Zara Y.

Zara has scaled multiple startups from pre-PMF to pre-IPO. She is a wearer of multiple hats and has a strong philosophy on how to build teams and products.

I’m a generalist executive who has led companies from pre-product through hyper-growth to IPO. I specialise in strategy, operations, product and customer success.


Currently, I am a fractional operator who partners with a number of startups. I help them across different departments, including but not limited to: operations (implementing and tracking goals, organisational design and hiring), product and customer success (customer feedback, building a product roadmap, product launches and customer r…

Zara Y.

Work

Experience

  • Nordensa

    Nordensa

    Chief Operating Officer (Fractional)

    Mar 2023 - Present

    • Implemented processes and structure: OKRs, Notion, team structure
    • Launched the product on iOS and Web
  • Frontier

    Frontier

    VP Operations

    Jan 2021 - Jun 2022

    • Achieved $1mn in ARR in less than a year
    • Achieved a 4.8 TrustPilot score
    • Customer retention rate of 85%+
    • Led product strategy and vision
    • Managed all customer relationships
  • Onfido

    Onfido

    Director of Strategy and Expansion

    Nov 2019 - Jan 2021

    • Launched product in Germany and set up Germany office
    • Spun up a new workforce within a week to counter-act issues brought on by COVID. Hired over 300 people to ensure we didn't lose BAU capacity
    • Implemented a product roadmap process, which did not exist prior
    • Implemented a restructure across the business: moving from a functional organisation to a matrix org
    • Led and managed the creation of a company-wide event (for ~350 people)
    • Implemented process and structure: internal comms, business planning, hiring, team collaboration etc.
    • Executive hiring: worked with the founders to understand which executives they needed, created JDs and partnered with agencies for various searches
  • Improbable

    Improbable

    VP Production and Customer Success

    Jun 2016 - Sep 2019

    • Managed a multi-million dollar portfolio of video games studios
    • Built a games studio in Canada: including hiring, finding office space, determining strategy
    • Hired over 30 people: all of whom were promoted and had long tenure at the company
    • Worked as part of the team who secured $600m in investment, achieving a $1bn+ valuation
    • Implemented structure and process: organisational design, improved internal comms, implemented practices for hiring and employee retention

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