Operations — what does that even mean?
Keep calm and let the Operations Manager handle it
That’s always the consensus around Operations roles in companies. Whilst amusing, coupled with a great chance for an ego boost in explaining what the role consists of, it comes with a tinge of “don’t you know already?” The lack of resources on Operations is startling, and so through this blog series, we want to help people understand what Operations consist of, the variety the role beholds, and showcase the fantastic people behind this role.
Who are we?
We are a community of operations leaders from startups to scale-ups across different industries. Our aim is to continuously improve our companies and grow in our roles by learning from each other and sharing stories, experiences and advice.
This month we’ll be focussing on Michaela Peicheva, Director of People and Operations at Wefarm. You can read about Michaela’s journey below.
Think Chief Firefighter. Think Chief Architect. Two very different roles, but Ops is exactly these two combined in one, in Michaela’s eyes. On the one hand, you are handling (no pun intended), prioritizing, and putting out the multitude of fires when deemed the right time. At the same time, you are thinking about building this business, which includes the following elements: infrastructure, scale, repeatability and core processes. If we go into the specifics of functions, this can then range from People Ops to Finance, to Logistics and everything in-between.
For those that are unfamiliar with the term Operations, it can be difficult to grasp what it involves, and Michaela was no stranger to that feeling. Having graduated with a Masters in Marketing from the University of Essex, she then joined Wefarm in a junior role, thinking that Marketing was the concrete path she was going to undertake in the future. However, through the experience on the job, along with the support and praise from her boss, she was actually more geared towards Operations.
Having been in the role for 4 years, Michaela has learned that the Operations person needs to be versatile, quick to think on their feet, and problem solve on a daily basis. Some of these decisions often have a big impact on the organization, which is the aspect that Michaela enjoys the most. Because the range of functions varies widely, in order to carry forward the processes there must be clear communication with the Executive team and middle managers. Alongside this, Finance is also a key role that Michaela partners up with.
Whilst the Operations role requires her to be a multi-tasker, this approach is also embedded in her daily routine. Michaela gets herself ready for the day with breakfast and coffee (black, no sugar, but if feeling fancy, an oat flat white) at home, and making use of that quiet time to read for those 15–30 minutes. She heads into her office by bike, trying to get in before everyone, so that she can get those 30–60 minutes of quiet time to check e-mails, Slack and prep for any meetings that she has during that day. Whilst the days are quite heavy on meetings (something she wants to change this year) she likes to end the day with something unrelated to work such as exhibitions, social evenings or yoga so that it can help her recharge and gather new perspectives. In fact, a quote that resonates with her is from Picasso himself “Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life”.
Throughout her career, Michaela has received multiple pieces of advice that have helped her get through a set of milestones. However, one piece of advice that always stuck with her is: “What is important is how you make people feel, and leaving the other person with a positive feeling after any interaction”. If you do meet her, she definitely embeds this quote into her being. After every encounter, she leaves you with this sense of optimism and exuberance, which can unquestionably, recharge your batteries.
For those that love analogies, think of the Ops role like a Rubik’s cube: only 6 colors but so many combinations. Michaela joined the Wefarm family in the early days, and when looking into what the future holds for her and the company, she’s excited to see it through the different stages of its development: international expansion, doubling the employee size and the operational skeleton that forms the basis. So what is next for the Operations in general? She sees a strong community forming, which can help outline what the role is, what it can be and help share this understanding beyond the Operations function.
Thank you, Michaela, for such an insightful piece regarding Operations. See below how Ops Stories has helped her. Want to know more about Ops Stories, then click here.
It has been incredible to have a support network and actually something as simple as validation that everyone is struggling with exactly the same problems and challenges. The fact that there is a great bunch of people out there who also care so as much as I do about Ops and all its aspect, also the endless tacit knowledge one can tap into with simply a few coffees or events. — Michaela describing Ops Stories
About Wefarm
There are over 1 billion people directly involved in small-scale agriculture, primarily in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. Together they grow 70% of the world’s food, however many do not have access to the internet. Wefarm’s mission is to build a trusted digital platform that empowers a global community of over 100 million small-scale farmers to be more successful.
