17 Oct
|
AgResearch Labs
|
Bengaluru
17 Oct
AgResearch Labs
Bengaluru
Executive Assistant to the Co-Founder
Location: Bengaluru
Experience: 3–6 years
Type: Full-time
Reports to: Co-Founder
Read This Before You Apply
We value initiative, sound judgment and attention to detail at ARL.
This role is for someone who enjoys bringing order to complexity, staying ahead of priorities, and ensuring that important things don't fall through the cracks.
We prioritise thoughtful applications over one-click submissions. This role is for someone who enjoys building, executing and owning outcomes — your application is the first prospect to show us how you think.
Who We Are & Why ARL
At AgResearch Labs (ARL), we're building technology and infrastructure for cleaner, more climate-resilient food production.
Over more than a decade of R&D;, ARL has developed indigenous aeroponics and farm-automation technologies that power Growize Farms, our commercial platform for building and operating high-performance farms at scale.
Recognised among India's Top 100 deep-tech startups by NASSCOM, ARL is entering its next phase of growth — scaling our business, teams and operating systems.
As we grow, the co-founder's time, attention and ability to focus on the right priorities become increasingly important. This role will help create the structure, coordination and follow-through needed to make that possible.
The Role
As Executive Assistant to the Co-Founder, you will work closely with the co-founder to manage priorities, coordinate across teams, drive follow-through and ensure the smooth execution of day-to-day commitments.
You will act as a trusted partner in managing the co-founder's time, information, communications and operational priorities. This will require a combination of organisation, judgment, discretion and the ability to work independently in a fast-moving environment.
This is not just an administrative support role. You will be expected to anticipate requirements, identify gaps, resolve issues before they escalate and ensure that decisions and commitments translate into action.
What You'll Own
1. Calendar & Priority Management
- Manage the co-founder's calendar, meetings, appointments and daily schedule, ensuring time is allocated to the most important priorities.
- Evaluate meeting requests, identify scheduling conflicts and help prioritise commitments based on urgency and importance.
- Coordinate internal and external meetings, including agendas, preparation materials, logistics and follow-ups.
- Anticipate schedule changes and manage last-minute requests without losing sight of key priorities.
- Help the co-founder maintain a clear view of upcoming commitments, deadlines and critical decisions.
2. Follow-Through & Execution
- Track key action items, decisions, commitments and deadlines arising from meetings and conversations.
- Coordinate with relevant teams and stakeholders to ensure agreed actions are completed on time.
- Follow up proactively on pending items, identify delays and escalate issues that require the co-founder's attention.
- Maintain simple, reliable systems to track priorities and ensure nothing important falls through the cracks.
- Help translate the co-founder's priorities into clear next steps, owners and timelines.
3. Communication & Stakeholder Coordination
- Manage and organise emails, correspondence and other communications, helping the co-founder distinguish between what requires immediate attention, a decision, delegation or follow-up.
- Draft, review and coordinate emails, briefs, meeting notes and other communications on the co-founder's behalf.
- Coordinate with internal teams, leadership, external partners, vendors and other stakeholders.
- Ensure communication is timely, professional and appropriately tailored to the audience.
- Handle sensitive conversations and information with discretion and sound judgment.
4. Meeting Preparation & Information Management
- Prepare meeting agendas, background notes, briefs and relevant documents so the co-founder is well prepared.
- Capture key discussions, decisions, action items, owners and deadlines from important meetings.
- Organise documents, records and information so that they are accurate, accessible and easy to retrieve.
- Maintain visibility into upcoming deadlines, important conversations and pending decisions.
- Ensure the co-founder has the right information at the right time to make decisions effectively.
5. Travel, Logistics & Administrative Coordination
- Plan and coordinate business travel, including transport, accommodation, itineraries and meeting logistics.
- Manage expense documentation, reimbursements, bookings and other administrative requirements.
- Coordinate events, off-sites, visitor schedules and other business-related logistics.
- Identify and resolve logistical issues proactively, balancing efficiency, cost and convenience.
- Build dependable processes for recurring administrative requirements.
6. Founder Operations & Special Projects
- Support the co-founder on ad hoc business priorities, research, coordination and special projects.
- Help gather information, organise inputs and prepare concise summaries to support decision-making.
- Coordinate across functions when an initiative requires inputs or follow-through from multiple stakeholders.
- Identify recurring bottlenecks and suggest practical ways to improve workflows and operating routines.
- Take ownership of time-sensitive assignments from initiation through completion, keeping the co-founder informed of progress and risks.
What We're Looking For
- 3–6 years of experience in executive assistance, founder's office, business operations or a similar role involving direct support to senior leadership.
- Experience managing competing priorities, coordinating stakeholders and independently owning tasks through completion.
- Strong organisational skills and attention to detail, with the ability to manage multiple moving pieces without losing track of commitments.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
- Sound judgment and the ability to distinguish between what can be handled independently, what requires consultation and what must be escalated.
- A proactive working style — someone who anticipates needs, identifies gaps and takes initiative rather than waiting for instructions.
- High levels of integrity, discretion and professionalism when handling confidential information.
- Comfort working in a fast-moving environment where priorities can change and processes are still evolving.
- Proficiency with Google Workspace or Microsoft Office, calendars, spreadsheets and task-management tools.
- The ability to remain composed, resourceful and solution-oriented under pressure.
Good to have: Experience supporting a startup founder or CEO; exposure to a Founder’s Office or business operations role; familiarity with AI tools and workflow automation; experience coordinating across technical, commercial and operational teams; Kannada proficiency.
What Success Looks Like
- The co-founder's time is better organised and increasingly focused on high-priority work.
- Meetings are well prepared, decisions are documented and action items have transparent owners and deadlines.
- Commitments are followed through without the co-founder needing to repeatedly chase updates.
- Potential scheduling, coordination and execution issues are identified early.
- Stakeholders receive timely communication and know what is expected of them.
- Recurring workflows become more organised, reliable and efficient.
- The co-founder can trust you to manage responsibilities independently while keeping them informed of important developments.
Why This Role
- This is an opportunity to work closely with the co-founder of a growing deep-tech and AgTech business and gain exposure to how a company is built and scaled.
- You will have a direct view of business priorities, leadership decisions and cross-functional execution.
You will also have the opportunity to build systems, improve ways of working and take on increasing responsibility as you grow in the role.
- If you enjoy solving problems, creating structure, taking ownership and making the people you work with more effective, this role offers the opportunity to make a meaningful contribution to ARL.
📌 Executive Assistant To The Founder (Bengaluru)
🏢 AgResearch Labs
📍 Bengaluru