Founders Associate – Operations (m/f/d)

About Vestlane and the Role

Vestlane is the platform for onboarding, KYC/AML, and tax compliance for private market funds. Fund managers and fund administrators across Europe process their KYC, AML, and subscription processes via Vestlane, in over 14 jurisdictions and across the entire investor lifecycle. We are certified and built for the regulatory reality of exciting acronyms – from GwG, BaFin, AMLR, RTS, CSSF to DORA, RAIF, AIFMD, MiFID, and many more.

Do you want to see how a B2B SaaS company really works – not from a slide, but from the engine room? Do you want to get to know the world of venture capital and private equity from the inside, without the detour through three years of investment banking? Do you prefer building a process that permanently solves a problem rather than solving it anew every week? Do you use AI tools and automation as naturally as others use Excel? Then this role is for you!

As a Founders Associate, you will work directly with our COO, who is responsible for Operations and Go-to-Market. You will take on the operational tasks that are currently on his desk – from processes and tooling to finance and compliance to HR – and will be close to every decision that moves the company forward. Real responsibility from day one, a direct line to tax advisors, service providers, and partners, and an overview of a growing SaaS company that no large corporation can offer you. You will work together on-site in the Erfurt/Weimar area 2-3 days a week, in a workspace that you will help build from the start; the rest will be flexibly managed from your home office.

Your Responsibilities

• Building the Internal Machine (your focus): You will document, standardize, and automate our internal workflows – from a wiki that is actually read, to AI agents for recurring tasks, to managing our tool and vendor landscape (contracts, access, costs). You will identify where we are losing time and eliminate the cause.

• Preparing Decisions: You will build analyses and decision papers for the COO and CEO – unit economics, market and competitor research, investor reporting – and deliver numbers instead of opinions.

• Supporting Finance and Accounting: You will take over preparatory accounting, check and issue invoices, prepare payment runs, assist our tax advisor, and keep cost and liquidity overviews up to date.

• Keeping Compliance Operations Running: You will maintain records and policies for ISO 27001 and SOC 2, prepare audits, and keep our sub-processor list and deadlines in order.

• Assisting with Hiring and HR: You will write job advertisements, screen applications, coordinate interviews, and ensure that new colleagues are onboarded smoothly – from employment contracts and equipment to their first day. You will also keep our HR processes and tools in order.

• Managing Contracts and Offers: You will prepare offers, keep our pipeline in Salesforce up to date, and keep track of customer, partner, and order processing agreements – versions, deadlines, signatures.

Your Profile

• Completed university degree (e.g., Business Administration, Information Systems, Business Law, or equivalent) or a completed commercial apprenticeship. Whether fresh from university or with one to two years of experience from a startup, consulting, or finance industry: internships and student assistant roles count, attitude counts more.

• Very proficient in Excel/Google Sheets, structured in documentation and project management. Experience with Salesforce, accounting, or automation tools (e.g., Zapier, Make, n8n) is a plus.

• You use AI tools (Claude, ChatGPT, or similar) not just for writing, but for building processes – and you know where you need to check things yourself.

• Fluent German and good English – partners, service providers, and parts of the team work in English.

• Precision and pragmatism: You work independently, ask questions when something is unclear, and know when every detail matters – and when it doesn't.

• You don't have a problem checking an invoice in the morning and organizing a job interview in the afternoon. You see breadth not as a lack of focus, but as an opportunity to understand and learn about the entire company.

• Interest in funds, financial regulation, or compliance is welcome, prior knowledge is not a prerequisite – we will teach you that.

• You see yourself as an entrepreneur within Vestlane, not as a subordinate. You want responsibility today and leadership tomorrow, and you want to earn both by building something.

Benefits

• Direct collaboration with the COO and CEO, no five layers between you and the decisions

• Full-time, permanent position, start as soon as possible

• Competitive salary package

• 30 days of vacation

• Paid further education and certifications

• 2-3 days per week on-site in the Erfurt/Weimar area in a workspace you build together with the COO, otherwise home office; plus office opportunities at our other locations and flexible working hours

• Modern tools and AI in daily use

• A team that takes compliance seriously because compliance is the product, not a cost factor

Conclusion

We look forward to receiving your CV and a few sentences about why this role and why Vestlane specifically. We do not need a traditional cover letter. We review your application personally and will get back to you within two weeks.

The process is intentionally short and has two steps: a 30-minute introductory call, which is about you, your journey, and whether we are a good fit for each other. Afterwards, shortly before the second meeting, you will receive a small practical task from everyday work, which you will present to us in 45 minutes – so you can see what awaits you, and we can see how you work and how you deliver results to the point. In total, less than an hour and a half of interview time, and you will receive timely feedback after each step.

Questions before applying? Get in touch with us!

Find Jobs in Germany on Arbeitnow