1. Rudy Vazquez,COO and Co-Funder @ Technology Hub, Juarez
For the first year of the project we didn’t use C-levels titles. In February of this year
it started to make much more sense for me to use the COO title. We had grown up
a little. We were not just 4 guys with a dream (Technology Hub) with our leader
pushing for this (Ricardo Mora/The Founder).
Everything became clear to me when I found this key insight: "There is commonality
across different businesses between the roles of CMO, CFO and most other
executive functions, but not so with the COO, where the roles are hugely varied.
Maybe the best way to think about it is that the COO does the things that the CEO
doesn’t." - Nic Brisbourne
 Ownership: Who legally owns company equity… CEO
 Possession:Who actually runs the company on a day-to-day basis… COO
 Control: who formally governs the company affairs… CFO
What Does a Startup COO Actually Do? I explore the ambiguity of the role of a
COO (Chief Operating Officer) in a startup, and my journey to becoming one at
Technology Hub.
Titles shouldn’t matter, but unfortunately everyone has to have one — including me.
Today, I am the COO at Technology Hub. The only consensus on what a COO does
is that there is no consensus, especially at startups. The role varies from company
to company, some don’t even have the role, and the jury is out on whether startups
need one or not.
Now, what needs to be done is this:
Mission #1 — Build the Leadership Team
Mission #2 — Designa Business Model
Mission #3 — Become “COO”

2. Responsibilities
OperationalLeadership:
 Provide effective and inspiring leadership by being actively involved in all
programs and services,developing a broad and deep knowledge of all programs.
 Identifyopportunities for all profit and non-profits to leverage cross program
strengths taking advantage of new opportunities and to address organizational
challenges.
 Develop and implementtraining programs and retreats to expand the capacity of
all staff members.
 Prepare and submit an annual operational budget, manage effectivelywithin this
budget,and report accurately on progress made and challenges encountered.
 Serve as the liaison manager to the board and audit committee; effectively
communicate and presentcritical financial matters at selectboard of directors
and committee meetings.
Team Development Leadership
 Promote a culture of high performance and continuous improvement that values
learning and a commitmentto quality.
 Ensure staff members receive timely and appropriate training.
 Monitor staff performance and establish development goals: assign
accountabilities, set objectives, establish priorities, conduct annual performance
appraisals, and administer salary adjustments.
 Mentor and develop staff using a supportive and collaborative approach: assign
accountabilities; set objectives; establish priorities; and monitor and evaluate
results.
ExternalRelationship Development:
 Manage and cultivate existing relationships with funders to secure and expand
recurring revenue streams.
Strategic Plan Implementation:
 Provide programmatic leadership and input for all strategic plan implementation
with the staff.
 Coach program directors as they implement the strategic plan and transition
program operations.
 Develop and implement a system for tracking and reporting on the progress of
the strategic plan implementation.
Operations
 Plan, coordinate,and execute the annual budgetprocess.

3.  Ensure that the Non-profit is adhering to the strategic plan, delivering
status reports to the board.
"COO must Think of it like Batman and Robin. So if Product leads a project, it’s
Batman and Growth supports with the right numbers and is Robin."
This is how we must approach everything now. The Batman and Robin method
helps us have one person who makes that final call, but we can both support each
other too.