This Week's Discussion
How Alon Leveraged A Referral To Land His Role
Learning at The Commons
Only 1 seat left in the January Strategic Finance Sprint!
If someone forwarded this to you, subscribe here.
Your Weekly Level Up
🔥 Navigating An Internal Transfer To A New Team
✏️ Career Resource: CFJs with Introductions to Hiring Managers
✅ Community Reccos: Getting Into Reading
💭 Thought Starter: Making The Most of Onboarding
💡Brain Teaser: 🍐
🚀 Community Share: URL to IRL
RESOURCE DATABASE:
We just launched a Community Resource database, a one-stop shop for all of the valuable resources shared in The Commons.
This database is a living resource, continuously being updated with more content as it is shared by the community. To start, we've included resources under 4 main categories: Job Search & Interviewing; Data Visualization; SQL; and External Resources - check them out here!
We're looking for members to help us create content & build this out further! Interested? DM Alex Palmer!
THE COMMONS SPOTLIGHT
Meet Alon, a Strategy + Operations Sprint alum at The Commons who got introduced to his current role thanks to a referral from the community
To summarize Alon's career path in 1 line: Business Undergraduate Degree ➡️ Uber Driver & Ops Support ➡️ Hired SDR (Learned the foundations of sales) ➡️ Jiffy Operations Manager (Developed and managed the onboarding pipeline) ➡️ Teamflow Strategy & Operations Manager (Developing the Customer Support function, managing 50% of clients, and supporting the Sales function)
What's your current role & where are you located?
📍Customer Success and Sales at Teamflow
We love a behind the scenes look - tell us about your role at Teamflow!
- What’s the role? When I got my job through The Commons, I was initially hired as the second Customer Success Manager to help build out the team and support the CSM lead. But with any startup, I had to wear many hats, so on top of customer success, I built out the Customer Support function, and also supported the sales pipeline by working as an SDR (So, CSM + Support Manager + SDR)
- How was your onboarding experience? Any tips for a successful onboarding? I actually started a few days earlier than expected to get ramped up before my manager went on vacation. My manager provided me with an onboarding checklist and a schedule on who to meet in the team. He would chat with me every couple days (while he was on vacation) for a few hours to check in on how things were going and if I had any questions. I ended up talking with as many people in the company to ramp up and learn as much as I can as quickly as I can.
- How’d you find the role? What prompted your interest in it? The Commons – as seamless as it gets. When I was hired, it was a small startup and I was given the opportunity to be a vital piece of the go-to-market team having been 1 of 2 CSM’s, the only person building out the support function, and a part of the sales function.
- What was the interview process like? I interviewed with the hiring manager, completed an assignment, interviewed with the same hiring manager, and then interviewed with the CEO ✔️
Tell us about your job search experience...
When I did The Commons, I was looking through LinkedIn, AngelList, and The Commons #job-openings channel. I lucked out big time as someone in the community posted a role that they were connected to. And that was it - I interviewed via referral and went through the interview process. It was so smooth!
So...why'd you join The Commons in the first place?
I was in between jobs and I was looking to level up my analytical skills. Not only did I become much better analytically, but I gained a community and connections that I would have never had otherwise.
Before the Commons, I knew SQL to a limited extent. However, the Strategy & Operations Sprint provided me the opportunity to use SQL in a real case study, which allowed me to understand just how beneficial analytics and data are. After learning how to use SQL at The Commons, I took those skills to my current job where I analyze customer data and make decisions on how we should approach it.
What was it like to work with your mentor during the Sprint?
My mentor's name was Alice and she was really great! She is super friendly and was always available to chat and answer questions. We had weekly meetings with Alice and then we met separately with our team weekly as well. Once we divided up the work, we were able to schedule 1:1s with Alice to get our respective work completed. The whole experience was all very relaxed, personable, and focused on getting the most out of it for me.
Did you get anything out of the program that you didn't expect?
Definitely the community. I actually got my job at Teamflow through a job posting in the #job-openings channel in The Commons Slack. The job poster, Ally, connected me with the hiring manager, who interviewed me 😃
After Ally posted the role in the#job-openings slack channel, I DM’ed her. I actually knew her previously through mutual friends, so it was great to be able to reconnect and also inquire about the role.
_____________
Keep reading to uncover Alon's advice for folks looking to follow in his footsteps. Plus, check out his favorite podcast, where he gets his news and how he spends time outside of work (hint: 🎸) ⬇️
Read The Full Interview
What’s happening at The Commons
Upcoming events
Company Showcase: Jobber
Members of the Talent and Business Analytics teams at Jobber are joining The Commons for this company showcase. They'll be providing insight on the type of work the Business Analytics team tackles, some of the roles they are currently hiring for, and why Jobber is a great place to work.
Jobber's award-winning job tracking and customer management software for home service businesses, helps small business owners keep everything in one place, automate day-to-day operations, and provide their service at scale. Since its founding in 2011, Jobber has grown to over 500 employees and serves business owners in more than 60 countries.
PS: This is a great way to get your foot in the door!
Wednesday, January 25th at 12PM ET
Community Members Only
Register here
Speaker Series: Chief of Staff Roundtable
Join us for this roundtable panel on Chief of Staff roles in tech, co-hosted by Clara Ma, Founder and CEO of Ask a Chief of Staff.
Clara will be joined by:
- Harry Siggins (Series C) - Chief of Staff at Quantive (formerly Gtmhub), a global strategy execution software and services company where he helps ensure leadership alignment with long-term objectives, lead the executive team to develop strategic plans and drive cross-functional initiatives.
- Stacy Maldonado (VC) - Stacy is the liaison between the partners of Include Ventures and the rest of the organization, for whom she implements and manages workflow processes.
- Gordon Kramer (UHNWI + Series A) - Gordon has spent most of his career in Chief of Staff and related roles, across a wide range of companies, industries, responsibilities, and geographies. We're proud that Gordon is a member of The Commons!
- Navida Hayes (Public) - Nadiya Hayes is a Chief of Staff with six years of experience working alongside executive teams of public companies. Nadiya specializes in improving efficiency and effectiveness of rapidly growing organizations, running company-wide horizontal projects, and uplifting an overall health of teams and business.
Wednesday, January 25th at 7PM ET
Community Members Only
Register here
Past events
ICYMI we recently hosted these events. Members can find recordings on our platform.
- Writing Bootcamp: Our community writing bootcamp has officially kicked off! Looking forward to seeing what gets shared out by all of you next week!
- Open House: Last week some of our mentors provided an overview of The Commons Sprints, and critical skills to succeed in generalist roles in today's tech landscape. Missed it? Check out the recording here.
- Speaker Series: Stuart Wilson from Hotel Engine: Stuart Wilson, Senior Director of BizOps & Strategy at Hotel Engine held a candid discussion on a range of topics including his career journey (pivoting from investment banking, BizOps at InVision, SurveyMonkey and Hotel Engine), advice on breaking into BizOps, typical BizOps career paths, and how BizOps teams vary depending on company stage. If you're interested in applying for a Sr BizOps Associate role on his team, fill out this form here for a direct referral.
New member enrollments are almost sold out & closing soon!
Here are some admissions dates to keep in mind:
- Tomorrow 6PM ET - The official deadline to snag the remaining seat in the Strategic Finance Sprint is tomorrow at 6PM. But we suggest acting quickly if you want in, as we expect the final seat to be scooped up before the deadline.
- January 31st - You'll have until January 31st to apply for an early-bird seat in our March cohorts. By enrolling now, you'll be able to join the community ahead of your Sprint. Apply via the waitlist links below.
- February - Admissions will be closed.
- March - Admissions will reopen for the March cohorts. Existing community members and waitlist applicants will have first priority to secure a seat.
JOIN THE JANUARY 2023 COHORT
We only have 1 seat left in the January cohort of the Strategic Finance Sprint!
We're also now accepting a limited number of Community Only members. If you're interested in joining the community only (instead of participating in a Sprint), you can also apply via the waitlist below.
💥 APPLY NOW 💥
Explore Sprints // Join the Waitlist
GET ON THE WAITLIST FOR SOLD OUT SPRINTS
We added more seats for the January Strategy & Operations, Product, and Revenue Growth Sprints but they sold out again! If you want front line access to join the next cohort - get on the waitlist below!
HOT TOPIC
Navigating An Internal Transfer To A New Team 🔀
So you work at a company where you see lots of opportunity for career growth - that's great! But, now you're faced with navigating an internal transfer and figuring out the best way to go about it... ⬇️
Thanks to Shane P. and Sandeep K. for this advice! 💚
- "I did this 2x very recently, once as a manager supporting one of my direct reports, and then also for myself! I would definitely suggest talking to your current manager first. Your current manager is likely going to need to approve any resource changes on their team, and the whole thing is far more likely to happen if they're advocating for you and your transferable skills vs passively resisting and leaving you on your own to pitch for yourself in another role.
- If you get your manager onboard early, and assure them that you'll cooperate with transition and won't leave them hanging, they can often be a great advocate for you. Instead of you reaching out cold to another manager, your manager can start those conversations ahead of time (including with their boss if they need to), feel out the opportunity and what would have to be true to make it happen, and set you up for a "warm intro" (edited)
- Also, be patient. It may not happen fast, could take a couple months to get things sorted. Through that time just keep showing your commitment to the company and you can even start framing everything in terms of wrap-up and transition prep."
- "At my company, we actually have a formal process for this! And open roles are tagged if they are open for internal transfers. If you have a solid people / HR team, might be good to have a chat with them too in vague/ general terms. And get their advice on how to approach such a situation."
Add To The Thread
Your weekly level up
CFJs (cool f'ing job) 🔥 🌶
There's no better way to get your foot in the door than by being referred directly to the hiring manager (or meeting the hiring manager yourself!). Our job board has been filled with tons of exciting roles lately, with the opportunity to be referred directly to the hiring manager.Non-community members can apply directly via the links below. Community members - be sure to reach out to the individual listed in Slack so that you can learn more about the role and secure that referral! Not sure how to make an intro? Check our our outreach template at the bottom of this post.And now, onto the roles...
- Hotel Engine is hiring a BizOps & Strategy, Sr Associate (Series B) | Remote, USA | For anyone interested - fill out THIS form and DM Loren C.
- Shaudko is hiring for a Strategy & Operations Manager (<20 Person Startup) | Toronto | Community, DM Alex P.
- Cookin' is hiring a User Acquisition Lead and a Head of Expansion (Pre-Seed) | Toronto | Community, DM Khalil K.
- Early Stage Web3 Startup looking for their 1st BizDev hire (VC-backed) | Community, DM Sameer N.
- Growth Marketing Lead role at a seed-stage startup | Remote US or Canada | Community, DM Loren.
- Bydner is hiring for sever roles (Onboarding, Customer Success, Product) (Series A) | Several Global Cities | Community, DM Nick R.
- Prelay is hiring for a BizOps role (Seed) | SF - hybrid | Community, DM Felicia T.
- Instacart is hiring for a Sr. Analyst on their Analytics and Insights team (Series D) | US or Canada | Community, DM Brandon T.
Looking for more opportunities? Head to the community job board!
Getting Into Reading
Our community is filled with readers (check out the #great-reads channel if you haven't yet!), and those that are looking to hone the practice. If you're looking to get into reading ... for real, here are some tips from the community:
- "I didn’t use to read books as I thought they were a waste of time, the biggest gap between me wanting to read a book to developing a habit was 6-7 years. Cut to today, I have finished reading 25+ books since 2021 - (Favourite Genre - Personal Finance, Self-help, Startups & Product Management). For anyone who wants to develop a reading habit, here are some simple tips that I would give:
- Start with a thin/light book (It can be “less than 100 pages”, “can be graphics heavy” etc) - basically anything that will inhibit your brain from getting bored reading it.
- Start with a physical copy unlike kindle etc - why (Because once you finish reading a physical copy of a book, you’ll get rewarded with happy hormones/a deep feeling of accomplishment).
- Try reading everyday - start with 1 page/5 page/ anything that can help you shift the bookmark (Tip Credits - Atomic Habits (5 :star:))
- Personally, the first book that I picked up when I started reading after my long gap, was “The Richest Man in Babylon”. (Genre - Self-help)" - Pranjal
- "I am a lifelong reader — but two things I love to do as well (opposite of the above!) are:
- Have audiobooks to listen to while driving and walking my dog and having the kindle app on my phone so I can read while waiting in line, etc. I try to read 20 minutes at least a day!
- But most importantly — read what you enjoy and what makes you happy!" - Haley L.
- "This can be contentious among readers, but for me personally, my tip is to not force yourself to finish a book. Some people are completionists, but to stay in a flow of reading regularly, I think being okay with putting a book aside for any reason is helpful. Sometimes it’s just not the right time, and you can pick it up later, or maybe it’s not great writing, in which case, spend your valuable time on something that is!" - Megan J.
Add your own thoughts here.
Making The Most of Onboarding
Have some suggestions for making the most of a new role? Pop over to this thread and share your ideas!
An apple costs 40 cents, an apricot costs 60 cents, and a grapefruit costs 80 cents. How much does a pear cost?
Check out the answer here.
URL to IRL 💚 ⚡️
️Nothing gets us more jazzed than seeing teams meet up IRL 😃
.svg){kind=small}
