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We are thrilled to give a warm welcome to Brandon Nastoupil as ClearCo’s new Chief Operating Officer!
Brandon brings a rich background spanning military leadership, SaaS product development, and executive operations across fast-growing private equity-backed software companies. After serving in the U.S. Army, Brandon earned his graduate degree at Texas A&M before stepping into leadership roles in professional services, product management, and corporate development, helping organizations optimize software operations, streamline cross-functional alignment, and scale efficiently through pivotal growth milestones.
When he’s not tinkering with custom local AI models, cheering on Texas A&M football, or visiting his family’s home island of Lefkada, Greece, Brandon is focused on elevating modern business and saas operations through deep technical curiosity and practical leadership. On the clock, he applies a philosophy first forged in military service: lead with transparency, build relentless trust, and focus on solving root causes rather than surface symptoms.
HR and people leaders today face immense pressure to move faster, align teams, and make every informed decision count. Yet, CHROs often find their teams fighting the software applications meant to help them, navigating scattered data sources, spending hours on manual reconciliation, and watching workflows break down right when organizational momentum matters most.
Achieving true workforce agility requires more than adding another point solution to your tech stack. It requires establishing operational clarity across the entire talent lifecycle. To celebrate his arrival, we sat down with Brandon to discuss how modern operations, smart technology, and executive leadership intersect, and what CHROs can take away from his perspective on scaling organizations.
Practical AI, Data Security, and the CHRO’s Governance Mandate#
Artificial intelligence and machine learning are rapidly transforming how organizations scale, but the market is flooded with generic tools that generate voluminous content without real context or utility.
"There’s nothing that frustrates me more than reading pure AI slop," Brandon says. "The amount of content people create with a single prompt, a 30-page dissertation about something, is not valuable. I don't know where the data is coming from, and I have to put it back into AI just to get to a point where I can read it. That's not a good use of AI."
Brandon Nastoupil, Chief Operating Officer
For Brandon, the real power of modern AI powered technology lies in workflow optimization rather than content volume. He advises leaders to think of AI as a junior team member, giving it a clear role in their mental model and assigning tasks it can achieve end-to-end to remove bottlenecks.
For CHROs, the takeaway is clear: the goal of AI in HR is not to replace human roles, but to augment workflows so human brainpower can focus on high-impact initiatives. However, in HR environments handling sensitive personal data, personal identifiable information (PII), financial information, and social security numbers, Brandon emphasizes that data governance and robust security measures remain non-negotiable.
"We deal with very sensitive data, and the thought of an unverified model being trained on PII scares the you-know-what out of me," Brandon notes. "Ensuring data protection, maintaining security and compliance, and meeting strict compliance requirements are critical. AI should support better decisions, augment workflows, and operate within strict permissions while keeping people firmly in control."
Brandon Nastoupil, Chief Operating Officer
Taking a Sledgehammer to Silos: Why Root Causes Matter for CHROs #
Throughout his career scaling software companies, Brandon has observed that organizations stall when departments operate in isolated bubbles. This anti-silo philosophy directly informs how he views customer and employee friction.
"I am very anti-silo," Brandon shares. "When I find teams that don't talk to each other, my immediate reaction is to put them in their “get along” shirts and make them work together. You can't move a company forward unless you're all acting as one company. I think of everyone internally as a customer, and our external clients as customers. What operations does is make it easy to do business with us. If we streamline communication and make things run efficiently in-house, our clients feel that impact."
Brandon Nastoupil, Chief Operating Officer
When internal operations run smoothly, clients aren't left waiting seven days for an answer or navigating fragmented processes. The lesson for CHROs is that fixing operational friction internally directly elevates the external customer experience and employee satisfaction. Achieving this requires shifting away from symptom solving.
"There's nothing I am more passionate about than digging in and finding the root of a problem versus symptom solving," Brandon explains. "Far too often, teams get busy and start solving symptoms, and the root problem resurfaces six months later. To reach the next operational milestone and create lasting competitive advantages, you have to solve the underlying disconnects so the big pieces can come together."
Brandon Nastoupil, Chief Operating Officer
Addressing those root causes inevitably brings leaders back to the software foundation itself. Having navigated complex HR tools throughout his career, and commiserating over system friction at home with his wife, who leads global HRBPs, Brandon understands the operational pain points HR teams face daily. Historically, software platforms served as passive systems of record: digital storage lockers where data went in, but getting actionable answers required manual export and spreadsheet reconciliation.
To give HR leaders time back for strategic work, the market is shifting to a data driven operational system, which means connected platforms that actively coordinate work, eliminate duplicate entry, and turn passive records into connected systems of intelligence and action.
Trust, Accountability, and Leading Teams Through Evolution #
Even the most advanced operational foundation fails without a culture built on accountability and organizational trust. Grounded in his military leadership background, Brandon’s approach to managing cross-functional teams centers on building mutual trust and empowering those closest to the work.
"I learned how to be a leader in the military, and that meant trusting people to do their job," Brandon says. "We have to treat each other like adults, be honest with one another, and recognize that every company is constantly evolving. Leaders are responsible for providing strategy, vision, and transparency, but those closest to the work often have the best solutions."
Brandon Nastoupil, Chief Operating Officer
For HR leaders guiding their organizations through rapid growth or industry shifts, Brandon offers a simple mindset for workforce adaptability:
"There are few constants in life besides taxes and change," Brandon says. "When something changes, that means there's an opportunity to step in, present a new idea, or raise your hand for something you haven't done before. If we sit back and wait for opportunity to present itself, we get stuck in a doom-scroll change cycle. Reframe it in your brain: it’s not a disruption, it’s an opportunity."
Brandon Nastoupil, Chief Operating Officer
As Brandon steps into his new role at ClearCo, his focus is set on unlocking operational velocity, breaking down departmental friction, and supporting our teams in delivering a unified, seamless platform experience.
"There's nothing more rewarding as a leader than seeing people you've coached take the next step in their career, or seeing an entire organization pull together as one team to solve real problems," Brandon reflects. "When you align internal operations, customer satisfaction, and employee growth, everyone moves forward together."
Brandon Nastoupil, Chief Operating Officer
Please join us in giving a warm welcome to Brandon Nastoupil as ClearCo's Chief Operating Officer!