COO · Head of Operations · Operations & Technology · SF Bay Area

I build the operating backbone that turns strategy into numbers.

I also run board meetings and execute fundraising — from Series A to IPO.

ROI-driven operations executive with 15+ years running the systems, teams, capital, and board-ready cadence behind venture-backed and public companies — from Series A through a NASDAQ IPO. I pair operational discipline with modern technology — AI-enabled workflows, automation, real-time analytics — to measure everything and hold the plan accountable to the P&L.

San Francisco Bay Area, CA sunitaraja@gmail.com LinkedIn
Proof of workAudited results, not anecdotes
$900M
Annual revenue automated at Yelp through end-to-end Commerce Platform transformation
$430M → $630M
Revenue scaled through the Udemy NASDAQ IPO — one of three executives leading readiness
22 → 2
Reporting systems consolidated into two global BI platforms across Gap's five brands
40%
Technology cost reduction at Mighty Buildings via vendor and SaaS contract restructuring
75%
Reduction in security incidents through identity and endpoint overhaul
15 – 175
Team sizes led — from lean startup pods to global cross-functional organizations
Figures locked & consistent across all materials
Operating Philosophy

Strategy defined. Execution delivered.

Great strategy dies in handoffs. I build the connective tissue — operating cadence, systems, and accountability, amplified by AI — that keeps a company's plan, people, and P&L pointed at the same target.

ROI Discipline

Every dollar answers to a number

I bring a finance-grade lens to operations: capital programs sized to payback, vendor contracts negotiated against benchmarks, and initiatives killed early when the math stops working.

AI & Automation First

Manual work is a tax on scale

Before I recommend a hire, I find the lever — an AI agent in the workflow, self-service tooling, or lifecycle automation. AI does the repetitive work; headcount compounds judgment.

CEO Partnership

Strategy translated at speed

I operate as the CEO's execution counterpart: turning board-level intent into quarterly operating plans, arming every decision with real-time data and AI-driven insight, and reporting reality — not theater.

Technology & AI

AI as infrastructure, not demos.

MIT-certified in Applied Generative AI for Digital Transformation — and putting it to work as an operator, not a spectator.

AI-driven operational analytics at Mighty Buildings

Implemented AI-enabled analytics across manufacturing, supply chain, and finance data streams at a Khosla-backed construction-tech company — improving visibility and throughput 30% and accelerating time-to-market 50%.

What this shows: AI earns its place when it moves a production metric.

Building an AI-native operating foundation at Crewasis

As COO of a seed-stage AI company, I'm architecting the data, analytics, and workflow foundation from the ground up — a deliberate move to build at the frontier, applying enterprise-grade discipline where it's hardest: before scale exists.

What this shows: the frontier is where the next operating playbook gets written.

Automation-first operating model

My default question before any hire: what's the lever? Self-service IT automation cut service-desk resolution time 60%; identity and endpoint overhauls cut security incidents 75%. People do judgment work; systems do the rest.

What this shows: headcount should compound judgment, not process volume.

Advising the next generation of founders

As a mentor at T-Hub — India's largest innovation ecosystem — I coach startups on intelligent automation, data governance, and AI-enabled product strategy, helping founders build operations that scale past their first hundred customers.

What this shows: the operating playbook transfers — and I enjoy teaching it.
Expertise

Breadth across the executive table. Depth in the operations beneath it.

Company Operations

Operating cadence, OKRs, and cross-functional execution — supported by AI-enabled workflows — from seed stage through public-company rigor.

Capital & Vendor Management

$30M+ capital programs, high-value contract negotiation, and SaaS portfolio restructuring that returns real dollars to the plan.

Board Meetings & Fundraising

Board-ready operating cadence, fundraising execution, and investor narrative — from seed-stage pitch to IPO roadshow.

IPO & Audit Readiness

SEC-aligned reporting, controls, KPI standardization, and the systems backbone that lets a company survive scrutiny.

Revenue Operations

Quote-to-cash, billing, and subscription infrastructure — the machinery that turns bookings into auditable revenue.

Manufacturing & Scale-Up

Facility deployment, commissioning, and supply-chain data unification for hardware and manufacturing-tech environments.

AI & Data Infrastructure

GenAI workflows, AI-driven operational analytics, BI consolidation, and governance — deployed as durable infrastructure, not demos.

Case Studies

Engineered outcomes, not anecdotes.

Three representative engagements where operations, intelligent automation, and accountability met — and the numbers moved.

IPO Readiness
Udemy

Taking a business-systems stack public on NASDAQ

As one of three executives leading IPO readiness, I owned all business systems for 1,500+ globally distributed employees through pre- and post-IPO audit, compliance, and controls — implementing Salesforce, Zuora, and Workday into an audit-ready quote-to-cash pipeline while revenue scaled from $430M to $630M with zero critical system failures during lockup.

$630M
Revenue at IPO scale
Revenue Automation
Yelp

Automating $900M in annual revenue processing

Led the end-to-end transformation of Yelp's Commerce Platform and quote-to-cash infrastructure — eliminating manual billing and reconciliation across Yelp.com, Reservations, and Waitlist, and streamlining a $25M+ subscription line through a bundled, automated billing rollout.

$900M
Annual revenue automated
Consolidation
Gap Inc.

Collapsing 22 reporting systems into 2 global platforms

Led a 175-person direct and indirect organization across all financial systems for five brands — consolidating 22 reporting systems into two global BI platforms, cutting new-market rollout time 75%, and supporting expansion into six international markets on $20M+ program budgets.

22 → 2
Systems consolidated
Experience

A career running the engine room.

Currently exploring COO and Head of Operations opportunities at growth-stage companies.

2025 — Now
Crewasis AIChief Operating Officer
Seed · AI analytics
2024 — Now
T-HubAdvisor & Mentor
India's largest innovation hub
2022 — 2025
Mighty BuildingsVP, Digital Transformation & Business Strategy
Khosla-backed · Construction tech
2020 — 2022
UdemyHead of Business Technology
NASDAQ IPO
2017 — 2020
YelpDirector, Enterprise Applications
$900M revenue automation
2012 — 2015
Gap Inc.Director, Business Applications
5 brands · 175-person org
2011 — 2012
PolycomDirector, Business Applications
70-person team · $10M budget

Earlier: HP Enterprise Services · Cisco ($30M cost savings) · Advent Software · Capgemini · KPMG Consulting

Skills

The disciplines and tools behind the work.

Leadership & Operations

Startup & Scale-Up Operations CEO Partnership & Strategic Execution Capital Allocation & Budget Management Contract & Vendor Negotiation IPO & M&A Readiness Manufacturing Operations & Scale-Up Facility Deployment & Commissioning Cross-Functional Team Leadership Program & Portfolio Management Financial Discipline & Control

Systems & Platforms

Claude & GenAI Workflows AI / ML Enablement AI Agents & Intelligent Automation Salesforce Zuora Workday Oracle Financials Snowflake AWS · GCP BI & Analytics Platforms Data Governance & MDM Identity & Endpoint Security
Let's Talk

If you need an operator who's done it before — let's talk.

I'm currently open to full-time COO and Head of Operations roles, as well as fractional and advisory engagements — particularly at companies scaling through rapid growth, IPO readiness, or technology and AI transformation.