Secret Ops

Aušrinė Keršanskaitė is a seasoned operations leader and a driving force behind Operations Nation, a community-powered knowledge hub that connects and empowers hundreds of operations leaders globally.

Aušrinė is also Head of Operations at Reframe Technologies, a company rethinking our approach to work. With over a decade of hands-on experience navigating the unique challenges of early-stage companies, she has played an instrumental role in guiding startups through their evolutionary journey from pre-seed stages to series B.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Recognizing the need for Operations Nation
• Managing people in operations
• The importance of adaptable processes
• The value of mentoring
• The power of proactive thinking in operations

You can find Aušrinė Keršanskaitė on her LinkedIn

Check Out Operations Nation, the safe space for operations professionals to share advice and "ops war stories" to help each other survive, grow, and thrive in their careers.

Learn more about my work at arianacofone.com or drop me a line at [email protected]!

Produced by Fina Charleson

#operations #secretops #OperationsNation #InternationalOpsFestival

Gareth Evans is s a leader and disruptor in the energy industry. As the CEO of Veckta, he committed to find solutions that create profitable and sustainable energy outcomes such that we can all thrive. His time in Iraq following the gulf war opened his eyes to a world without access to reliable energy and other basic essentials needed to survive. Tune in to learn about his mission of empowering businesses and communities to make the global transition towards a more affordable, secure and renewable energy future.

In this episode we discuss:

• Importance of education in the energy transition
• Placing decision-makers in control
• Simplifying the Complexities of the Energy Sector
• Challenges in the energy industry
• Gareth's vision for the energy industry

You can find Gareth on his website.

Listen to Veckta's podcast: Renewable Rides

Learn more about my work at arianacofone.com or drop me a line at [email protected] or drop me a line at [email protected]!

Produced by Fina Charleson

Lauren Lea is an expert when it comes to managing businesses in the online space. As CEO and founder of OBM Associates, she explores the world of Online Business Management and her special approach when partnering with business owners to achieve sustainable growth through high-level management.

After discovering what it actually takes to be an extraordinary OBM, her work steered toward a passion for teaching, supporting like-minded OBMs and launching her second business, OBM Associates®

In this episode we discuss:

• Role of an Online Business Manager 
• Difference between an OBM and a COO
• Implementing processes and automation
• Power of processes in business
• Discipline and self-motivation
• Signs you might need to hire an Online Business Manager

You can find Lauren on her website

Learn more about my work at arianacofone.com or drop me a line at [email protected]! 

Produced by Fina Charleson

As a self-proclaimed ‘Swiss Army Knife’ of executive functions, Joe Aurilia has served at the executive level across diverse departments. He is currently the Senior Vice President of Operations for Cyware, an automated alert aggregation and advisory sharing platform designed to drive real-time situational awareness.

In this episode we discuss:

• The power of working in a range of different job roles
• Advice for non-technical individuals when approaching new technology
• How to quantify what a tool can actually do for you
• How to best communicate the importance of operational initiatives
• … and what do people mostly get wrong about operations?

You can find Joe on LinkedIn

Learn more about my work at arianacofone.com or drop me a line at [email protected]!

Produced by Fina Charleson

Ghazaleh Youshani is a seasoned operator in the financial and startup world. Ghazaleh brings a wealth of experience as a managing director, head of operations, and chief operating officer. Tune in as we unpack being a woman in a male-dominated industry, promoting inclusive workplaces and what motivates her career ambitions. 

In this episode we discuss:

• Advice for women pursuing careers in finance and operations
• The importance of education and training
• The type of soft skills and mindset that are crucial for success
• Working in hedge funds vs investment banks
• Succeeding in male-dominated industries

You can find Ghazaleh on LinkedIn

Learn more about my work at arianacofone.com or drop me a line at [email protected]! 

Produced by Fina Charleson

Tim Tutt is the CEO and co-founder of Night Shift Development, a solutions provider on a mission to democratize data analytics and build data-driven solutions for users of any technical skill level. Tune in as we explore the big topics of artificial intelligence, augmented intelligence, augmented reality, cybersecurity… and how these concepts intersect with the world of operations. 

In this episode we discuss:

• Search and discovery technology
• Data as a software career
• Automating mundane tasks for efficiency
• Augmented intelligence vs AI
• Clear Query and data insights
• Technology as a creative canvas

You can find Tim on LinkedIn

Learn more about my work at arianacofone.com or drop me a line at [email protected]! 

Produced by Fina Charleson

Esther Trapadoux is a seasoned Growth Marketer and the Head of Community at Amplitude, a digital analytics platform that gives self-service visibility into the entire customer journey. As a digital marketer and content strategist, she loves working with curious and passionate teams. Esther gives us a sneak peek into the world of community building and growth marketing.

In this episode we discuss:

• Combining marketing, product and the customer
• Owning data for credibility
• Community building in the B2B world
• Marketing vs Community Operations
• Measuring quality in communities
• The ‘Scary Hour’ and how to build a genuine community

You can find Esther on LinkedIn

Learn more about my work at arianacofone.com or drop me a line at [email protected]!

Produced by Fina Charleson

From our sponsor:

Unlock your creativity with Baronfig! Use code SECRET20 for 20% off your entire order. Minimum purchase of $50.00 required. Open to all customers with no usage limits. This exclusive offer is active today.

https://secret-ops.captivate.fm/baronfig

Jon Blair is a Fractional Chief Financial Officer, who is very operationally-focused since he started out as a traditional accountant with an accounting degree. It was fascinating to hear his experiences of what shaped his career path, and what he has learnt working closely with founders. This podcast episode is a great introduction to the financial side of operations.

In this episode we discuss:

• Becoming an entrepreneurial accountant
• The skill of creativity in business leadership
• Jon’s process for choosing technologies
• Why every person in an organization needs to be profitable
• Inventory management strategies

You can find Jon on LinkedIn

Check out ‘Financial Planning & Analysis and Performance Management’

Learn more about my work at arianacofone.com or drop me a line at [email protected]!

Produced by Fina Charleson

From our sponsor:

Unlock your creativity with Baronfig! Use code SECRET20 for 20% off your entire order. Minimum purchase of $50.00 required. Open to all customers with no usage limits. This exclusive offer is active today.

https://secret-ops.captivate.fm/baronfig

Jon Darbyshire, the co-founder and CEO of SmartSuite, began his career majoring in finance and accounting. After working at Ernst & Young he realized he was great at creating processes, and went on to manage one of their global practices. Through setting up processes and working with the right people and technology he was able to achieve amazing things, culminating in becoming the youngest partner at Ernst & Young.

In this episode we discuss:

• What it is like hiring 100 developers
• The role of collaborative technology for the Gen Z workforce
• A feedback loop system and how to follow your customer
• Building visual processes
• The dangers of over-processing and the power of keeping things simple
• What Jon looks for when investing in companies (and the big mistake he made)

You can find Jon on LinkedIn and SmartSuite.

Learn more about my work at arianacofone.com or drop me a line at [email protected]!

Produced by Fina Charleson

From our sponsor:

Unlock your creativity with Baronfig! Use code SECRET20 for 20% off your entire order. Minimum purchase of $50.00 required. Open to all customers with no usage limits. This exclusive offer is active today.

https://secret-ops.captivate.fm/baronfig

Write of Passage’s Founder David Perrell and COO Chris Monk discuss the building process of the business, as well as how to create a positive workplace environment. They offer advice on how to get someone to understand the importance of operations, as well as how to work with teams when building operations so that it can benefit the business in the long run.

In this episode we discuss:

• How to hire the right COO
• Defining company values and principles
• Scaling decision making
• Ways to enhance remote team communication
• Creating efficient meeting agendas
• David’s writing process and craft

You can find Chris on LinkedIn and David on LinkedIn.

You can check out Write of Passage.

Learn more about my work at arianacofone.com or drop me a line at [email protected]!

Produced by Fina Charleson

From our sponsor:

Unlock your creativity with Baronfig! Use code SECRET20 for 20% off your entire order. Minimum purchase of $50.00 required. Open to all customers with no usage limits. This exclusive offer is active today.

https://secret-ops.captivate.fm/baronfig