What the SmartOne organization needs to look like at 12 months and 24 months to support the chosen hill. Which roles need to be hired, which can be built from within, and how to avoid the failed-hire pattern that has already cost the company twice.
SmartOne has had two failed senior hires: a CTO and a VP of Sales. Both departed within their first 15 months. These are not anomalies; they are data about what is and is not working about how SmartOne brings in senior operators. The org-design memo diagnoses the pattern and builds a hiring protocol for the next round that does not repeat it.
| Role | Current holder | Capacity status | Gap vs. Phase 1 needs |
|---|---|---|---|
| CEO | Shahysta Hassim | [Full / Over-allocated / Under-allocated] | [Gap identified] |
| Founder / Chairman | Habib Hassim | [Placeholder] | [Placeholder] |
| Site Director Madagascar | Jeritiana Ravelojaona | [Placeholder] | [Placeholder] |
| CTO | Vacant (post-departure) | Vacant | Platform architecture blocked |
| VP Sales / BD | Vacant (post-departure) | Vacant | North American enterprise sales motion not built |
| France BD Lead | Does not exist | Not started | European growth motion running ad hoc without this role; structured enterprise sales blocked |
| Role | Path A (self-funded) | Path B (raised capital) | Sourcing approach |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enterprise sales lead (NA) | Month 4-6 if robotics deal converts | Month 1-2 with capital | [Placeholder] |
| France BD lead | Month 6-9 | Month 3-4 | [ESSEC alumni network / referral] |
| CTO / Head of Platform | Month 9-12 (Phase 3) | Month 4-6 | [Mila network / Montreal AI cluster] |
[To be built after the alignment session. Will cover: what the mandate was for each hire, where the mandate was unclear, what the cultural mismatch was, and what vetting process changes would catch the mismatch earlier. This is the section that makes the next hire different from the last two.]