[Hiring] Member, Board of Advisors @Q2Impact

Role Description

Member, Board of Advisors

Strategic advisor to a defense technology company commercializing Q2 Holodeck™, an AI/ML-driven decision-rehearsal platform for UAS and counter-UAS preparedness.

The Board of Advisors provides Elessar’s leadership with practical guidance, market access, customer credibility, and domain insight as the company converts Q2 Holodeck™ pilots into recurring subscriptions. This is an advisory role, not a seat on the Board of Directors. Advisors do not exercise corporate governance authority, supervise employees, bind the company, or assume fiduciary duties solely by serving on the Board of Advisors. Management retains decision-making responsibility and execution accountability.

Purpose of the Board of Advisors

• Provide focused, candid advice to the CEO and leadership team on strategy, positioning, market entry, partnerships, and risk.
• Increase customer and partner confidence through credible, relevant experience and independent perspective.
• Create targeted access to buyers, influencers, acquisition pathways, operational users, investors, and strategic partners.
• Help Elessar distinguish urgent customer requirements from lower-priority product requests and organizational expansion.
• Support the company’s first-revenue objective without adding a large fixed-cost structure.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Strategic Counsel (20%). Advise on market-entry sequence, business model, pricing and packaging, partnerships, capital strategy, and the path from early pilots to recurring revenue.
• Market Access and Introductions (25%). Make selective, well-qualified introductions to decision-makers, operational leaders, acquisition officials, channel partners, prime contractors, investors, and other stakeholders relevant to agreed priorities.
• Customer and Revenue Support (20%). Help leadership refine value propositions, prepare for executive meetings, validate pilot offers, interpret buyer needs, and convert successful engagements into repeatable sales and renewal pathways.
• Domain and Product Insight (15%). Provide real-world insight into counter-UAS, force protection, critical infrastructure, readiness, training, test and evaluation, government acquisition, or international market requirements.
• Partnership and Reputation Support (10%). Identify high-value partners, strengthen market credibility, and represent Elessar appropriately at selected industry, customer, or policy engagements when requested and agreed.
• Risk, Ethics, and Compliance Perspective (10%). Surface strategic, reputational, security, export-control, government-sales, conflict-of-interest, and execution risks.

Advisory Profiles Sought

• Counter-UAS and Homeland Security Advisor: A respected former DHS, NORTHCOM, FAA, CBP, military, or law-enforcement leader.
• Critical Infrastructure Advisor: A senior airport, port, utility, energy, public-safety, corrections, or protective-security executive.
• Training and Readiness Advisor: An expert in operational exercises, learning systems, military readiness, scenario-based training, after-action review, or measurable training effectiveness.
• Government Growth and Acquisition Advisor: A relationship-rich leader who understands access and acquisition across DHS, DoD, DOE/NNSA, State/DSCA, and relevant state and local buyers.
• International Growth Advisor: A leader with trusted relationships and practical experience supporting defense, security, or government technology sales in priority international markets.

Expected Contributions and Success Measures

• Priority access: Introductions are relevant, prepared, and tied to named accounts, funded entry points, or strategic partnerships.
• Commercial progress: Advice and access help move prospects from engagement to demonstration, pilot, documented outcomes, and subscription or expansion decisions.
• Strategic quality: Management receives candid, actionable guidance that improves positioning, prioritization, partnership choices, and risk management.
• Credibility: Advisor participation measurably strengthens confidence among customers, partners, investors, or other stakeholders.
• Engagement discipline: Advisor participates consistently, prepares for meetings, follows through on agreed actions, and promptly identifies conflicts or constraints.

Qualifications

• Senior leadership experience in a field directly relevant to Elessar’s customers, markets, technology, acquisition pathways, training mission, or capital strategy.
• Demonstrated judgment, credibility, and reputation for ethical conduct.
• A relevant network and willingness to make selective introductions where there is a clear fit.
• Ability to provide direct, independent advice while respecting management accountability and Board of Directors authority.
• Ability to protect confidential, proprietary, customer, security-sensitive, and export-controlled information.
• No unresolved conflict of interest that would impair objective advice or Elessar’s customer relationships.

Preferred

• Experience with UAS, counter-UAS, air defense, force protection, homeland security, critical infrastructure, operational readiness, simulation, or SaaS.
• Experience selling to, buying for, or delivering within U.S. federal, defense, public-safety, critical-infrastructure, or allied-government markets.
• Familiarity with government acquisition, contracting pathways, technology adoption, operational pilots, or non-dilutive funding.
• Experience helping an early-stage company secure first revenue, build a repeatable pipeline, raise capital, or scale recurring revenue.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Strategic judgment: Separates immediate revenue and mission priorities from attractive but premature expansion.
• Commercial orientation: Understands that the near-term test is whether pilots convert into annual subscriptions and expansion.
• Executive communication: Communicates clearly with customers, operators, technical teams, investors, and government stakeholders.
• Technical and operational literacy: Can assess customer relevance without overstating fielded functionality or making unsupported commitments.
• Relationship stewardship: Uses networks carefully, prepares both sides for introductions, and protects trust.
• Independence: Challenges assumptions constructively and provides candid advice even when it is not the easiest answer.

Operating Expectations

• Meeting cadence: Participate in quarterly advisory meetings and targeted working sessions as agreed.
• Preparation: Review concise briefing materials in advance and come prepared with specific advice, introductions, or decisions for management consideration.
• Introductions: Coordinate external outreach with the CEO or designated executive.
• Confidentiality and IP: Execute appropriate confidentiality and invention/IP documents and safeguard all nonpublic information.
• Conflicts: Disclose actual or potential conflicts promptly and recuse when appropriate.
• Public statements: Do not speak publicly for Elessar, use its name or marks, or announce the advisory relationship without authorization.

Compensation

Compensation may be structured as equity, a retainer, success-based compensation, or a combination, depending on the advisor’s expected contribution and applicable legal, ethics, procurement, and conflict-of-interest requirements.

Relationship to Corporate Governance

The Board of Advisors is separate from Elessar’s Board of Directors. Its recommendations are non-binding. Advisors do not vote on corporate matters, approve budgets, appoint or supervise officers, direct employees, or exercise fiduciary authority unless separately appointed to the Board of Directors or another formal role through appropriate corporate action.

Equal Opportunity and Professional Conduct

Elessar expects every advisor to uphold high standards of integrity, respect, confidentiality, nondiscrimination, and lawful conduct in all company-related activities. Reasonable accommodations are available where applicable.