Sonya K.

Sonya Kotov

5.0

(11)

Grow your career as a startup generalist

1,050 min coached

45 followers

Stanford University Logo

Studied at Stanford University

Microsoft Logo

Worked at Microsoft

Successful clients at

Available tomorrow at 4:00 PM UTC

Questions? Start chatting with this coach before you get started.

Sonya's Coaching Offerings

Custom hourly · $81/hr

Get help with General Exploration, Skill Building, and .

Sonya also coaches for Master’s Programs and AI for Product Development. View all.

Sonya’s Leland+ Resources

Access expert resources from Sonya and hundreds of other coaches on Leland+

Sonya’s Career Coaching Qualifications

Experience level: Associate

Sonya has helped clients get into these companies:

I've lived the generalist journey firsthand across three startups, wearing high-level hats in design, product management/Head of Product, and executive operations as Chief of Staff. These experiences give immense visibility into the structure of startups and how to navigate your career within one. Prior to this, I did my masters at Stanford's d.school where I did coursework in design, business, and entrepreneurship. The most impactful experience was taking Lean Launchpad with Steve Blank - I lean on these lessons to this day and I'm excited to share them with you! I can help you with the following: - Identifying the type of startup you'd like to work at - What signals to look for to identify top performing, high-growth startups - The mindset shift when moving from big tech to startups - How to position your contributions for success in a smaller scale environment - Using AI tools as a force-multiplier

Sonya can help with:

General Exploration

Skill Building

Job Search Strategies

Interview Prep

Career Planning

Resume Review

Sonya also coaches for Master’s Programs and AI for Product Development. View all.

About Sonya

I grew up in Michigan to Russian immigrant parents. In college, I discovered a deep passion for building great products. That's why I've worn so many hats: PM, software engineer, UX designer, Chief of Staff. Because of these diverse interests, I've been loving the opportunities that AI affords generalists to build better, faster, and better.

Why do I coach?

As a child of immigrant parents, I relied on teachers and mentors to help me navigate higher education and my career. Their guidance was instrumental to me landing a role at Microsoft, getting admitted to Stanford, and making the most of these incredible opportunities. Mentorship and coaching open doors that talent and hard work alone will not. Today, I get to pay it forward by working with clients to achieve their dreams!

Work Experience

Microsoft Logo

Product Manager

Microsoft

February 2026 - Present

Microsoft Logo

Software Engineer

Microsoft

October 2018 - June 2020

Microsoft Logo

Product Manager

Microsoft

August 2017 - October 2018

Sonya was also given offers to work at

  • Meta (Facebook) Logo

    Meta (Facebook)

Education

Stanford University Logo

Stanford University

Master’s Degree, Design Impact

2021 - 2023

London School of Economics and Political Science, University of London Logo

London School of Economics and Political Science, University of London

Master’s Degree, Behavioural Science

2020 - 2021

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor Logo

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Bachelor’s Degree, Computer Science

2011 - 2017

11 Reviews

Overall Rating

5.0


Sonya has helped clients get into these companies:

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Sonya K.

Sonya K.

5.0

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