Laura Nicol dials into Anna Prell, VP Operations at Ivo.

Anna reminds us why being an operator is a) so damn exciting and b) the ultimate leadership testing ground: 

"In a startup, you can be your own version of a founder. You’re the founder of whatever it is you’re in charge of. You keep testing, learning, and scaling until it works." 

Inside this conversation:

• Moving to the US in 2020—and operating inside ANZ companies state-side
• Shifting from Chief of Staff to leading a function (Ops > Customer Success)
• Learning how to manage people
• EAB acquiring Forage—Anna’s role in the story
• Finding a home in EAB post-acquisition
• The operator-founder partnership. Pure MAGIC
• Building again at Ivo as VP Ops
• How she found the “right fit”
• Building the infrastructure that helps teams scale

Want to connect with Anna? Find her on LinkedIn.

Also mentioned:

• Olga Eippert
• Min-Kyu Jung
• Jacob Duligall
• Amy Glancey
• Clara Ma
• Alicia Wells

Pre-interview chats:

• Katie Noonan (Listen to Katie's Calling Operator episode)
• Tom Brunskill

Guest ideas?

Do you have an operator on speed dial who could be perfect for the show? Please share your suggestions with me via LinkedIn.

A note from your host, Laura:

My goal for Calling Operator is to open-source stories from startup operators across various functional areas and learn how they excel at building and scaling companies. As a Chief of Staff, I often find myself in (virtual) rooms with people facing similar challenges and reinventing the wheel. I want this podcast to open a line for operators across Australia and New Zealand to learn from fellow operators. Each episode shares personal stories, the execution behind big ideas, career-defining moments, successes, failures, and lessons.

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