Embedded Sales Operators for Early-Stage Startups

We take the number. We build the machine. It runs when we leave.

We’re not advisors - we’re the embedded sales operator inside your company. We run outbound, sit on your calls, and close your first customers ourselves, building the repeatable system that keeps hitting the number after we leave. No decks. No retainer trap. Just results.

Start the Conversation → See the results
$350M+
Raised by clients after we built their revenue engine
$18M+
Revenue built from zero
13+
Startups scaled across AI, SaaS, Contact Center, Defense, and Legal Tech
Design Partner
→ Logo → Motion
First believer, first paying customer, then repeatable pipeline

Companies we’ve helped grow

Warmly,
(ACQUIRED BY HUBSPOT)
Connexions
OBSERVE.AI
BEHAVIORAL SIGNALS
AmplifAI
Y Combinator
PLUG AND PLAY
DEFENSE TECH
DISCLOSED ON REQUEST
Warmly,
(ACQUIRED BY HUBSPOT)
Connexions
OBSERVE.AI
BEHAVIORAL SIGNALS
AmplifAI
Y Combinator
PLUG AND PLAY
DEFENSE TECH
DISCLOSED ON REQUEST

Results

The work
speaks for itself.

Anonymized where required. Verifiable where permitted.

AI SaaS / Contact Center
$3.2M → $18M+
$3.2M in under 9 months. $18M ARR the year after.
Took this company from zero to $3.2M in less than 9 months of GTM. Built the enterprise motion, landed design partners, and closed the first marquee logos. $18M+ ARR in year two.
Defense AI
$MM+
Multiple projects across various agencies
Identified true PMF in government sector. Deployed and active across multiple operating agencies.
RevOps AI / SaaS
$7M+
PMF found. ARR built.
Helped pivot the product, secured first 10 customers and design partners, found PMF, and supported through multiple successful fundraise rounds to $7M+ ARR.
A Side Effect of Real Revenue
$350M+
Raised across multiple rounds
We don’t run your raise. But a working revenue engine is the strongest slide in any deck - we’ve been in the room when it mattered, at seed through Series B+, across AI, SaaS, and defense tech.

What Makes Us Different

How we actually
operate.

Five things that separate an engagement with Starecased from everything else you’ve tried.

01
We own the outcome
Scope defines the work. The number defines success. We own both. Every engagement starts with a revenue target we shake hands on, not just a list of deliverables. That accountability changes everything about how we show up.
02
We build systems that outlast us
When we leave, you own the machine: documented playbooks, trained teams, configured tooling, repeatable pipeline. We deliberately engineer our own exit. No dependency. No retainer trap. And when your next raise comes around, the revenue infrastructure we built becomes your most credible proof point.
03
Events, when they’re your fastest path to revenue
For companies selling into industries with major trade shows and conferences, we turn those events into live deal rooms. Pre-event pipeline. On-site conversion. Post-event close sequences. Not brand awareness. Closed revenue. One engagement generated four deals from a single event funnel. Proven across Contact Center Week, ICMI, Enterprise Connect, Frost & Sullivan, and more.
04
Pre-revenue to $MM.
Then we do it again.
Time to revenue compression is our signature. We've taken companies from zero, no customers, no playbook, no runway to spare, to repeatable seven-figure revenue. Pre-revenue to $MM isn’t aspirational for us. We’ve done it across AI SaaS, contact center, defense tech, and RevOps. Different verticals. Same result.
05
We land your first critical accounts
Design partners. Marquee logos. The first ten customers who define your category and make every subsequent sale easier. Landing them requires a different skill than running outbound. It takes credibility, product intuition, and the ability to sell a vision that doesn’t fully exist yet. We’ve done it across multiple companies, in multiple verticals, from zero. Your first $1M is the hardest million you’ll ever make. It’s also our specialty.
“We don’t send status updates.
We move the number.”
Revenue target ownership: we hold a number, not a scope of work
We measure ourselves by results - not hours logged, decks delivered, or status updates sent
Founder partnership built in: hiring, fundraise narrative, team scaling. It's in the engagement because it has to be
We've also walked away from clients who moved goalposts, expected exclusivity, or wanted a can-do-everything role

What People Say

What the people
actually say.

Founders, cofounders, and operators who’ve been in the room.

“Jay is exceptional. If you have the chance to work with him in any capacity you should do it. He’s give first, exceeds expectations, and has the integrity and commitment to always doing what’s right. If Warmly succeeds a big part will be thanks to Jay.”
Alan Zhao
Cofounder & Head of Product, Warmly.ai
“Jay was the first Sales hire at Observe.AI. He played a critical role in establishing our Enterprise selling motion, playbooks, and closing our first few big logos. A true hustler who did a great job even with limited support.”
Swapnil Jain
Co-Founder & CEO, Observe.AI
“Jay helped us build the US go-to-market motion at TenfoldAI from the ground up, working across sales, marketing, and product. He moved across functions without creating overhead, embedded with the team, and built the systems needed to turn traction into revenue.”
Travis Tsui
Co-Founder, TenfoldAI
“Jay is one of the best Sales Leaders in the SaaS space. His technical aptitude and ability to articulate our solution has helped us grow aggressively. He has also been terrific in developing others, a tremendous asset.”
Art Russo
Global CX Executive, Observe.AI | Former Twilio, Zendesk, Salesforce

How We Engage

Fast diagnosis.
Faster revenue.

01
Diagnostic Sprint
Rapid audit of your ICP, motion, team, tooling, and market. We find the constraint fast and tell you what’s broken before we agree to anything.
02
Blueprint + Number Agreement
A crisp GTM plan tied to your next milestone, and a revenue target we shake hands on. We don’t start without both.
03
Embedded Execution
We’re in your pipeline, not watching it. We hold the revenue number during this phase, sit in live deals, run the outbound motion, and deploy events as a conversion channel when the timing is right. Weekly cadences keep everything tight. You always know where the number stands.
04
System Handoff
We document everything and help you hire or promote the team to own it permanently. We make ourselves replaceable on purpose.

Who We Help

Founders with no margin
for error.

We work best where the stakes are highest and the tolerance for consultants who don’t deliver is zero.

Pre-Revenue
Zero to First Dollar
You have a product, a pitch, and a runway that won’t last forever. No customers yet, no repeatable motion. This is where we’re most dangerous. We compress time to first revenue before the clock runs out.
Seed → Series B
Founder-Led to Scalable
You’ve closed 3–5 customers yourself but can’t replicate it. Every deal still needs you in the room and you know that won’t scale. We build the system so you can step out of the pipeline without it collapsing.
VC Portfolios
The Trusted Operator
Your portfolio companies need revenue, not another strategy session. We’ve helped portfolio companies across multiple funds go from pre-revenue to fundable, and from fundable to funded. Selective by design. Ask your partner if we're the right fit.

Common Questions

What founders
always ask.

How long does a typical engagement last?

Most engagements run 3–9 months depending on where you are and what you’re trying to hit. We don’t do open-ended retainers. Every engagement has a defined milestone and an exit plan built in from day one.

What does this cost?

Pricing is structured around the engagement, not hours. We combine a base fee with outcome-linked comp. Our incentives are aligned with yours. Exact structure depends on stage, target, and scope. We talk about it in the first call.

We already have a sales hire. Can you still help?

Yes. Some of our best engagements are alongside an existing team, installing the system, training the rep, and getting them to quota faster than they’d get there alone. We're not a replacement. We're the force multiplier.

How is this different from a fractional CRO?

A fractional CRO advises. We execute. The fractional model gives you strategy, frameworks, and a weekly call. We give you someone in your pipeline, on your calls, running your outbound, and accountable to a number, not a scope of work. We also build the system as we go, so when we leave, you own the machine. If the number doesn’t move, we haven’t done our job. No fractional arrangement works that way.

Do you work across industries?

We focus on B2B tech across AI, Enterprise SaaS, Defense, Contact Center/BPO, Legal Tech, RevOps and Fintech. We take new verticals selectively when the founder and the problem are compelling enough.

What if we’re not ready yet?

The diagnostic sprint is the right first step. It’s fast, it’s honest, and it tells you exactly what’s broken and whether we’re the right fit to fix it. No commitment required beyond that conversation.

Ready to hand off
the number?

Tell us where you are. We’ll tell you if we can help.

“Working with Jay was the closest thing to having a co-founder for sales. He owned the number like it was his company.”

VC-backed founder, AI SaaS

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