Dillon Ferdinandi

About

Dillon Ferdinandi

I’ve spent 15 years at the intersection of building products, backing founders, and developing people. Here’s the longer version.

The operator years

My career started at venture-backed startups. I was an early employee at Typekit (acquired by Adobe) and Zemanta (acquired by Outbrain), where I learned firsthand how products, teams, and companies are built. I learned how to navigate product outages, launch deadlines, fundraises, and quarter closes. I wore every hat available, from partnerships and sales to operations.

In 2016, I joined Slack’s platform team during a pivotal period of the company’s growth. I helped shape the developer ecosystem and expand Slack’s presence across EMEA and APAC. After three years in an operational role, I helped Slack Fund – the company’s corporate venture arm – where I invested in and partnered with over 100 companies and managed a global portfolio ranging from seed to pre-IPO.

The coaching chapter

My coaching journey started during a particularly challenging time at Slack. The company’s rapid pace constantly highlighted areas where I needed to grow, and my wife and I had just learned we were expecting twins. Working with a coach was transformative – what started as a search for quick solutions turned into 18 months of deeper exploration that reshaped how I lead, how I show up at home, and how I think about performance.

After experiencing that transformation, I knew the founders I worked with at Slack Fund could benefit from the same kind of support. But to build genuine trust, I needed to step away from the investor-founder power dynamic. So I created Grandview Coaching & Advisory, got ICF-certified, trained in Co-Active Coaching and Conscious Leadership, and went all in.

Today I’m a coach and strategic partner to founders navigating transitions and inflection points. I bring 15+ years as an operator, investor, and board member across 100+ companies directly into the work. Learn more about working together.

What’s next

This year, I jumped back into early-stage startups as part of the founding team at Opacity. After years of coaching and investing from the sidelines, I wanted to get back into the arena and help build something again. I’m still coaching a select number of founders through Grandview and actively angel investing.

The personal stuff

I grew up in the Bay Area and spent over a decade in San Francisco before moving to Carlsbad with my wife and three daughters (including twins). I’m drawn to the ocean and spend a lot of my free time surfing.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu has been part of my life for over ten years. It taught me the importance of the white belt mentality – that learning is continuous and can come from anyone, anywhere. I carry that into everything I do.

Dillon with his Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu training partnersDillon with his wife and three daughters by the ocean