Founder Associate Product/Tech & Ops (m/w/d)

Build the business with us | Cologne | Full-time | Start asap | German (native, or close to) & English (fluent)

At Draxon, we’re building the future of workforce training – combining the power of Virtual Reality and Artificial Intelligence to transform how frontline teams learn in high-risk industries. Our mission is bold: make training faster, safer, and dramatically more effective in sectors like airports and airlines. Draxon is founded by experienced entrepreneurs who’ve built and scaled companies to hundreds of millions in revenue. We’ve done it before – and now we’re doing it again, this time at the intersection of immersive technology and AI.

We’re early — and moving fast. We’re backed by leading investors and already working with major aviation clients. If you’re excited about shaping a company from the ground up, working directly with proven founders, and solving real-world problems with cutting-edge technology, Draxon is the place to do it. Joining our team now is also an opportunity to help build a next-generation company – AI-native, innovative, lean and obsessively focused on delivering real impact.

As our Founder Associate Product/Tech & Operations, you’ll work directly with one of our two founders (Stefan Smalla), get hands-on with every part of the company, and receive close mentoring on how to build a software startup. This is a high-leverage, AI-first generalist role – a chance to be the complement to a founder. We need a high-agency, AI-savvy, product/technology-focused operator. You will:

• Collaborate with our founder Stefan Smalla on every topic on a real-time basis
• Drive our Product strategy: translate customer requirements into marketable VR software products, prioritize the right approach and features, ruthlessly focus on what is key to win
• Push AI-first into every aspect of the company’s products and operations: AI features in our products, AI-based automation of internal workflows, AI tools everywhere to take us to the next level of speed
• Specify software modules: translate product strategy into software that our engineering team will implement, take intelligent trade-off decisions, pragmatically drive to successful launches
• Liaise with customers to understand their requirements, travel to customers when needed, bridge the interface between product/ops and marketing/sales, champion the customer perspective in our products
• Run the operations of our company, from administrative functions over analytical insights to everything that needs to get done between shipping great software and delivering customer value

• First experience in fast-paced businesses (startup, scale-up, consulting, business development)
• A strong product and technology mindset – you think in software, features, new technologies
• An AI-first approach to your work
• Analytical and intelligent, while being humble and a great communicator
• You’re highly structured, fast-moving, and get things done with minimal guidance
• You’re a native German speaker (or close to it), and your English is excellent
• You’re hungry to learn, build, grow, and take on new responsibilities role

• Founder’s Right Hand – Work directly with the founder and co-build a company from scratch; maybe you are not yet ready to found your own company - this is the perfect track to learn how it’s done
• Learn from a Proven Founder – You'll get first-hand exposure to what it takes to scale and win
• Real Ownership – Lead your product, technology, AI, and operations initiatives with high autonomy
• Fast Career Growth – We’re early and new opportunities will arise, where you will have a front row seat
• Office in Cologne, 5 days a week in the office for maximum collaboration and learning
• Build with Purpose – Help frontline workers get better training and safer jobs

Ready to Join? Send us your CV or LinkedIn – or even better, a short message on why this is your next move.