The CEO Skills No MBA or Accelerator Can Teach
01.
You’ve achieved product–market fit. Maybe even raised a seed round.
But now what?
02.
Founders quickly learn that intuition and hustle aren’t enough to scale a team, navigate crisis, or lead through investor scrutiny.
03.
That truth hit home for us as mentors. Again and again, we heard early-stage founders admit: “I’m not sure I’m really a CEO”, “I don’t know how to lead this thing now that it’s getting real.”
04.
They had the vision, the product, even the funding. What they lacked was the confidence and capability to truly lead.
So we built Pivot CEO to fix that.
We teach what MBAs and accelerators leave out — the decision-making, team-building, and crisis-leadership skills that only seasoned CEOs know, because they’ve lived it.
This isn’t theory. It’s high-pressure, real-world simulation.
“This program gives structure to something that is otherwise learned through painful mistakes.”
Shimshon Jacobi
“This was exactly what I was looking for as a first-time CEO.”
Yossi Rosenblum
ABOUT PIVOT CEO
Why We Built Pivot CEO Academy
Being a CEO is the hardest job in startups — and the least supported. Accelerators teach you how to pitch. Business school teaches theory. Neither trains you for the daily pressure of leading a company.
We built Pivot Academy to provide guided practice on the messy, people-heavy parts of the job — setting direction, rallying a team, making hard calls with incomplete data, and owning every outcome.
Practice high‑stakes leadership before the stakes are real.
WHY US
What Makes Pivot CEO Different?
All signal, no fluff - and always tied to real-life issues and work.
Pivot CEO Academy is a hands-on leadership lab for first-time CEOs and founders.
It’s not a start-up how-to course. It’s a cohort-driven, action-based learning experience that mirrors the reality of leading a high-growth company.
Our program combines real-world case studies, role-playing, and AI simulations to mirror the challenges of leading a high-growth company.
Learn Like a CEO -Not a Student
We blend modern learning science, startup battle scars, and executive coaching into a hands-on experience. You’ll train like a CEO by doing what real CEOs do — in a guided environment where it’s safe to make mistakes and learn from them. Gain practical, repeatable skills in leadership, fundraising, and scaling — and the confidence to navigate your startup journey with clarity and control.
Case Studies & Role Plays
Based on real founder challenges
Smart AI Simulations
Practice high-stakes decisions before it’s real
Cohort Feedback
Because leadership is social
Apply-It Assignments
Lessons become actions, fast
How the Program Works?
We are currently preparing for Cohort 2.
Spaces will be limited - register for priority access.
Each week combines a 3-hour live session with structured prep, real-time simulations, and guided feedback.*
You’ll engage in:
-
Roleplays and decision-making exercises
-
Peer reviews and group discussion
-
Personalized executive coaching
By the end, you’ll walk away with:
-
Practical templates and ready-to-use deliverables
-
Reps for high-stakes CEO moments — board meetings, layoffs, tough investor calls
-
A confident, battle-tested leadership style that’s ready for real life
*This is the structure used in our first cohort, with refined scheduling planned for future cohorts.
TESTIMONIALS
What Cohort 1 Alumni Say
Robert Rose
This is your Testimonial section paragraph. It’s a great place to tell users how much you value your customers and their feedback.
Alex Smith
This is your Testimonial section paragraph. It’s a great place to tell users how much you value your customers and their feedback.
Drew Carlyle
This is your Testimonial section paragraph. It’s a great place to tell users how much you value your customers and their feedback.
Jessica Davis
This is your Testimonial section paragraph. It’s a great place to tell users how much you value your customers and their feedback.
Credibility &
Relationships
This isn’t theory. It’s hands-on training for the hardest, most important parts of your job. From fundraising to hiring, scaling to storytelling — you’ll build skills that founders often take years to learn. Our high-impact modules cover:
What You’ll Learn
Leadership
& Vision
Operations & Scaling
COURSE
Fundraising
& Finance
Marketing, Branding
& GTM
The CEO Within: Leading from the Inside Out
Product
& Tech
Administration, HR & Legal
Each session delivers a concrete outcome - with live feedback to sharpen your execution.
This isn’t a course. It’s a turning point.
Who Is It For?
-
First-time CEOs
-
Aspiring founders
-
Senior or mid-level management leaders stepping into the top spot
If you're ready to lead like a real CEO, Pivot CEO is your proving ground.
WE‘VE GOT YOUR BACK
Why It Matters
You can’t iterate your way through the people part of the job to leadership. You're expected to build a team, raise a round, ship product, and set vision — all for the first time. We give you a place to learn, stumble, and grow before the stakes get real. so when they do, you’re ready.
From recent program participants
“It gave me confidence, strength, and perspective at a very challenging stage of my role as CEO.”
Marianna Truman
“The insights were immediately helpful - I used them while actively building my team.”
Ronen Schuster
A real-world leadership toolkit
Rehearsal for high-stakes conversations
WHAT’S IN IT FOR YOU?
What You’ll Walk Away With
Peer and mentor feedback
A strong network to call on when it’s hard
Pivot CEO Executive Strategy Certificate
Clarity & confidence
Join the inaugural cohort of Pivot CEO
Starting Tuesday, Nov. 4th
INVEST WHERE IT COUNTS
Limited Spots Available
Our First Cohort Has Successfully Completed. The next cohort is launching soon. Spaces will be limited.
Pricing: 7225 ILS
Take advantage of early-bird pricing for Cohort 2:
10% early-bird discount available to priority access members when registration opens.
And, Learn practical frameworks for startup leadership from seasoned CEOs and industry experts - so you can lead with clarity, confidence, and judgment.
“It’s tailored to the real challenges of running a startup, not generic management theory.”
Yossi Rosenblum
Meet the Founders
The Team
Saul Orbach
Turning Founders into CEOs. Guiding Vision to Execution.
Saul Orbach is a serial entrepreneur, veteran venture capitalist, CEO advisor, and educator with deep experience helping first-time founders grow into confident, effective leaders. With over 30 years in executive roles and multiple startup exits, Saul brings a unique blend of strategic clarity, operational expertise, and investor insight. Through his firm, The Beachhead Group, and as a senior lecturer at leading Israeli universities, he has trained hundreds of founders in venture finance, market execution, and leadership. At Pivot CEO Academy, Saul distills decades of experience into actionable guidance for new tech CEOs navigating the critical early phases of building and scaling a company.
Rob Rubin, Ph.D.
Product and engineering leader, AI innovator, and start-up technologist.
Rob Rubin is a veteran product and engineering leader, AI innovator, and startup technologist with a record of building platforms, products and organizations that scale. Rob has a Ph.D. in Computer Science from Brown and multiple exits—including edX, Carbonite (IPO), and Google and Microsoft acquisitions.
Through his firm Demingway, Rob has coached and taught engineering and product leaders at Salesforce, VISA, NICE, Optibus and many small startups, and built AI courses for Microsoft on Coursera with over 50,000 learners. At Pivot CEO Academy, he helps first-time CEOs apply agile thinking and AI tooling, build and test hypothesis quickly, and learn continuously.
Our Speakers
Featuring speakers from our inaugural cohort and future cohorts
Gideon Ben-Zvi
Joining Valens Semiconductor in 2011 as a Board Member and later assuming the role of CEO since February 2020, Led Valens' IPO on the NYSE in September 2021...
Jeff Kupietzky
Jeff is a seasoned executive known for his success in growing B2B SaaS companies and achieving successful exits. His expertise spans go-to-market strategy, restructuring, fundraising, M&A, and team leadership...
Yoav Levy
Yoav is leading Upstream's strategic direction, culture and business execution, with over 17 years of experience in multi-national high-tech companies and start-ups...
Kobi Eisenberg
Kobi Eisenberg serves as President of Mobility for Element Fleet Management (TSX: EFN), the world's largest publicly traded pure-play automotive fleet manager...
Keith Holdt
Keith Holdt helps CEOs align leadership from the inside out—bringing clarity, calm and long-term impact to the helm...
Daniel Roditi
Daniel Roditi is a Founder and Managing Partner at Meron Capital, an early-stage VC firm in Tel Aviv with over $160M in assets under management, backing Israeli founders from day zero...
Arik Faingold
Arik, a serial entrepreneur, and co-founder of Commit, the cyber unicorn Pentera and Autonomy AI, brings over 25 years of experience in the technology and entrepreneurial sectors...
Josef Mandelbaum
Josef co-founded Nili in 2019. Josef leads the firm’s sourcing and origination activities and is responsible for portfolio company management, mentoring and advising CEO's as an active Board Member...
Estee Rosen
Estee Rosen is a seasoned executive and entrepreneur with more than 30 years of leadership across the health, pharmaceutical, and biotechnology industries...
Michal Zilberberg
Founder and CEO of Twinnovation, a consultancy specializing in non-dilutive funding strategy across Israel and Europe. Recognized expert in Israel Innovation Authority (IIA) programs and EU grants...
Noga Kap
Ms. Noga Kap is bringing over twenty years of hands-on experience as one of the most prominent women-investors in the Israeli ecosystem...
Keren-Or Amar
Executive and consultant focused on translating academic science into ventures, partnerships, and market impact. I lead strategy, investor engagement, and go-to-market planning across biotech...
Shai Albaranes
Shai Albaranes is the Corporate Vice President of Innovation and Ventures at Orbia (www.orbia.com), a publicly traded global company and leader in agriculture, water infrastructure...
FROM OUR BLOG
Insights from the Pivot CEO team
How to Build Investor Relationships Long Before You Need to Raise
Phase 0.1 of fundraising explains how to build investor relationships early, increase trust, and prepare strategically for future capital raises.
Lonely at the Top? Pivot CEO Academy Is Here to Change That
First-time CEOs often discover that leadership is lonelier than expected. Pivot CEO Academy was built to replace isolation with clarity confidence and a trusted peer circle.
