Startup Coach

CoPilot is a team of experienced startup COO's who have CFO skills. You get full-time skills and part-time price.

You'll see an immediate impact as we guide you around problems, with our focus on revenue, repeatable process execution and FP&A discipline.

In the trenches, real world startup experience delivering MVP, GTM and Fundraising preparation and execution.

FP&A Executive | Strategy & Transformation | Valuation Expert

CoPilot engages to help you get things done. We are not a consultant who draws on the whiteboard and sends you invoices. This is not enough.

We help you get the right things done, which builds momentum. Momentum is measurable. We start by filtering from the many things you could do, into what you should do first. Doing the right things first builds a foundation for growth. This is what we do.

Services

CoPilot offers supplemental, fractional, and full-time interim CEO, COO, CFO, and advisory services. We partner with visionary startups, recently funded or acquired businesses as they begin their growth journey.

Through proven approaches and experiences, CoPilot drives incremental recurring revenue, FP&A discipline, operational process, organizational change and technology integrations for sustainable growth and valuation optimization.

We inspire and execute improvement as a teammate to you and your team, while you continue to run your business.

FP&A Discipline

Financial Leader. Build, manage and optimize complete FP&A function, budgeting, cost optimization and revenue growth. Prioritization of actions towards sustainable, measurable results to optimize valuation.

  • Lead design, setup and implementation of financial analysis and modeling to support business decisions.
  • Upgraded financial department in alignment with company strategic initiatives and metric driven scorecards.
  • Built and implemented budget, forecast and actual analysis methodology to adapt future cash flow and decision making.
  • Built FP&A methods and scorecards to measure near real time rolling performance in sales, partnerships and operations.
  • Established fiduciary responsibilities and metrics throughout multiple divisions.

Sales Operations

Sales Operations. Expert at leveraging data-driven process and metric-driven operational expertise in system setup, reporting, and analysis to decrease days to close, increase closure rate, and maximize deal value.

  • Defined measurable sales operations to include data centric criteria, decreasing days to close by 20%, increasing closing percent to 80% and added 12% to size of deal revenue.
  • 120% increase in government sales opportunities across 60+ department of defense departments and military units.
  • Defined measurable sales operations to include data centric criteria, measuring days to close, reducing within six months from 82 days, to 61 days, to a consistent 33 days.

Operations Consulting

Operations Expert. Consistent record of driving the right improvements via process improvement utilizing data-based decisions that build a long-term foundation for operating profit growth and productivity.

  • Developed industry-wide best processes and procedures into a repeatable, measurable standard of excellence.
  • Deployed scorecards for operations, reducing admin time by 12% and increasing employee investment by 15%.
  • Collaborated with C Suite, external agencies and department directors to prioritize actions and leverage resources.
  • Decreased scope creep by 62% by implementing a pitch, promise, proposal and performance communication model.

Value Optimization

Strategic Growth. Proven ability to design and articulate the true vision, align resources to orchestrate the proper pace to the team’s expectations, and lead the evolution of the team’s execution towards desired results.

  • Revitalized relationships with Board of Directors, Investors and 40+ LLC Members with detailed, data driven communication using regular scheduled events, documentation and recorded meetings.
  • Designed, negotiated and implemented multi-teired primary partnership reseller agreement.
  • Developed and negotiated agreements with United Way, BigBrothers/Big Sisters, Boys & Girls Clubs.

Systems Integration

Systems Integrator. Evaluate, plan, and consolidate disconnected, siloed and manual technical systems into SOP-driven usage, process, and reporting that delivers an outcome of efficient, consistent use and effective data quality.

  • Built and deployed content publishing platform to 7,800 Charter Schools impacting 3.7 million students nationwide.
  • Technology transformation of website and operations process to sync up multiple senior level groups.

Government Contracts

Government Contract Specialist. Experience strategic effort to find, filter, and identify government contracts in alignment with company skills. Preparation and documentation of proposals and submissions utilizing various government templates and systems. Tactical execution of contract deliverables and administration of procedural signoff and invoicing.

  • Executed multiple Federal defense contracts, collaborating with internal and external partners conducting human trials.
  • Built and delivered DCAA Government Accounting Compliance / 3-Year Audit and Accounting controls.
  • 100% approval and on-time delivery of multiple milestones.

Executive Leadership

Trusted Partner. Patient and detailed to understand the needs and expected outcomes so that each stakeholder, whether a company, group or individual person can benefit by working together on being effective and efficient in the use of often scarce resources.

Team Enhancement. Diverse, focused efforts to combine passion, skills, and priorities to ignite employee engagement via a personal connection that enables a group of people to achieve what no individual could alone.

  • Won a top spot in South Carolina’s Best Places to Work in 2022, 2020, 2019, and 2018 by the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce.

About Dave Armstrong

Serial Entrepreneur | FP&A Executive | Strategy & Transformation | Valuation Expert

Overview

18+ years of C-Suite financial & operational leadership across multiple industries. Expertise in transformation, scaling, integrations and growth. Deep experience in collaborative problem solving and business transformation as the CFO. Consistent and calm leadership believing that a collaborative environment and culture is key to guide teams to seek out possibilities and work together to achieve goals. 

Human

I’m a decorated combat veteran and a first-generation American. The difficult and dangerous path my grandparents took to get here motivates me to not waste this privilege. I value personal relationships. I find I approach most things by being creative but realistic, enthusiastic but disciplined, and optimistic about improvement or finding a solution to any problem.

My career started when I joined the military out of high school in 1986, the US Air Force, and during my enlistment I completed my bachelor’s degree. I served in war-time combat operations during the 1990-1991 Desert Storm, making lifelong friends along with establishing my core values that solidified then and continue to this day.  I was a corporate employee for ten years from 1995 to 2005, I earned my MBA, then in 2005, I left my high-profile corporate role and turned my real passion of helping others grow their own business and create generational wealth.

My experience and results come from leading and mentoring teams. As a multifaceted C-level executive, I’ve invested my time and money into things that make a difference; healthcare, education, energy, etc.  In addition to my investing, I’m an independent consultant working with companies in a CEO/COO/CFO role to plan and direct the strategy, execution and fiscal control systems. 

My clients see me as a helping hand that adds to their value, doing real work and ultimately delivering results, together.  I’ve been told I’m a calm collaborator even under the most intense situations; difficult problems that would have caused companies to fall apart moved forward with my facilitation.

Military Service

The United States Air Force – Electronics Engineer   1986 – 1995
Desert Shield/Storm Combat Operations – 1990 – 1991
1991 Maintenance Professional of the Year – Combat Operations
Southwest Asia Service Medal – 2 Bronze Stars – Defense of Saudi Arabia / Liberation and Defense of Kuwait

Education

MBA – University of Phoenix – 1995 – 1997
BS – Embry Riddle University – 1987 – 1991

Community Involvement

Board of Directors/Founder – Second First Change – 501c3 – 2023 – Present
Philanthropist – Soldiers to Sidelines – 501c3 – 2023 – Present
Philanthropist – South Dakota Service Dogs – 501c3 – 2023 – Present
Senior Mentor & Spokesperson – Warrior Rising  – 501c3 – 2021 – Present
Entrepreneur Instructor – Federal Correctional Institution – 2022 – 2023
College Adjunct Professor – Arapahoe Community College – 2022 – 2023
Business Teacher – STEM School MIT LaunchX / DECA Judge – 2019 – 2020
Event Speaker and Mentor – Galvanize / Denver Startup Week – 2017 – 2019
Director of Football Operations – Oley Valley Football – 2007 – 2009
Youth Athletic Coach – Football/Baseball/Volleyball/Softball/Basketball – 1993 – 2017

Good things come to those who wait, as the great things were already achieved by those willing to do the work.

The best answer you should give to an investor asking "How's it going?", is, let me show you. There is nothing better than proof.

Startup Experience

Online Publishing

  • In The Marbles
  • Connect You Publishing
  • 7 Billion Things
  • CaKnow
  • HelpMeHelpYou
  • Bounce
  • HR Performance
  • CharterM
  • EverythingKart
  • LongStoryShorter – CrowdFiction
  • LongStoryShorter – Publishing Services
  • Dadvice
  • Daily Discourse

Consulting

  • 8ONE8
  • Skookum
  • Edgar Downloads
  • ZaZaChat
  • BigCyber
  • SCI
  • 1109Bravo
  • NetPositive
  • Proactor Energy
  • SOS – Salvage Option Systems
  • OnPulse
  • CPDN – Systemic Local TV Adverting
  • BeABCorp
  • Executive Backstop

eCommerce

  • CurbDiver
  • Flipflopia
  • SelfTaughtYou – v1
  • SelfTaughtYou – v2 – Audio
  • Mayflower – Etsy Before Etsy
  • P2P Payments
  • D&E Services
  • Dollar DVD
  • Dit4Dat – Facebook Store Creation
  • Goliath – P2P Payments
  • Media X – Sharing Used Media
  • Hey Neighbor
  • LotterMe
  • Dave’s Nuts – MixRup

Advertising

  • Nxt VR
  • MindMesh – Education Social Network
  • TargetNext – Taguchi Real Time Optimization
  • Tapinko
  • CPDN – Systemic Local TV Adverting
  • DACTYL – Event Based eCommerce
  • It’s Easy to Post / Apply
  • Apps Online
  • Snail Buddy – Email to Letter Service
  • Shortie – Online Video – Choose Your Own Adventure
  • My Job Robot
  • TeleMarketMe – Automated Marketing Calls using remaining minute

Social Networking

  • 1UP
  • MindMesh – Education Social Network
  • Dadvice
  • ZaZaChat
  • Daily Discourse
  • Who’s On The Move
  • InstaPast
  • KarmaCards
  • HistorMe

Software

  • BWS – Bounce Web Services
  • SubscribeAll
  • EIEIOH
  • Talk Out Your Ass – Private Free Speech
  • Little Trains – A la carte computing

Contact Us

Schedule an Appointment

This calendar is synced with a primary consultant. Find a day and time that works for you and schedule an appointment to talk to us directly. We’ll send you the calendar invite along with a link to meet up virtually. No cost to you.

Email CoPilot

    Your Name (required)

    Your Email (required)

    Company Website (optional)

    How can we help? (optional)

    This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.