Overview
Chief Operating Officer Jobs in City of Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa at Counder
Title: Chief Operating Officer
Company: Counder
Location: City of Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa
Who We Are
Counder is a global network bringing together exceptional leaders from business, investment, arts, sports, culture, and beyond. Through our four pillars — Conference, Calendar, Connect, and Context — we bring together 500+ hand-picked principals, investors, and C-suite leaders across 30+ nationalities who make allocation decisions. Backed by 25 South African and global family offices and investors, with an established valuation and a clear growth trajectory, we’re building something rare: a trusted environment where operators and investors explore emerging trends, emerging regions, and frontier technologies as they reshape our world.
We’re now building the senior leadership team to take Counder to the next level.
The Role
As Chief Operating Officer, you’ll lead the operational side of the business — owning operations, finance, systems, and the organisational infrastructure that makes everything else possible. You’ll work in direct partnership with the CEO, but this is your domain to build and run.
This is a building role. Counder is deliberately lean, which means you’re not inheriting a machine — you’re creating one. You’ll set up the processes, systems, and financial controls that let a small team operate at the level of organisations ten times our size. When something isn’t working, you fix it. When something doesn’t exist yet, you build it.
Strategy and execution aren’t separate at this stage — you’ll shape both. We’re looking for someone who builds and owns the operational backbone that lets everything else — events, partnerships, community, content — work at the highest level. You think in systems, act with urgency, and care about getting the details right.
What You'll Own
- Operational Leadership (Primary) — Day-to-day operations across all functions. Build processes, systems, and workflows that let a small team scale. Ensure execution quality and accountability across the organisation.
- Financial Management — Budgeting, cash flow, P&L, financial reporting. Own financial planning and investor reporting. Keep the organisation financially disciplined as it grows.
- Project & Team Management — Drive project management across all departments and workstreams. Set priorities, track deliverables, and ensure cross-functional alignment. Build the operating rhythm that keeps a growing team focused and accountable.
Your Profile
- Minimum 6–8 years in operations, general management, or a cross-functional leadership role — with demonstrated experience building, not just maintaining
- Strong financial acumen — you can build a budget, read a P&L, and make data-driven decisions
- Systems thinker who can design processes that scale without adding unnecessary complexity
- Hands-on — you’re comfortable being both strategic and operational, sometimes in the same hour
- Thrives in early-stage environments where you build the playbook, not follow one
We’re open to non-traditional paths — if your background doesn’t tick every box but you’ve built something real, we want to hear from you.
Nice to Have
- Based in Cape Town or willing to relocate
- Experience in events, conferences, media, or network-driven businesses
- Background in startups or high-growth organisations
- International operations experience across multiple markets
- Comfortable with AI tools for financial modelling, process automation, communication, and operational analysis
- Fluent in English (German or another language is a plus)
Why This Role
- Equity participation — Counder has an established valuation, proven model, and clear growth path. You’re not joining on day one — you’re joining at the right time to build real value.
- Own the operational side — this is your domain to build and lead, in direct partnership with the founder
- Build from scratch — design the operational infrastructure for a growing global network
- Access — your work enables a network of investors, executives, and decision-makers shaping global capital flows
- Stage — early enough to shape everything, established enough to have real momentum
- Mission — meaningful collaboration through the power of trusted connections
How to Apply
Email your CV and salary expectation to [email protected]. You’ll be working directly with Michel Weiss, CEO and Founder.
If you’d like to tell us why this role resonates with your experience, include a brief note — not required, but welcomed. We’re particularly curious about:
- A time you built operational infrastructure from scratch — what was broken, what you built, and what changed
- How you’d approach your first 90 days at Counder