Skip to main content
Fractional COO  —  Riyadh Page 01 / 01

Fractional COO  ·  Product operations  ·  Riyadh

A fractional COO for Saudi consumer-tech founders.

A Silicon Valley operator running the operating system behind product and engineering — embedded with Series A–C consumer companies in Riyadh, Jeddah, and across the Kingdom.

No. 2  —  Plain answers

Plain answers, before we go further.

  • What is a fractional COO? An operations leader who runs the operating system behind your product and engineering org — the PDLC, quarterly planning, launch readiness, and cross-functional execution — part-time or for a fixed term, without the full-time chief-officer hire.
  • Why hire one in Riyadh? Because the operating playbook that worked in San Francisco doesn't translate cleanly to the Kingdom. Cadence, language, and stakeholder geometry are different. A practiced operator who has done this before compresses the learning curve — and speaks the Vision 2030 capital map fluently.
  • COO, product operations — what is the difference? Operations first, product second. This is a COO-grade operating role focused on the product-and-engineering machine: how the org plans, decides, and ships — not product vision or the roadmap, which stay with the founder and CPO. Most Riyadh engagements start with a diagnostic and move from there.
No. 3  —  Engagements

No. 3

Three modes, one practice.

Most Riyadh engagements move through them in order: diagnose first, embed second, advise on the calls that don't fit a memo.

I

Execution Diagnostic

A short, focused engagement to expose where the operating system is leaking velocity.

Two to four weeks embedded with product and ops leadership in Riyadh or remote. Run against the PDLC Maturity Ladder and the Founder Intuition Audit to locate where decisions stall and rework compounds — written up in a brief that survives the engagement.

→  Open intro

II

Embedded Partnership

Interim COO / head of product operations on the executive team, alongside founder or CPO.

A sustained engagement where an operator runs product and engineering operations next to your team in Riyadh or Jeddah, installs the operating cadence, hires the permanent operations leader, and exits into a structured handoff. Not advisory, not staff-aug.

→  Open intro

III

Advisory Retainer

Standing operator counsel inside the founder's biggest decisions.

A monthly seat for the operator-level conversations: hires, restructures, market moves, the calls that don't fit a memo. For founders who already have their operating cadence and want a senior operator in the room, not on a deck.

→  Open intro
Open with whichever feels right  →
No. 4  —  In the Kingdom

No. 4

How the work runs.

Remote-first, on the Kingdom's calendar, and on-site in Riyadh or Jeddah when a build genuinely needs someone in the room.

The cadence here is its own thing. The working week starts on Sunday in Riyadh and ends on Thursday, and my calendar shifts to match. The practice is remote-first, run from California on the Kingdom's calendar; when an engagement genuinely needs someone in the room, I travel to Riyadh or Jeddah for it — as the work requires, not on a set cadence.

Vision 2030 is the demand thesis — a cashless push, e-commerce compounding, a young mobile-first consumer — but the tailwind only converts if the product ships. Working language is English; I work alongside Arabic-first teams, and an Arabic-speaking PM is a natural complement on the larger engagements. Confidentiality is the default; NDAs ship before the first call when the founder requests it.

  • Working hours 08:00 — 18:00 AST · full Gulf overlap; AM PT for SF
  • Working model Remote-first, on the Kingdom’s calendar · on-site in Riyadh or Jeddah when a client requires it
  • NDA before call Mutual NDA shipped within 24h on request, ahead of the intro call
No. 5  —  Provenance

No. 5

Affiliations.

Introductions in the Kingdom are earned through standing. The standing on record is below.

Affiliation Role When  /  Where
  • Abu Dhabi SME Hub Mentor 2024 — Present · Abu Dhabi
  • Neurobay Ventures General Partner 2025 — 2026 · UAE
  • PolyUno Ventures Advisor 2025 — Present · UAE
  • Brooklyn Tech Expo Keynote February 2026 · New York
  • Certified ScrumMaster Credential Scrum Alliance

For warm introductions through the Hub  →

No. 6  —  FAQ

No. 6

Riyadh, plainly answered.

The questions founders ask before the intro call. Answered without fanfare.

  • 01 Are you available for on-site weeks in Riyadh? Yes, when an engagement requires it. The practice is remote-first, run from California on the Kingdom’s calendar; I travel to Riyadh or Jeddah when the work genuinely needs someone in the room — as needed, not on a set cadence.
  • 02 Is this a COO or a product role? Operations, applied to product. Twelve years of standing up product-operations and program functions — PDLCs, quarterly planning, launch readiness, operating models — at Reddit, Tinder, Strava, Snowflake, and Twitter. I run the machine; product vision and the roadmap stay with your founder and CPO.
  • 03 Do you understand the Vision 2030 landscape? Yes — the PIF/Sanabil/STV capital map, what that money expects, and the operational realities that rarely make it onto a strategy deck: Saudization/Nitaqat, the RHQ rule, the SAMA sandbox, and the e-commerce and data-residency law that reaches providers serving Saudi consumers from outside the Kingdom.
  • 04 How is fit decided? On the intro call. Thirty minutes, three questions: stage, where the operating system is leaking, what would change in 60 days. If it isn't a fit, I'll say so on the call.
  • 05 What's the typical engagement length? Diagnostics: 2–4 weeks. Embedded partnerships: two to four quarters. Advisory retainers: rolling, with a six-month minimum and a one-month opt-out.

Still have a question? Open an intro call  →

No. VII  —  Regard

“One of the best Program Managers I know.”

Mike Manoske, PCC  ·  Executive Coach

Open an intro call  → Or send the nine questions  →