Startup Founders Coaches

I've been mentoring and coaching founders on communicating the value of their venture since 2019. Leveraging storytelling principles, we develop a pitch that showcases their idea and locks in the minds of prospective investors and clients. Once the story is written, I'll help you deliver it with polish and poise.

Welcome! With over two decades of experience in leadership and executive coaching, I specialize in empowering startup founders to navigate the complexities of scaling their businesses. As the Founder of Surko Coaching, I have partnered with high-potential leaders to enhance their executive presence, strategic decision-making, and resilience, ensuring they are equipped to lead with confidence and clarity. My extensive background includes roles such as Chief Experience Officer at Flowcode and Senior Vice President of Customer Success at Bluecore, where I drove significant growth and operational excellence. I am an ICF Accredited Coach and hold certifications in Career and Leadership Coaching, which I leverage to tailor my coaching approach to each client's unique needs. Let's connect to explore how I can support your journey to success!

Welcome to my profile! With a rich background in entrepreneurship and business development, I am passionate about guiding early-stage founders to success. As the Co-Founder of Sonic Unity and Entrepreneur in Residence at Oneday, I have firsthand experience in launching and scaling innovative ventures. My role as COO at QUALITY has honed my skills in strategic planning and leadership, ensuring that startups thrive in competitive markets. I also bring expertise from my consultancy, Be My Guest, where I specialize in building iconic brands and sustainable business models. Let's work together to turn your startup vision into reality—reach out to start your journey today!

I bring a finance-first perspective to startup coaching as both a founder and an advisor. I’m a Wharton MBA and Georgetown finance/accounting alum who has built and scaled my own company through eight accelerator acceptances, giving me deep insight into what programs look for, how to stand out, and how to access both funding and in-kind resources. I also mentor at an accelerator, where I work directly with founders on everything from pitch strategy to business model refinement. My coaching combines analytical rigor with clear, compelling storytelling. I help founders strengthen their pitch decks, sharpen their narrative, review and optimize business models, and develop the speaking presence needed to pitch with confidence. I also support early hiring strategy, helping founders think through when and how to recruit their first key employees. My approach is structured, practical, and designed to help founders move quickly with clarity, traction, and investor-ready thinking.

Feeling stuck in your 9-to-5? You have a great business idea, but you're overwhelmed by the confusion of where to start. You're terrified of quitting your job and risking your financial stability, so your dream stays a "someday" idea. I can help. I'm Patrick, and I don't just coach entrepreneurs—I build them. I've not only created multiple profitable businesses myself, but I've also scaled companies from 6 to 2,000 employees as an operations executive. I’ve learned the hard-won lessons so you don't have to. My "tough love" coaching isn't about vague theories. It's a clear, actionable plan to get you results while you are still employed. We will: Clarify Your Offer: We'll validate your idea and turn it into something people will actually pay for. Build a 'No-Burnout' Plan: We'll create a simple, step-by-step action plan that fits your 5-to-9, so you make progress without sacrificing your health or your job. Get Your First Paying Customer: I'll hold you accountable to launching and getting the revenue that proves your concept. Stop feeling stuck. Start building your future. My coaching gives you the clear plan and direct accountability you need to build a real business—one that gives you the freedom to finally quit your job.

I've started multiple companies during business school and am currently the Co-Founder of Lifespark, a fast-growing men's reproductive health company. I'm passionate about all things consumer, healthcare, and tech.

I've sat on every side of the founder table — as a co-founder who raised from pre-seed to Series A, as a VC evaluating hundreds of pitches, as an angel investor with 10+ portfolio companies, and as a startup banker advising growth-stage companies on the financial architecture that actually matters. I coach founders on fundraising strategy, investor positioning, cap table decisions, and the board dynamics that no one prepares you for. If you're navigating a raise, managing a board that's getting more complex, or just trying to make cleaner decisions while everything is moving — I can help. My style is direct and tactical. I won't give you theory. I'll give you the frameworks I've used and the patterns I've seen across hundreds of founder conversations.

Entrepreneur & VC investor turned executive coach. Went through the founder journey myself, from incubating an idea at a Stanford class, to customer discovery and early prototyping + MVP development, getting early traction, raising angel checks, putting together a core team, and launching => after a couple pivots built to 10M USD revenue while operating in five countries. Was backed by elite investors like Founders Fund. While at Stanford, was a student of Steve Blank's, the creator of the "Lean Startup Approach", in his class "The Lean Launchpad". Certified coach under the Co-Active Training Institute, Upbuild, and the Aletheia Advanced Coaching Training program. Have personally guided over a hundred people in exploring venture capital and entrepreneurship, as well as in general career coaching. I would love to meet you and hear about your goals. Please feel free to reach out if interested in exploring further.

I’m a former VC and the CEO/founder of a venture-backed startup funded by Silicon Valley and Singapore-based investors. I’ve spent 20 years in finance, strategy, and investing where I've been evaluating hundreds of founders, reviewing pitch decks, shaping investment narratives, and leading diligence across early-stage and growth-stage companies. As a former Partner at Turret Capital and Director of Investment Strategy at Catcha Group (Southeast Asia’s leading venture builder), I’ve overseen a $1 billion portfolio and worked directly with founders on business models, GTM strategy, traction storytelling, and fundraising readiness. I’ve also raised capital for my own company, giving me firsthand insight into what investors actually look for in a pitch. My specialty is helping founders win high-stakes opportunities by crafting clear, compelling, investor-ready materials. I support early-stage teams with pitch deck creation and refinement, business plan development, investor narrative strategy, market sizing, competitive analysis, and overall fundraising preparation. Whether you're refining your pre-seed story or preparing for a Series A raise, I bring both investor and founder perspective to help you communicate your value with precision.

I work with startup founders the same way I approach real-world decision making. No hype, no theory, and no pretending there is a one-size-fits-all playbook. I focus on helping you make clear, practical decisions based on your actual situation, not what sounds good online. My background is built around working with real people, solving real problems, and cutting through bad assumptions that hold businesses back. Whether it is structuring your next move, thinking through risk, improving decision-making, or getting unstuck, I bring a disciplined, straightforward approach that helps you move forward with clarity and confidence instead of guesswork. I am also the author of Who’s Got Your Six?, which focuses on accountability, trust, and making better decisions when it matters most. That same mindset carries into how I work with founders. I am not here to impress you with jargon. I am here to challenge weak assumptions, help you think clearly about risk and opportunity, and build a plan you can actually execute. Whether you are early stage, trying to stabilize, or looking to make smarter strategic moves, I bring a disciplined, straightforward approach that helps you move forward with clarity, confidence, and a much higher level of awareness than most people operate with.