Founders Associate

Hybrid | Frankfurt am Main | Start: Flexible (from February 2026)

On-site requirement: minimum 50% in Frankfurt

We are an early-stage startup building a managed marketplace for automotive logistics , connecting car dealers, auction houses, and fleets with professional transport carriers across Europe.

The company is led by a repeat founder and backed by Rapid Pioneers.

We are looking for a Founder’s Associate Intern to work directly with the founder on sales and operations . In this role, you will support the commercial side of the business (lead generation, sales processes, customer onboarding) as well as the operational backbone (processes, coordination, execution).

Tasks

What You’ll Do

Sales & Go-to-Market

• Support outbound and inbound sales activities
• Research and qualify leads
• Prepare sales materials, follow-ups, and CRM updates
• Support deal preparation, pricing logic, and pipeline tracking

Operations

• Support daily operational workflows
• Help structure and improve internal processes and tools
• Assist with coordination between sales, ops, and product
• Take ownership of small projects and drive them end-to-end

Founder Support

• Work directly with the founder on high-priority topics
• Turn ideas into structured tasks, analyses, and execution
• Support with fundraising
• Support ad-hoc problem solving where needed

Requirements

Who This Role Is For

Must-Haves

• Strong interest in startups, entrepreneurship, and execution
• Structured way of thinking and willingness to take ownership
• Comfortable working on-site in Frankfurt at least 50% of the time
• Strong communication skills in English and German
• Hands-on mindset: you like getting things done, not just talking about them

Background

• Can be a student , recent graduate, or early-career profile
• Prior startup experience is not required
• Curiosity, reliability, and speed matter more than your CV

Nice-to-Haves

• Interest in sales, operations, or marketplaces
• Experience with tools like Airtable, Notion, Excel, or CRM systems
• Additional European languages are a plus (e.g. French, Dutch, Polish)

Benefits

What You’ll Get

• Direct collaboration with the founder
• Steep learning curve and real responsibility
• Exposure to sales, operations, and company building
• Insight into how decisions are made in an early-stage startup
• Hybrid setup with strong on-site collaboration in Frankfurt
• Competitive internship compensation
• Opportunity to grow into a full-time role if there is a strong mutual fit

Interview Process

1. Intro Call (15 min)

Get to know each other, role expectations, and motivation.

1. Deep Dive (20 min)

Discussion around mindset, problem-solving, and interests in sales & operations.

1. Practical Case (20 min)

A short, realistic task to understand how you think and work.