Senior Business Operations Partner / Right Hand to Founder

I run several UK businesses across commercial finance and lending.
My strength is business development: meeting clients, introducers, lenders and partners, creating opportunities and moving relationships forward.The problem is that too much still comes back to me.

I am looking for someone experienced, commercially minded and highly organised who can progressively become my right hand — someone who can understand what is happening, make sensible decisions, follow things through and remove day-to-day operational noise from me.

This is not a traditional VA role and it is not simply inbox, diary and task management.
The aim is that over time, instead of asking me:
“What would you like me to do?”
you are increasingly able to say:
“This happened. I’ve dealt with X and Y. I recommend Z, and unless you disagree, I’ll proceed.”
The role
You will work closely with me across my businesses and help ensure that clients, lenders, introducers, suppliers and team members receive timely responses and that outstanding matters are properly followed through.
You will be expected to:

• Manage and triage email s, messages and communications.
• Deal directly with clients, lenders, introducers and other external contacts.
• Coordinate with members of the team and follow up on outstanding actions.
• Chase people when something is overdue rather than waiting for me to notice.
• Keep track of priorities, deadlines and unresolved matters.
• Maintain CRM and workflow systems.
• Prepare short, clear summaries of what has happened, what has been handled and what genuinely needs my attention.
• Identify problems and take sensible action within agreed boundaries.
• Improve systems, workflows and processes where necessary.
• Help make sure important matters do not fall through the cracks.

The purpose of the role is to progressively reduce the amount of operational work that reaches me.
Financial administration
You will also support basic business financial administration.
This may include:

• Raising and sending invoices.
• Checking whether invoices have been paid.
• Monitoring outstanding balances.
• Following up overdue payments.
• Reviewing transactions and maintaining accurate records.
• Basic reconciliation work.
• Assisting with financial reporting.
• Liaising with accountants and bookkeepers.
• Using Xero or similar accounting software.

You do not need to be a qualified accountant.
However, you should be comfortable around numbers, understand basic business finances and be confident working with financial information.
Experience with Xero is highly desirable.
Experience with QuickBooks or similar accounting systems is also relevant.
The person I am looking for
You should have several years of experience supporting a founder, CEO, senior executive or business owner in a role involving genuine responsibility.
I am particularly interested in someone who has already become the person their manager trusted to handle matters without constantly asking what to do next.
You should be:

• Highly organised.
• Commercially aware.
• Proactive.
• Calm under pressure.
• Confident dealing with senior businesspeople.
• Comfortable making decisions within agreed limits.
• Strong at following up and closing loops.
• Able to distinguish between something I need to know and something you can simply handle.
• Numerate and comfortable with basic financial administration.
• Discreet with confidential information.
• Comfortable challenging something when you believe there is a better way.
• Interested in becoming deeply familiar with the businesses rather than simply completing tasks.

Spoken English is extremely important
You must have excellent natural spoken and written English.
This role will involve direct communication with UK clients, lenders, introducers and professional contacts.
You therefore need to be able to understand nuance, think quickly and respond naturally in English during an unscripted conversation.
I am not looking for someone who only communicates well when reading from a prepared script.
I need someone who can speak confidently, clearly and naturally in real business situations.
UK experience
Previous experience working with UK businesses, UK executives or UK clients is strongly preferred.
You must be comfortable working UK business hours on a full-time basis.
Availability and commitment
This is intended to be a dedicated full-time role.
I am not looking for someone who intends to combine this position with several other clients or another substantial job.
You may have occasional outside commitments, but this role needs to be your primary professional focus.
I need someone who is mentally present, responsive and able to give the businesses their full attention during UK working hours.
I am looking for someone who wants a long-term position and who sees value in progressively becoming more important to the businesses as trust develops.
What success looks like
During the first few months, you will learn how I work, understand the businesses, become familiar with our clients, lenders and introducers, and recognise recurring situations.
As your knowledge and confidence grow, I expect you to progressively take more responsibility away from me.
Over time, I want clients, lenders, introducers and the team to become comfortable coming to you first because they know you understand the situation and can get things resolved.
The objective is simple:
I spend more time creating business. You make sure the business behind me keeps moving.
Salary
USD $1,200–$1,800 per month, depending on experience and capability.
I may consider more for an exceptional candidate with particularly strong UK business, finance or operational experience.
How to apply
Please begin the subject/title of your application with:
RIGHT HAND – [First Name] – [Years supporting senior executives/business owners]
Please include:
1. A short introduction of no more than 200 words explaining why this particular role suits you.
2. Your CV/resume.
3. A 2–3 minute video introduction.
4. Details of any experience working with UK businesses, executives or clients.
5. Your expected monthly salary.
6. Details of your experience with Xero, QuickBooks or similar accounting software.
7. Details of any other jobs, clients or regular working commitments you currently have, including the hours involved.
Your video
Please do not read from a prepared script.
I would much rather hear you speaking naturally, even if it is less polished.
Tell me briefly who you are, what you do now, what interests you about this role, and why you believe you could become a genuine right hand to a business owner.
Please answer these questions
Question 1
A client has email ed twice asking for an update on their finance application.
The lender has not responded to the email we sent yesterday.
I am in meetings and unavailable until 3pm.
What would you do?
Question 2
While I am out at meetings, you receive 15 email s:

• Five are routine.
• Four require action from another member of the team.
• Three require somebody to be chased.
• Two need a decision.
• One is genuinely urgent.

Explain what you would do with them and what information you would send me.
Question 3
An important introducer contacts you and says:
“Can you just get him to call me?”
You understand the issue and believe you can resolve it yourself.
How would you handle the conversation?
Question 4
Tell me about a genuine situation in a previous role where you identified a problem and solved it without waiting for your manager to tell you what to do.
Please explain:

• What the situation was.
• What you d ---------- to do.
• Why you made that decision.
• What happened as a result.

Question 5
You notice that several supplier invoices are due, cash flow is tighter than expected, and one large customer payment has not arrived.
I am unavailable.
Talk me through what you would do before d ---------- whether I need to be involved.
Please finish your application with the following sentence:
“I understand that this role is about ownership, not administration.”