Hi, I'm Sophie.
As a co-founder of two impact startups and advisor and consultant to many more, I have gained experience in all aspects of startup life, from general business registration to onboarding B2B partners, creating pricing structures, taking a new product to market, and onboarding and managing a team.
After my second startup, I realized that my passion is not being a founder myself, but rather in supporting founders to define their big pieces - product, value proposition and strategy, and company identity. As a startup founder, I found that I never had the time to fully execute my big pieces to the level that I wanted to - in detail, led with market research, user data, and strategic creativity. Instead, my time was split into hundreds of tasks which had to get done.
As a consultant and advisor, I work with startups, small businesses, nonprofits, and corporations to provide expert support on their big pieces - done with objectivity, attention to detail, and owner-like care. I'm here to be your sound board, Fractional CPO, Product Manager, or Chief Business Officer - you can plug me in wherever you need, whenever you need.
A LITTLE BIT ABOUT ME
Who inspires me
What I love
Where I've lived or worked
EXPERTISE & SERVICES
Below is how you can break down the expertise I provide my clients. Click on each category to read more about my services.
TECH & PRODUCT
Summary: You can trust me to manage your entire tech and product process - you do not need to be a techie or understand tech.
I can take you from idea to fully built product launched in the market, supporting you to make key decisions regarding feature specifications, product structure, product design, selection of personnel to build the product (third-party versus in-house), determining project management software and structure, negotiating service contracts, deciding platforms to use, determining necessities versus nice-to-haves, implementing Q&A and user testing protocols.
Types of products I have launched: Android applications, progressive web apps, web apps, USSD/SMS applications, hyper-scalable database
Roles that I play: Project Manager, Scrum Master, Product Owner, Product Manager, Head of Product, Q&A, Functional Designer
Examples of outputs: Product & feature specifications (in the form of user stories or specifications document), documented R&D, setup of project management software, full product launch implementation plan, review or creation of a service contract, documented quality assurance testing reports, funtional design plan, setup of basic MVP's, entire product launch from idea to market.
Most commonly asked question: Are you a developer?
No, I am not a developer. I manage developers to ensure they build a product fit for purpose, while managing budget, feature specifications, and product launch. I have a large network of UX designers, architects, and developers that I can recommend depending on your needs and budget.
BUSINESS PLAN & STRATEGY
Summary: You can come to me with an idea and I will help you turn that into a viable, research-backed business plan with an implementation strategy.
I can take you from a business idea to a fully executed business plan and implementation strategy that includes key components such as: full market research validating the business idea, identified customer segments and value proposition, unique selling proposition (USP), why now, financial modeling and strategy, defined mission, vision, and values, team summary, and professional graphic design for the final PDF version. Market research and a project or product strategy can be done for individual products or features to be launched as well.
Types of business plans I have created: social enterprise agriculture technology, fitness platform for seniors, logistics product for sea ports, artisan fashion market place
Roles that I play: Market Researcher, Chief Strategy Officer, Head of Innovation, Head of Business Strategy, Sound Board, Advisor, Board Member
Examples of outputs: market research document, customer segment description and detailed customer profile, outline of value proposition for each customer segment, sales strategy, financial projections, core customer identity document
Most commonly asked question: Can you come up with a business idea for me?
No, I will not come up with a business idea for you. While I could easily give you ten different business ideas, it is crucially important for a founder of a company to be passionate about the business and that passion must come from you. That being said, I am more than happy to help you evaluate several ideas through a business viability lens and help you decide which direction you would like to go in.
PITCH DECK & FUNDRAISING SUPPORT, PROPOSALS & PRESENTATIONS
Summary: I will create a pitch deck, proposal or presentation for you in Canva, Google Sheets, or Adobe Indesign, including all relevant research.
I will create an entire pitch deck from scratch based on the latest pitch deck best practices from leading VC firms. I have completed an intensive fundraising preparation program by Graham & Walker, as well as have developed over ten different pitch decks for both my own and external startups. My pitch decks include: key market research stats validating the business idea, tagline and key problem statement, identified customer segments and value proposition, unique selling proposition (USP), why now, team summary, and professional graphics throughout the deck. For non-pitch deck proposals and presentations, content is tailored based on the project at hand.
Types of pitch decks, proposals and presentations I have created: Pitch decks for agricultural social enterprise, B2B hardware agtech startup, green energy startup, senior fitness startup; Proposals for grant funding (won over $2 million in grant funding); Proposals for government and commercial partnerships; Sales decks for various client segments; Training presentations for end users
Roles that I play: Market Researcher, Chief Strategy Officer, Sound Board, Sales Strategist, Partnership Strategist, Chief Business Development Officer
Examples of outputs: Entire editable and PDF version of pitch deck, proposal, or presentation
Most commonly asked question: Are you a graphic designer?
While I do have ample graphic design experience, I do not sell graphic designer services as a stand alone product. However, I include graphic design in any of my services, including pitch decks, proposals, presentations, business plans, or any other document that is produced. This includes descriptive graphics throughout the document as well as document color scheme, etc.
BRANDING & COMMUNICATIONS
Summary: I can help you create your brand from scratch, including defined mission, vision, and values and a complete visual branding guideline with logo and color palette.
My branding and communication services include coming up with a full brand identity, including a Brand Sprint to fully define the personality of your brand and how that is being communicated to your customers, as well as a complete visual branding guidelines. At the end of the Brand Sprint, you will have mission, vision, values, voice, communication style, your "Why", and other key brand identity pieces defined. In your visual brand guidelines, you will receive a defined color palette, logo and symbol (if applicable), fonts, and graphics. Because branding is core to company identity, both the Brand Sprint and visual brand guidelines require input and a collaborative process with you, the founder of the company.
Types of brands I have created: social enterprise agriculture technology, fitness platform for seniors, artisan fashion market place, B2B hardware agtech startup
Roles that I play: Chief Brand Officer, Brand Strategist, Visual Designer
Examples of outputs: complete company identity, including mission, vision, values, voice, etc, and a complete visual brand guideline
Most commonly asked question: Do you create the logo yourself?
No, I partner with extremely talented graphic designers who are specialized in company brand identities. I will select a particular designer depending on the personality or your brand and your customer base. I manage the entire process and work directly with them to ensure your personality, needs, and wants are met with the logo design, and then it delivered to you as part of my complete branding package.
HOW IT WORKS
A typical engagement with me usually goes like this:
👩🏻💻
1. Let's chat
We will have a free 30-min call to see if we are good fit. My objective is to understand your business needs and get to know you as a person.
🔍📋
2. Let's get detailed
If we are a good fit, I will send you a detailed proposal on how we can work together. This includes a basic service agreement with customized ways of working based on your needs.
🤝🎊📈
3. Let's get started
After the proposal is accepted, we dive right in. Typical ways of working include: one-off services such as proposal or pitch deck support; medium-term engagements such as providing product management services from idea to launch; or long-term engagements, such as Fractional CPO services.
A FEW OF THE COMPANIES I'VE WORKED WITH
FANCY A CHAT?
I offer a free 30-minute consultation to answer your questions, get to know you, and see if we are good fit. Book your call using the link below.