Get to Know the BoG Co-Directors
With another demo day under our belts, we are wrapping up yet another successful semester of Bits of Good! After all the work they have done this semester, it is time to spotlight the BoG directors: Stephanie Yang and Fernando Raffo. Learn about their roles, experience, and what is to come!
What exactly you do in BoG?
Stephanie: As co-executive director, I handle the project facing side of things. I check in with Product, Engineering, and Design to make sure each project team is running smoothly, and help sort out issues as they arise. As exec, it’s very easy to feel distanced from the amazing work that gets done at BoG, so I’ve made an active effort talk to as many members as I can and shadow team meetings! I also handle general exec responsibilities, like figuring out how to track member progress, choosing non-profits to work with, leadership onboarding and meetings. Lots of meetings.
Fernando: As co-executive director, I personally handle the operations, marketing, and nonprofit partnership areas. I check in with those committees to make sure that they are all running smoothly and that any issues or important things that come up are handled in a timely manner. I am by all means mostly involved with the operational aspect of the organization (which sadly means that I am not the closest to the work that gets done in project teams); however, I really enjoy hearing about the teams on Exec Meetings. General exec responsibilities include nonprofit selection, member recruitment, and managing relations with H4I. As Stephanie said as well though — lots of meeting are a thing.
Why did you decide to take on this role in BoG?
S: This role was a pretty sudden decision for me, actually! When our previous director left, we only had two months before the semester started, and Fernando was looking for a co-director who had experience working on a project team and understood the ins and outs of how they run. Having been both a product designer and product manager, I felt like I’d had some valuable experience leading project teams and that I’d be able to offer good insight on how BoG should grow moving forward. It’s been great figuring out the best way to support our members and development process and watching every project make progress.
F: Honestly, me taking the role was quite unexpected. When the previous Executive Director left, I was initially asked to take over the role halfway through the summer because of my experience in the operational part of Bits of Good throughout my time here. At the time I was really quite unfamiliar with the project side of the organization and took the role because Max was able to get Stephanie onboard as Co-Executive Director as well. I felt that with my experience and understanding of what was needed to keep the organization running operationally and with someone else (aka Stephanie) having experience in the project side we would be able to help BoG move forward as an organization and help our members develop with it.
What has your experience been like as being part of the first pair of directors?
S: Having a co-director definitely eases some of the workload. BoG is a huge organization, and I can’t imagine trying to juggle everything at once by myself — shoutout to all the previous directors who have accomplished that! Since we each have a certain part of the org we attend to, I think it’s allowed us to go more in depth on what we’d like to improve about BoG. Generally speaking, directors have a few key objectives they’d like to achieve during their time, and since there’s two of us, we’ve been able to set higher goals for ourselves and Bits of Good!
F: The job of an Executive Director is quite big in terms of time commitment and having a co-director helps to ease the workload, especially in an organization that is so big such as Bits of Good (now that I’m in the position I can definitively congratulate James, Max, and Emily for getting through this by themselves). Given each of us focuses more on a given part of the organization it has really permit us to focus more on that given part and have a broader set of objectives/goals for the organization which we hope is really going to help us get Bits of Good to a better position that when we started the year.
What was your favorite part of this semester?
S: I loved coming back in person, even though some of our events were still online. Hosting my liftoff event, BoG Ross Painting, was really fun and I enjoyed meeting new people in BoG while doing something creative! I think the ability to meet up with members in person has also been a great experience, and I hope to have more 1 on 1’s in person next semester!
F: Definitively going back to in-person (I’ve literally been waiting for this so much). It is really enjoyable to be able to see members and have meetings in-person again and I’m really looking forward to returning to fully in-person for the Spring semester to be able to see all of the members together again for the first time since Spring 2020.
What are you looking forward to next semester?
S: General meetings will be in person, which is always super fun! They create a feeling of community and it’s always great to see project teams talking and working in person. We hope to be able to host more social events through the semester so people can meet others outside of their department or project teams. Truly excited to make BoG more like a family again!
F: I’m really looking forward to the general meetings and Launch Party to be in person. I really think this will help us foster more community (and hopefully will help us be able to meet more of the members). This semester has also been quite hectic for me so I’m looking forward next semester to be able to schedule more 1–1s with members (and hopefully bring donut dates back, especially now that it can be in-person).
Anything else you’d like to share about yourself and/or your role?
S: Being co-director has definitely been a challenge, but it’s been one that I’ve greatly enjoyed! Please feel free to reach out and chat at any time — it doesn’t have to be BoG related! Of course, if there’s anywhere you’d like to see improvements or if you have feedback as well, let us know as well.
F: Please feel free to reach out to chat! We don’t need to be talking about anything Bits of Good related and I really think I talk for both Stephanie and I when I say we want to know who you are in Bits of Good (trust me, we don’t bite). Also, I love to go and explore coffee shops around Atlanta so please reach out to go for a coffee chat!
