Michael Sattler · Boston & worldwide

Builder, operator, and partner to people making things.

I build ventures, help founders turn ideas into durable businesses, and share what I learn along the way.

I’m Michael Sattler: a longtime startup operator, product leader, and builder. Today I work alongside founders as a fractional technical cofounder, am building several new ventures, and convene serious builders through The Founders Guild.

For the gory detail, see my professional bio.

Roles I play

Startup
operator

20 years operating at early-stage startups and large companies.

Six founding experiences—one IPO, two sales, three shutdowns—and a dozen more in senior product, engineering, and operational roles.

Software-enabled web and mobile ventures across cloud infrastructure, digital media, fintech, healthtech, and AI. Former CEO of Highwired.net, Cauzoom, and Splitzee.

Venture
coach

Hands-on advisor to more than 100 founders.

From concept through Series A, with a focus on venture creation, product development, team formation, problem-solution validation, and product-market fit.

Developer of the Product Market Forge method, a framework for validating product-market fit.

Connector

Bringing serious builders into the same room.

Founder of The Founders Guild — a community for builders—and a speaker, trainer, and facilitator for innovation programs.

Fractional technical cofounder

Cofounder-grade technical ownership, without the lock-in.

I take responsibility for product and engineering decisions, build alongside your team, and keep the venture moving.

It is focused senior partnership—roughly a day a week, for cash rather than equity—until you are ready to hire, hand off, or keep building together.

A builder’s point of view

I work from inside the build,
not from the sidelines.

A live portfolio of durable online businesses I build and operate. Proof I ship, not just consult.

View the portfolio →

A community of serious builders I founded—for people building real businesses, not chasing unicorns.

Visit the Guild →

The training program where I teach founders the fundamentals—from headspace to product-market fit.

See the program →

Princeton · BA Babson · MBA, Entrepreneurship Building since 1995 6+ ventures founded One IPO Two sales

Sattler's Venture Timeline Michael Sattler timeline

Follow the work

More thoughts

Why Your Startup Is Like A Movie

In the summer of 1991 I was in Hollywood, California. Or, more specifically, in Westwood and Culver City and on the MGM lot. I was sharing a studio apartment with a grad student at UCLA and working for a production company in the motion picture industry. Dream come true, ton…

Read Insight → Blog The Generative Startup