As you may know, I was part of Athena on its inception day several years ago. I was the first contractor hired here and was a part of our firm’s growth for four years before being offered an opportunity to serve an impact investing firm as their Chief of Staff. During those next first four years, I was in awe of how Gina managed the company. She documented EVERYTHING in Word documents. If I ever needed to pick up the ball and run anything in the organization I could, because there was a Word doc somewhere with those details and every step I would need to take and how to do it.
While I was away, Gina promoted Jennifer Tracy, who was one of our great EAs, to Operations Manager. Jennifer was able to take all of those documents and run Athena’s operations. During this time, Gina didn’t relinquish all of her responsibilities but instead worked for Jennifer to make sure she had everything she needed to win in her role as the Operations Manager. (Then Gina had time to learn pickleball, and well, she’s been a little busier since then!)_
Fast forward two years and I return to Athena. Jennifer transitioned to become our Business Development and Client Care manager, and I stepped into the newly-created Operations and Performance Manager role, and Gina continues as CEO, den mother and pickleball maven. We also have a dedicated Executive Assistant, Corene, who helps us three run this ship.
For the first few months of my return, the turnover was smooth sailing, but things were changing. Until this time, Gina had delegated tasks, projects, and the heavy lifting to either Jennifer or her own EA, but now there was a new cook in the kitchen. Very quickly we saw that keeping track of who owns what was becoming murky.
Jennifer and I would talk about what’s next with a client or a team member, but neither of us communicated the changes with Corene. We kept emails and correspondence in our inboxes which can work when only two people are in the loop, however, now we had four people who needed access to all the information. Through these growing pains, we discovered where the cracks in the foundation were and knew we needed to create clarity around project ownership and improve how we run the business.
This is where my superpowers kick in. I LOVE systems! I thrive on creating and implementing systems. There is nothing more grounding for a CEO, manager, or entrepreneur than having the accurate status of projects and tasks. I have used many different project management systems over the years and Asana is the software I thought would fit Athena’s needs best. It has taken time to build out new systems and workflows and it is still an ongoing process. We continue to fine-tune, put in the steps we discover are missing, add new workflows as projects emerge, and find the best ways to automate workflow so we are working smarter.
What I was not expecting, while implementing new systems and processes, was how delighted our EA, would be. She was thrilled to have one place where everything was assigned and tracked. She could easily see who assigned a task or project, and what was needed to move things forward while being able to report her progress back in the same format. The clarity it provides all of us is freeing and empowering!
There is a point in every company where how we’ve always done things won’t get us to where we want to go. What got us here, won’t get us there, right?
Is there an area in your company or organization where it’s time for a refresh, pivot, bringing in new systems, or doing a massive overhaul?
We would love to hear from you. Let us know what you are dealing with in your organization!
~ Dorian
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