I work the other side
of the table too.
My current CPO engagement didn't come from a founder — it came from the investment fund that owns the company.
Hired by the fund's CEO, embedded in the portfolio company, reporting to the fund stakeholder who owns the relationship. That's the working arrangement these offerings are built on.
Built for portfolio work
13+ yrs
Senior product leadership across five SaaS companies — embedded, not advising from outside
5 verticals
Fintech, payments, productivity, ad-supported, and hospitality SaaS — patterns that transfer across a portfolio
Fund-side
Hired by the fund and reporting to it — operating inside the portfolio company as acting CPO
Discreet
Company-specific findings stay with the company; only anonymized patterns travel across the portfolio
Portfolio Product Diagnostic
The Audit format applied to 3–5 portfolio companies in sequence, then a fund-level synthesis: common gaps across the portfolio ("4 of 5 don't have a metrics tree"), per-company fix sequences, and a maturity read you can act on.
Best for
Value-creation programs, post-investment 100-day plans, annual portfolio reviews.
Pre-Investment Product Due Diligence
A pre-deal Audit of the target's product org: maturity of the 8 decision systems, execution risks, key-person dependencies, and a 100-day plan ready for the IC memo.
Best for
B and C-stage SaaS deals where product execution is a primary value driver.
Embedded Operator
Acting CPO inside a portfolio company, engaged by and reporting to the fund. Strategy execution, leadership restructuring, KPI systems matched to your portfolio-wide standard, board-ready reporting every quarter.
Best for
Post-acquisition transitions, leadership gaps, companies between product leaders.
How fund engagements work
Confidentiality across the portfolio
Engagements are scoped per portfolio company with a standard NDA. Cross-portfolio insights are anonymized and aggregated; specific findings stay with the company being audited.
Conflict of interest
As a consultant, exposure to a range of companies is part of what makes the work valuable — so I guard it carefully. I disclose any portfolio overlap before engaging and decline anything where the conflict is material. No single mandate is worth putting another client's trust at risk.
Reporting into the fund
I report to one stakeholder inside the fund — the partner or operating lead who owns the company — with a written read on sized impact, sequenced fixes, and outcome tracking. Where it travels from there is theirs to decide.
Contracting
B2B contract via RootCause Consulting (operating since 2021), engaged by the fund or by the portfolio company directly — whichever fits your structure.
I was able to offload completely unto Catalin and focus on other areas of the business.
Markel Palmstierna
Chief Operating Officer
Catalin's got DRIVE — he'll work any project relentlessly and get it done, moving past any obstacles in his way.
Bogna Szyk
Chief Operating Officer
A rare ability to execute complex projects while maintaining high standards — a true partner and a pleasure to work with.
Sivan Kadosh
General Manager
One of the best PMs I have worked with. He will be a huge asset to any companies or clients.
Jing He
VP Finance
Instrumental in enhancing our processes — significantly improved our estimation and delivery.
Lucie Staněk Merunková
Senior Product Designer
Start with one portfolio company.
A 30-minute call to scope — bring the company you're least sure about, I'll bring the diagnostic plan.
Book a free 30-min call