Christy Johnson

About Christy Johnson

With experience in marketing, fundraising, and operating leadership, I am passionate about helping founders (and their startups) grow and thrive in the competitive and consuming world of early-stage venture building. As a Partner at Fireroad Ventures, I focus my work with founders on validating problem-solution-fit and their positioning in the market with both customers and investors. Previously, I was the Chief Operating Officer at OCEAN Programs, leading the operations, communications, and earned-revenue of the organization that focused on entrepreneurs who are solving real-life problems and want to build great companies without losing their souls. The theme of my career has been joining pre-scale organizations to build a strategy, team, and human operating system to support growth. I\'ve held senior roles in advancement and digital products at global non-profit organizations, putting to use skills in omni-channel marketing, strategic communications, and fundraising campaign management, as well as a Master\'s degree in Spiritual Formation and Ministry. At the end of the day, it\'s a gift to be with founders on their startup journey, an honor to be trusted by LPs to steward their capital, and a joy be growing personally in discipline, kindness, and courage along the way.

Experience

1. Partner

   Fireroad

   Apr 2023 — Present · Cincinnati, OH, US

   Fireroad Ventures is an inception-stage technology investor, focused on technology that solves business-critical problems for SMB owner-operators. We\'re particularly interested in ventures within these three themes: 1. Specialized Operations: Preserving expertise, scaling craftBusinesses that depend on specialized knowledge face aging workforce challenges and competitive pressure from larger, automated operations. Solutions that preserve critical expertise, enhance competitive positioning, and attract new talent to traditional trades. These businesses preserve the critical skills and craftsmanship that define local economic identity.2. Service Delivery: Profitable growth, happy teamsBusinesses delivering services through field or decentralized operations struggle with coordination, profitability visibility, and quality consistency. Solutions that provide business intelligence, workforce coordination tools, and systematic processes that create sustainable, profitable operations. These operations form the backbone of community life, from healthcare to hospitality to essential services.3. Future Infrastructure: Every business, AI-readyTraditional businesses lack the modern technology infrastructure needed to compete in an AI-native economy. Platforms that make any business discoverable to AI assistants, provide sophisticated commerce capabilities, and enable seamless integration of modern systems. Ensuring local businesses can compete in an AI-native economy preserves economic diversity and community resilience.We also know the tumultuous ups and downs of venture-building, and so we resource founders to flourish in every dimension of their lives, so they can stay in the game and build strong companies where people experience meaningful work.

Education

• Wheaton College

  M.A., Christian Formation & Ministry: Student Development

  2010 — 2012

• Kuyper College

  B.S., Music and Worship, Communications, Literature

  2006 — 2010

Skills

• Event Planning
• Community Outreach
• Nonprofits
• Outlook
• Web Content
• Customer Service
• Student Counseling
• Powerpoint
• Microsoft Excel
• Writing
• Internal Communications
• Editing
• Non-Profits
• Research
• Volunteer Training
• Teaching
• Volunteer Management
• Microsoft Office
• Strategic Communications
• Public Speaking