From Operator to Creator: Getting Brand Deals on the Side of a Full-Time Tech Job

Luma Event Link The creator economy is booming, and it's no longer reserved for influencers with massive followings. B2B brands like Granola increasingly rely on operators: full-time employees with audiences of all sizes who showcase products in a way that feels authentic and genuinely useful to their peers. If you work in tech and have something to say, brands want to hear from you. And the upside isn't just brand deals. Building an audience while employed can unlock promotions, inbound from recruiters, clients for your current role, speaking gigs or, if you want to take it all the way, a business of your own. We're thrilled to host two creators who did exactly that. Jean Kang and Peter Yang built large audiences while working demanding roles at Figma and Roblox. They'll share how they did it, how their first brand deals came together, and their advice for getting started. Lise Slimane, who leads influencer marketing at Granola, joins them for a look at what B2B brands look for in operator-creators. Timeline : Doors open at 6pm. Please arrive by 6.30pm. 6.30 pm to 7.30 pm - panel (40 minutes) and Q&A (20 minutes) 7.30 pm to 8.30 pm - network with other operators, creators and our granola team. Food and drinks will be served on-site. Meet our speakers : Jean Kang - Panelist Previously an operator at top-tier companies like Meta, LinkedIn and Figma, Jean has built a following of 600K, got speaking gigs and built a strong personal brand with @AdvicewithJean for years before jumping in full-time! Jean’s brand partnerships include OpenAi, Granola, Slack, Nvidia and many more. Peter Yang - Panelist While working full time as a product manager at Roblox, Peter has built followings of +100K subscribers on multiple channels (YouTube, Newsletters, Podcast and LinkedIn). Despite being fully employed until very recently, Peter had a solid frequency across channels and landed deals with brands like Granola, Linear, Google or Replit. Lise Slimane - Host Lise leads the influencer marketing program at Granola and previously ran creator programs at ElevenLabs and SafetyWing (YC W18). Lise has worked with 1000s or creators and paid XXs of millions to creators with audiences of all sizes. Now prioritising partnerships with operators, Lise will share what B2B brands are looking for. location provided by event source: "Yerba Buena" ―――――――――― SF Stuff To Do