The early-stage stabilizer.
Vivarium is led by Nasim Assadi — a senior people operator founders and leadership teams call when they need to get the people side right from day one. Industry-agnostic, partnering with US-based and international companies alike.
Joined Zimride as #11 · scaled to 400+ · NASDAQ: LYFT
Highest-valued women's sports franchise in the world
Flow Kana — top cannabis brand year over year · 300 people across 7 locations
From pre-launch to IPO, across tech, sports & beyond
Strong organizations are intentionally designed.
I help leadership teams create ecosystems where people are valued, supported, and driven to perform. With experience across tech, cannabis, sports, and beyond — and an industry-agnostic lens — I guide teams to avoid common pitfalls and build cultures that thrive. I partner with US-based and international companies alike, and have become a go-to people partner for women's sports teams as the category grows.
People and performance go hand in hand — and I make sure both grow.
Based in Los Angeles · Partnering with US-based and international teams
Hi, I'm Nasim Assadi. Founder of Vivarium.
I've spent my career as the go-to partner for building people strategies in fast-paced, mission-driven environments. From joining Zimride as employee #11 and being part of the founding team that started Lyft — scaling its people function to 400+ — to founding the people org at Angel City FC, I've built people functions from scratch more times than I can count.
In between, I led people for Flow Kana through hyper-growth and a 50% workforce reduction, and ran my own consulting practice partnering with founders at fitmob, PAX Labs, Leanplum, and others.
I'm industry-agnostic and open to working with international teams, not just US-based ones — and I've built deep expertise in women's sports, where the category is expanding fast and the people side has to keep up. What stays consistent is the work: spotting what will break before it breaks, and quietly putting the structures in place so it doesn't.
If you want someone who can help you build it right from day one, I'm here to make that happen.
The pitfalls I help leadership teams avoid.
I specialize in helping leadership teams avoid the organizational pitfalls that emerge during periods of rapid growth or change. Most aren't surprises — they're patterns. Here's where I'm looking from day one.
Unclear organizational structure
Reporting lines drawn around the people you have today, not the company you're becoming. I redraw them before they harden.
Executive misalignment
Leadership teams pulling in different directions on strategy, priorities, or people decisions. I bring the alignment work into the open.
Reactive hiring practices
Roles opened in a panic, scorecards skipped, offers improvised. I install the discipline that protects the bar as you scale.
Breakdowns in communication & accountability
Decisions made twice, ownership unclear, all-hands that don't land. I rebuild the operating cadence that keeps the team in sync.
Weak management foundations
First-time managers left to figure it out, feedback loops missing, performance issues unaddressed. I install the basics that make management work.
Compensation & performance inconsistencies
Ad-hoc offers and inconsistent equity that quietly create resentment and retention risk. I install a defensible framework early.
Who I work best with.
I work best with organizations that value both high performance and healthy culture — leaders who care deeply about building strong organizations and understand that investing in people is a business strategy, not a perk.
- Early-stage companies building foundational systems
- Founder-led organizations navigating rapid growth
- Teams undergoing restructuring or leadership transition
- Mission-driven brands and emerging industries
- Organizations seeking a more intentional approach to people & operations
The strongest organizations are intentional.
High-performing cultures aren't built through perks or slogans. They're built through clarity, trust, accountability, transparency, and thoughtful leadership.
People want to do meaningful work. They want to understand expectations, feel valued, and know their contributions matter. They also want strong leadership and high standards.
Organizations do their best work when people and performance are treated as interconnected — not competing — priorities.
Designed, not assumed
Strong organizations are intentionally designed. The patterns that shape a team don't appear on their own — they're chosen.
People & performance, together
The two are inseparable. I work to make sure both grow at the same time, not at each other's expense.
Ecosystems, not families
Healthy teams behave like ecosystems: each role, structure, and behavior is part of a system that either supports growth — or quietly works against it.
Built to outlast the engagement
Systems, documents, and trained leaders are the real deliverable. My goal is to make the practice progressively less necessary.
Fifteen years of building people functions.
First VP of People at the highest-valued women's sports team in the world ($250M+ valuation). Built the people foundation pre-launch — comp philosophy, performance, hiring, all-hands cadence — then scaled the org through four seasons starting with the club's inaugural season.
Joined as Head of People (employee #40) reporting to the CEO. Stood up the entire HR function for 300 people across 7 locations. Restructured the executive team and led a 50% workforce reduction with care.
Fractional people partner to early-stage founders — fitmob (acquired by Classpass), zTailors, PAX Labs, Leanplum. Recruiting, comp, compliance, coaching, culture from day one.
Joined Zimride as employee #11 and was part of the core team that started Lyft. Started as EA to the co-founders, organically built the HR function, and scaled the company from 11 to 400+ on the path to becoming the #1 ride-share app in North America and a public company (NASDAQ: LYFT). Championed rolling stock options out to every employee.