, mathematics, physics or a related discipline.
• Experience working within a technology, engineering, scientific, research or similarly technical environment.
• The ability to understand complex technical concepts and become comfortable discussing them with technical teams and customers.
• Strong organisational skills and the ability to manage several priorities at once.
• Experience delivering projects or operational improvements.
• Strong commercial awareness and financial literacy.
• Excellent research, analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• The confidence to work closely with senior leaders, technical specialists, customers and external stakeholders.
• A proactive, practical and low-ego approach.
• The ability to work effectively in a fast-moving environment where priorities can change quickly.
• A genuine interest in Artificial Intelligence, technology and its applications within defence.
• High levels of integrity, reliability and attention to detail.
• Existing UK security clearance or the ability to obtain the required clearance.

Technical environment:

Candidates are not expected to already have detailed knowledge of the company’s technology. However, they must demonstrate the ability and willingness to quickly understand technical concepts such as:

• EO, IR, SAR and RF sensors.
• The electromagnetic spectrum.
• Mathematical models.
• Edge deployment.
• Machine Learning training data.
• Synthetic data and simulation.

Once up to speed, the Founder’s Associate will need to feel comfortable discussing these areas with customers and supporting technical activity in the field.

Desirable experience:

• Experience within defence, military, government, aerospace, security or another regulated sector.
• Experience working in an ambitious startup or scale-up environment.
• Technology procurement experience.
• Experience supporting technical demonstrations, field trials or deployments.
• Experience working with regulators or supporting accreditation and compliance processes.
• Previous experience working directly with a founder, CEO or senior management team.

Security clearance:

Candidates must be eligible to obtain UK BPSS and Security Check clearance. Existing security clearance would be highly advantageous. Applicants for SC clearance are normally expected to have lived in the UK for the previous five years. Applicants with a shorter UK residency history may still be considered, subject to the sponsoring authority being able to complete the required checks.