I’m a Recruiting Operations Manager at Protocol Labs. We’re a web3 company building the next generation of the Internet and driving humanity forward with breakthroughs in computing. Some of our most notable projects/accomplishments are IPFS and Filecoin.

How big is it?

‍Our small but mighty team is currently made up of 7 people (5 Recruiting Coordinators, 1 Project Manager, and myself), but we’re hiring 2 additional RC’s, 2 Project Coordinators, and our first ever Data Analyst. This will bring the team to a total of 12 folks by the end of Q2, and we were a team of 4 in January, so you could say we’re in hyper-growth mode! We’re hiring!‍

Where are your teammates located?‍

All over the world–we’ve got Labbers in 20+ countries! We’re a fully distributed company with an async-first approach to our work. My specific team operates across 4 different timezones. ‍

What does your team do? What are you responsible for?‍

Our team has the tough task of answering to both internal and external stakeholders. We are responsible for ensuring both candidates and team members have a seamless interviewing process, from the first scheduling touchpoint through the offer stage. We’re also responsible for staying on top of data, analyzing it, and reporting back with potential solutions to be the best partners we can to the recruiting team and the larger org.

I’m currently leading a our team of Recruiting Coordinators and our Project Manager. What I love most about my role is that I get to lead amazing people and work on projects I’m passionate about. My past colleagues have jokingly said efficiency is my middle name. I’ve always been fascinated by getting from A → B as quickly as possible without having to sacrifice quality. Recruiting operations is just that. I focus on ways to automate more without losing the human touch with an emphasis on maximizing positive impact while minimizing potential workflow disruption.

Psychological safety is the most important. This is a direct reflection of employee experience and the culture.

A question I encourage folks to ask in their interview process is: What was the last piece of feedback shared by a member of the team or an employee and how did the company respond to it? 

If people feel safe to share without retaliation or retribution, diversity of thought and constructive banter will follow.

A great barometer for gauging how happy and engaged a team is to see how much ownership and accountability the team takes for celebrating wins or dissecting mistakes for future learnings. If they’re checked out, mistakes are more likely to happen, you’ll see fewer people eager to jump in and lend a hand for something they are not directly responsible for, and they’re offline at 5 PM sharp.

Knowing how someone is actually doing. Out of habit or politeness, it’s easy to fall into the ‘I’m good, how are you?’ trap in a remote world. That’s why I find it crucial to ask specific questions following up on something we talked about the week prior. For example, asking about their weekend plans to clean their basement or check out a new dog park. Whatever they shared previously, show that you were paying attention by asking a follow up question.

Weekly meetings with ice breakers and monthly game time to connect on non work related things.

We are big fans of word games and most recently had fun on Gather.Town!

We start every team meeting with ice-breakers! It’s so important to begin team calls/1:1’s with personal non-work related discussions. If either party feels like it’s a transactional communication, trust won’t be built.

Some favorites: share 3 things you’d bring to an island if you were stranded, your fatal flaw, and what super power would you want to have?

Anytime someone new joins the team, I have them fill out a Getting to Know You Survey via Google Forms to better understand their preferred communication style, recognition preferences, things to look for when they’re stressed out, and fun facts about their personal lives so I can learn about them.

‍Tools: Gather.Town for games and Notion to share fun facts and our fur family!

I have found feedback from direct reports to be the most valuable way to learn and grow as a leader. It’s not easy to give upwards feedback so when your direct report shares it, it’s important to be grateful.

Aside from feedback, LinkedIn learning, attending in-person conferences, or a mentor to guide you through your career.