What I’m Up To:

• Applying to jobs (see Current Asks below)
• Co-founder and co-host @ *La Frontera,* a podcast, newsletter, and community exploring the startup and VC ecosystem in LatAm and the US
• Writing about life as a founder, startups, fundraising, and health at *Hey Cyrus 👋*
• Investing in SMBs and startups via my holding co

Quick Links

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Current Asks

I’m applying to Associate / Sr. Associate roles in VC. I have a preference for:

• funds investing at the pre-seed and seed stage
• funds investing in FinTech, B2B SaaS, and Infrastructure
• funds looking to make one of their first few hires outside of the GP (I want to roll-up my sleeves and help out across the fund)

I’m flexible on location. Positions based in SF, NYC, CDMX, or remote are preferred.

Know someone I should connect with? Please let me know! I’ll buy you lunch the next time I’m in your city 🤝.

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Career Highlights

• ⚡ Startup Building: At Blaze (YC S24), I did Growth & Operations, setting up financial operations, fundraising prep, and compliance. Previously, at Sunny Day Fund (Techstars ’21), I led the Product, Engineering (👨‍💻 8-person team), and Customer Success (🤝 3-person team) functions, building our product, implementation, and support functions.
• 💸 Venture Capital: As an investor at Outside VC, I deployed $100K-$250K checks into pre-seed and seed-stage FinTech and ClimateTech startups. Over two months, I evaluated 45+ companies and made five investments, 3x typical throughput. I also worked with Dux Capital on structuring a new Latinx-focused fund of funds.
• 🚀 Founder & Investor: I founded Blackheath Capital, where I acquired and turned around a small business, growing revenue to seven figures within two years. I’ve also sourced and invested in early-stage startups, including one that joined YC’s W24 batch and raised $2.8M at a 2.5x multiple.
• 📊 Financial & Operational Expertise: I have deep experience in financial modeling, process automation, and compliance from my roles at KPMG, Fannie Mae, and EY. At Fannie Mae, I launched a product that secured CFO sign-off and launched company-wide, built predictive financial models, and implemented automation that saved $1.2M annually.
• 🎙️ Podcast & Community Building: I’ve hosted monthly meetups for product leaders and founders across multiple cities (like DC, NY, and Mexico City). I also co-found and co-host La Frontera, a podcast exploring the LatAm startup ecosystem, featuring guests from 500 Global, Wollef VC, and Runa. My goal is to bring founders, investors, and operators of all backgrounds together to foster a more vibrant startup ecosystem across the US and LatAm.

Testimonials

One of my favorite aphorisms is, “trust but verify”. Therefore, I’m sharing testimonials on what it’s like to work with me.

Cyrus worked with me as an Investor at Outside VC in a time-limited role. While at Outside VC he increased our pipeline throughput ~3x and made strong recommendations for companies that have since become top performers in our portfolio. He's a first principles thinker, a doer vs a talker, and just an overall joy to be around. I've never met a person who had anything but amazing things to say about him. I share the same feelings. I loved working with him and would strongly recommend him. He'll be an asset to any team! - **Ethan Austin, GP @ Outside VC**

Cyrus’ time with Sunny Day Fund started as a Product Manager and grew to Director Platform Success, overseeing product & customer success. Cyrus and I worked closely daily, so I had an opportunity to benefit from his ability to always be the first to volunteer and take ownership of special projects (always a bunch at a startup!). Cyrus delivered key platform automations that shortened core operations time by 75%+ while improving quality and error traceability. He also put in place processes across customer success that helped us better overcome account opening, transaction processing, and other core financial services issues. Cyrus also led a small team with empathy, balancing individual learning and empowerment with “gotta get that done now” attitude. I could always count on him to be a great sounding board when putting together investor pitches (successfully!). Cyrus’ voracious appetite for learning, testing, and iterating is perfect for early-stage startups, whether as a VC or as an operator. - **Sid Pailla, Founder & CEO @ Sunny Day Fund**

Publications

La Frontera Turns One (Month): Why We Launched La Frontera 🌵 and What’s Coming Next