Justine Cohen, MBA

Chief operations officER

linkedin.com/in/justinecohen/  |  Los Angeles, CA  |  (508)212-6836  |  coaching@justine-cohen.com

Summary

15+ years management experience. 10+ years experience supporting executives, founders, c-suite, and entrepreneurs in running their businesses as internal ops + logistics manager, executive assistant / chief of staff, and coach / consultant / strategic advisor. 20+ years experience in admin and internal ops for businesses of all sizes. Genius at managing special projects, day to day ops, and diverse, globally dispersed teams. The #s: manage inventory up to $5M, support in delivering business services up to $400k, manage budgets up to $250k, and saved up to $1.3M annually across company spend. The descriptors: intuitive, creative, solution-focused, efficient, thoughtful, and adaptable. A powerful change-maker, natural born leader, and expert communicator with amazing energy. MBA from the best school for entrepreneurship. Wide breadth and deep understanding in a dozen industries.


Relevant Work Experience

The Founder Coach, San Francisco, CA (remote)

March 2023 – June 2024

Head of Ops; Founder coaching services  

  • Managed all internal ops: HR, legal, finance, client support, and scheduling.

  • Managed and initiated improvements to internal referral network of coaches for founders.

  • Advised on overall business structure and strategy.


co:census, Brooklyn, NY (remote)  October 2022 – March 2024

Operations Lead; Enterprise SaaS AI/ML tech startup. Benefit corp

  • Hired as Part-Time Virtual Executive & Operations Assistant, promoted to Operations Lead.

  • Provided weekly reports on and lead operations projects that support filling gaps in the company; created a new system for tracking budgets and invoices with executive leadership; lead invoice management by creating all AP and tracking AR.

  • Independently created wiki for company linking all internal documents together across all the departments.

  • Provided project management support for enterprise clients—work with the Head of Services, Founder, and clients to keep track of deliverables. Deals up to $330k.

  • Advised leadership team on sales process, marketing strategy, and marketing copy for services and products.

  • Manage enterprise deals and ensure company is on track for delivering items to customers; enrich leads in CRM to support the sales team by conducting LinkedIn research and utilizing Apollo.

  • Supported company logistics planning: identify opportunities for sponsorships, plan conferences, and manage people programs by researching and implementing new benefits.


Dream Catalyst Coaching LLC, Los Angeles, CA             August 2019 – Present

Full-Time & Fractional COO; June 2024 – Present; health & wellness CPG

Founder Coach and Consultant; Various industries: crypto, tech, legal, cannabis, health & wellness, spirituality, real estate

  • Self-Employed as Executive and Founder Coach / Consultant

  • Help impact-focused millennial & gen z founders grow as leaders so they can be wildly successful in growing their businesses, realize their potential, and change the world. 

  • Specialties: goal setting, business strategy, internal ops, people ops, spiritual / emotional / physical wellbeing, personal transformation, and interpersonal & team dynamics.


Bolt Threads, Emeryville, CA                                                 May 2018 – May 2019

Executive Operations Manager; Sustainable materials biotech: high-fashion and consumer goods startup. Benefit corp

  • Hired as Senior Executive Assistant to Co-Founders, promoted to Executive Operations Manager.

  • Saved $50-250k annually by improving reporting & expense tracking, reducing inefficiencies, managing budgets, initiating cross-functional collaboration, and evaluating & renegotiating vendor contracts.

  • Improved visibility for executive team through continuous improvement of Strategic Planning/QBR processes. Enabled management of evolving business models that included subsidiary brands and multiple verticals.

  • Enabled leadership team to save months of work and $50k per quarter by partnering with finance & operations staff.

  • Managed all executive support and office management staff to ensure coordination across departments.

  • Improved financial reporting by building a tool that visualized resource allocation. Improved financial performance by partnering with sales enablement to create onboarding processes and ongoing education for sales team.

  • Presented on behalf of founders and executive team. Managed and drafted internal communications, including overly sensitive, confidential, and urgent organizational changes, technical newsletters, and strategic initiatives.

  • Led people operations initiatives for diversity, equity, and inclusion that improved retention & culture.

  • Planned board meetings and prepared presentations, requested analyses and physical materials.

  • Executed complex calendar management and travel booking for multiple executives and time zones.


GoodData, San Francisco, CA                                                September 2015 – May 2018

Chief of Staff to CEO; Enterprise SaaS Analytics tech startup

  • Hired as Office Manager and Promoted to Chief of Staff to CEO

  • Saved $1.3M annually by improving reporting & expense tracking, reducing inefficiencies, managing budgets, initiating cross-functional collaboration, and evaluating & renegotiating vendor contracts.

  • Supported deals sized $50-100k by drafting and sending communications to existing customers & leads that successfully resulted in meetings, sales opportunities, new business, and closed deals.

  • Owned all CEO communications, internal communications, and All Hands.

  • Presented on behalf of founders and executive team; managed and drafted internal communications, including highly sensitive, confidential, and urgent organizational changes, and strategic initiatives.

  • Recognized by board leadership for high level of excellence, commitment, and ability to influence positive cultural and organizational change through trust-building and partnership with the CEO and senior leadership team.

  • Recruited, hired, managed, and fired all administrative and office manager staff to ensure best in class support.

  • Organized and hosted corporate events for up to 200 people; managed budgets up to $250k per event.

  • Oversaw regional offices across the country and managed all real estate projects, including: 100-person office move, remote sales office relocations & closures, and corporate apartment rentals.

  • Executed complex calendar management and domestic/international travel booking.


Additional Work Experience

Eisenhauer Gallery, Edgartown, Martha’s Vineyard, MA May 2013 – September 2014

Assistant Director; Fine Arts

  • Hired as Gallery Manager and Promoted to Assistant Director

  • Managed $5M in inventory. Interfaced directly with partners and customers.

  • Kept pace with the top sales associate while also managing all internal operations and staff on owner’s behalf.

Various, Easton & Martha’s Vineyard, MA, Burlington, VT, Steamboat & Vail, CO, and Seattle, WA               2008 – 2015

Fitness Clubs, Ski Shops, Retail Spaces & Art Galleries

  • Assistant to Director/Manager/Curator

  • Studio & Sales Manager

  • Certified Personal Trainer


Education

Babson College, F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business, San Francisco, CA & Wellesley, MA Master of Business Administration, August 2019

University of Vermont, Burlington, VT Bachelor of Arts, Studio Art – Honors, Minor in English, May 2010


Get in touch: (508)212-6836 or coaching@justine-cohen.com

www.justine-cohen.com/coo | linkedin.com/in/justinecohen/