Founders Associate

About Cleo

At Cleo, we're not just building another fintech app. We're embarking on a mission to fundamentally change humanity's relationship with money. Imagine a world where everyone, regardless of background or income, has access to a hyper-intelligent financial advisor in their pocket. That's the future we're creating.

Cleo is a rare success story: a profitable, fast-growing unicorn with over $200 million in ARR and growing over 2x year-over-year. This isn't just a job; it's a chance to join a team of brilliant, driven individuals who are passionate about making a real difference. We have an exceptionally high bar for talent, seeking individuals who are not only at the top of their field but also embody our culture of collaboration and positive impact.

If you’re driven by complex challenges that push your expertise, the chance to shape something truly transformative, and the potential to share in Cleo’s success as we scale, while growing alongside a company that’s scaling fast, this might be your perfect fit.

Follow us on LinkedIn to keep up to date with new product features and insights from the team.

About the Role  

As a Founder’s Associate, you’ll work directly alongside Barney Hussey-Yeo, our founder & CEO, on Cleo’s most high-impact initiatives. This is a unique opportunity to learn the ins and outs of running a scaling business, tackle mission-critical challenges, and make an immediate impact.

The role is dynamic, fast-paced, and designed for those who thrive on solving complex problems and driving change. As a key member of Cleo’s CEO’s office, you’ll be at the forefront of shaping our business and operational strategy while gaining exposure to all areas of the company.

Key Responsibilities 

• Strategic Projects: Identify and lead high-impact initiatives across Cleo, solving critical challenges and driving large-scale change.
• Problem-Solving: Dive into departments and processes that need improvement, quickly identifying pain points and executing solutions.
• Operational Excellence: Track, monitor, and improve department-level performance metrics to drive efficiency and accountability.
• Cross-Functional Leadership: Collaborate with product, business development, and operations teams to align priorities and execute complex initiatives.
• Scaling Best Practices: Build scalable frameworks and models to support Cleo’s rapid growth globally.

What We’re Looking For

This is a role for the ambitious, the exceptional, and the driven. You’ll need to demonstrate:

• Educational Excellence: A first-class STEM degree from a top-tier university is a must.
• High-Caliber Experience: 2+ years in a top-tier investment bank (e.g., J.P. Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley),  leading consultancy (e.g., McKinsey, Bain, BCG), or a high-growth startup in a strategy or operations role.
• Technical Skills: Strong SQL skills are essential; experience with Python is a plus.
• Analytical Mastery: A proven track record of designing and maintaining complex models to inform strategic decision-making.
• Problem-Solving Prowess: A solutions-oriented mindset with the ability to tackle ambiguous problems and execute independently.
• Cross-Functional Communication: The ability to collaborate effectively with diverse stakeholders across teams.

What do you get for all your hard work?

• A competitive compensation package (base + equity) with bi-annual reviews, aligned to our quarterly OKR planning cycles. You can view our public progression framework and salary bandings here: https://cleo-ai.progressionapp.com/ 
• Work at one of the fastest-growing tech startups, backed by top VC firms, Balderton & EQT Ventures
• A clear progression plan. We want you to keep growing. That means trying new things, leading others, challenging the status quo and owning your impact. Always with our complete support. 
• Flexibility. We can’t fight for the world’s financial health if we’re not healthy ourselves. We work with everyone to make sure they have the balance they need to do their best work
• Work where you work best. We’re a globally distributed team. If you live in London we have a hybrid approach, we’d love you to spend one day a week or more in our beautiful office. If you’re outside of London, we’ll encourage you to spend a couple of days with us a few times per year. And we’ll cover your travel costs, naturally.
• Other benefits;
• Company-wide performance reviews every 6 months 
• Generous pay increases for high-performing team members
• Equity top-ups for team members getting promoted
• 25 days annual leave a year + public holidays (+ an additional day for every year you spend at Cleo, up to 30 days)
• 6% employer-matched pension in the UK
• Private Medical Insurance via Vitality, dental cover, and life assurance
• Enhanced parental leave
• 1 month paid sabbatical after 4 years at Cleo
• Regular socials and activities, online and in-person
• We'll pay for your OpenAI subscription
• Online mental health support via Spill
• Workplace Nursery Scheme 
• And many more!

We strongly encourage applications from people of colour, the LGBTQ+ community, people with disabilities, neurodivergent people, parents, carers, and people from lower socio-economic backgrounds.

If there’s anything we can do to accommodate your specific situation, please let us know.

UK App access: The Cleo app is no longer downloadable in the UK (but only until next year). If you’re an existing user, you’ll still have access to the app. But some features won’t be available (just for a little while). Why? 99% of our users are based in the US – where financial health is often overlooked. We’ve decided to shift our focus to where we can provide the most value and make the greatest impact for users who need it most. Then we’ll be able to apply what we learn to better support our UK users in the future.