Calling Operator with Laura Nicol

Laura Nicol dials into Anna Prell, VP Operations at Ivo.Anna reminds us why being an operator is a) so damn exciting and b) the ultimate leadership testing ground: "In a startup, you can be your own version of a founder. You’re the founder of whatever it is you’re in charge of. You keep testing, learning, and scaling until it works." Inside this conversation:Moving to the US in 2020—and operating inside ANZ companies state-sideShifting from Chief of Staff to leading a function (Ops > Customer Success)Learning how to manage peopleEAB acquiring Forage—Anna’s role in the storyFinding a home in EAB post-acquisitionThe operator-founder partnership. Pure MAGICBuilding again at Ivo as VP OpsHow she found the “right fit”Building the infrastructure that helps teams scaleWant to connect with Anna? Find her on LinkedIn.Also mentioned:Olga EippertMin-Kyu JungJacob DuligallAmy GlanceyClara MaAlicia WellsPre-interview chats:Katie Noonan (Listen to Katie's Calling Operator episode)Tom Brunskill Guest ideas?Do you have an operator on speed dial who could be perfect for the show? Please share your suggestions with me via LinkedIn. A note from your host, Laura:My goal for Calling Operator is to open-source stories from startup operators across various functional areas and learn how they excel at building and scaling companies. As a Chief of Staff, I often find myself in (virtual) rooms with people facing similar challenges and reinventing the wheel. I want this podcast to open a line for operators across Australia and New Zealand to learn from fellow operators. Each episode shares personal stories, the execution behind big ideas, career-defining moments, successes, failures, and lessons. Never miss an episode:Subscribe on your favourite platform:SpotifyApple Podcasts(Other) CallingOperator.com

Laura Nicol dials into Mahesh Muralidhar.From day one, Mahesh has been obsessed with making a difference. He was early in Sydney’s startup scene in the 2010s post-MBA—first chasing his own idea, then finding impact (and peace) in helping others build.What followed? A career that reads like three lifetimes in one.Inside:The romantic, messy-beautiful beginnings of Sydney’s startup scene.That nagging fear you’ve “missed the boat” in tech. Spoiler: the boat’s still boarding.The through-line of his career: founder > operator > investor > political candidate.Building customer intuition and products people love.Betting on people. Building trust. Understanding incentives. Getting obsessed with winning.Spotting great talent—and coaching them like a pro sports manager.Mahesh's founder story at Ureferjobs (a job referral marketplace)—why it didn’t land and the fateful “choosing Canva” moment.Operating inside early Canva, Airtasker, and Simply Wall St (from Head of People Ops to VP to COO).Phase One: why he’s convinced New Zealand founders can build world-changing companies with the right “been there, done that” support.The current chapter: “I want to make New Zealand a significantly happier place".Also mentioned:Read Mahesh's SubstackDavid HearndenAlexey MitkoBec JenkinsYani Hornilla DonatoMick Liubinskas (Pollenizer)Phil Morle (Pollenizer)Tim FungAl BentleyEmer McCannVincent WeiMark Macleod-SmithElise PeateAlexander FalaMelanie PerkinsCliff Obrecht Guest ideas?Do you have an operator on speed dial who could be perfect for the show? Please share your suggestions with me via LinkedIn. A note from your host, Laura:My goal for Calling Operator is to open-source stories from startup operators across various functional areas and learn how they excel at building and scaling companies. As a Chief of Staff, I often find myself in (virtual) rooms with people facing similar challenges and reinventing the wheel. I want this podcast to open a line for operators across Australia and New Zealand to learn from fellow operators. Each episode shares personal stories, the execution behind big ideas, career-defining moments, successes, failures, and lessons. Never miss an episode:Subscribe on your favourite platform:SpotifyApple Podcasts(Other) CallingOperator.com

Laura Nicol dials into Savannah Black.For Savannah, being a startup operator is about making the company work in the real world. All the forward planning, mission, and vision stuff is important. That’s the on-paper part. But being an operator is about making it actually work. You can see it in action at Crypto Tax Calculator: four roles, three promotions, each adding new layers of context. Today, she’s Chief of Staff to CEO Shane Brunette at Crypto Tax Calculator.We get into:Savannah's late ADHD diagnosisWorking with energy management cycles, hyperfocus windows and stimulation requirementsWhat broke (and what didn’t) during Crypto Tax Calculator's hypergrowth from 20 to 60 peopleThe Maker vs Manager schedule that protects deep work (remote-first culture)Why chaos isn't something we need to fix: "It's where innovation comes from""Narrate everything": Learning how to avoid communication breakdowns at scaleHer prioritisation stack: "[Eisenhower Matrix] I will ignore what's urgent till the cows come home"Also mentioned:Michael StocksShane BrunetteBeth MackinnonSophie GerberCrypto Tax CalculatorRange Guest ideas?Do you have an operator on speed dial who could be perfect for the show? Please share your suggestions with me via LinkedIn. A note from your host, Laura:My goal for Calling Operator is to open-source stories from startup operators across various functional areas and learn how they excel at building and scaling companies. As a Chief of Staff, I often find myself in (virtual) rooms with people facing similar challenges and reinventing the wheel. I want this podcast to open a line for operators across Australia and New Zealand to learn from fellow operators. Each episode shares personal stories, the execution behind big ideas, career-defining moments, successes, failures, and lessons. Never miss an episode:Subscribe on your favourite platform:SpotifyApple Podcasts(Other) CallingOperator.com

Laura Nicol dials into Alexey Mitko. Alexey’s career has been all about operational leadership. Finance, HR, legal — he’s held the keys to the gritty, foundational work that lets startups scale without falling apart.He puts it simply:“When the startup community has been so generous in teaching me how to see the world differently as a 20-something, it’s my obligation — as an almost 40-year-old (don’t forget to stretch, people) — to do the same. If I can pass it on, use my skills, and maybe get rewarded along the way? That sounds pretty good to me.”Inside:I tapped into Alexey’s communities to crowdsource the questions we all wanted answered. How he operates, what he’s learned, and why he believes in being part of the “supporting cast” that helps others shine.Helping founders survive the weird, wonderful, and maddening ride of going from nothing to somethingWhy one year in a startup can feel like three years of career growthFrom Interactive Accounting in Sydney’s Tank Stream Labs → Canva (back when it was just 20 people in Surry Hills) → Koala (where he built his “early-stage scaffolding” system) → Eucalyptus (his first founder seat)The three things that defined Eucalyptus’ early success: a battle-tested ops team, exceptional early hires, and a dash of luckFinding (and owning) the stage you’re most useful inHow to think about ESOP as an employee. How founders think about ESOP as an employer.Also mentioned:Read this before you accept an equity offer at a startup: Alexey’s guide to employee share schemes in Australia, drawing on lessons from designing Canva, Koala & Eucalyptus’ ESOPs. Guest ideas?Do you have an operator on speed dial who could be perfect for the show? Please share your suggestions with me via LinkedIn. A note from your host, Laura:My goal for Calling Operator is to open-source stories from startup operators across various functional areas and learn how they excel at building and scaling companies. As a Chief of Staff, I often find myself in (virtual) rooms with people facing similar challenges and reinventing the wheel. I want this podcast to open a line for operators across Australia and New Zealand to learn from fellow operators. Each episode shares personal stories, the execution behind big ideas, career-defining moments, successes, failures, and lessons. Never miss an episode:Subscribe on your favourite platform:SpotifyApple Podcasts(Other) CallingOperator.com

Laura Nicol dials into Phoebe Pincus, COO at Startmate and Co-Founder at Cheeky Run Club.We cover a lot. Learning to lead when you've never had female leadership role models. Being the opposite of a perfectionist. Her career journey from psychology student to general manager to chief of staff to COO. We also get into starting Cheeky Run Club, balancing passion projects with big jobs, and finding your “bumper rails". If Cheeky Run Club brought you here, hello cheeky friends! Inside:The Good Weekend Quiz: A pandemic-born family ritual that still lives on today.Becoming a leader others want to follow: Phoebe’s aha moment? A halftime pep talk at social touch rugby. “I’ve seen you give half-time pep talks at social touch… you just need to find a way to do it that feels authentic to you.”Designing COO-CEO partnerships and her role managing internal operations and external fundraisingTransitioning from Chief of Staff to COO. Differences. Common ground. Practical to-dos.“How do you set goals?” One of the most-asked questions in Chief of Staff circles.Life rules and systems: “Always Swim,” prioritising what you know you should be doing, and the shadow theory of values.Representing running the Cheeky way: joyful, social, best thing for your mental health. Plus why even non-runners turn up for the women's health content.The Cheeky outlet: “this is my thing, it feels like an extension of us”Want to connect with Phoebe? Find her on LinkedIn.Also mentioned:Maisy BennettMichael BatkoJason FangCheeky Run Club: Spotify, Apple, Instagram, Cheeky’s SubstackAnna ColdhamHow to fall in love with running with Phoebe & Anna from Cheeky Run Club (KICPOD)How to fall in love with running (Cheeky Run Club)Pre-interview chats:Bronte McHenry (Listen to Bronte's Calling Operator episode)Kelly Spoerk Guest ideas?Do you have an operator on speed dial who could be perfect for the show? Please share your suggestions with me via LinkedIn. A note from your host, Laura:My goal for Calling Operator is to open-source stories from startup operators across various functional areas and learn how they excel at building and scaling companies. As a Chief of Staff, I often find myself in (virtual) rooms with people facing similar challenges and reinventing the wheel. I want this podcast to open a line for operators across Australia and New Zealand to learn from fellow operators. Each episode shares personal stories, the execution behind big ideas, career-defining moments, successes, failures, and lessons. Never miss an episode:Subscribe on your favourite platform:SpotifyApple Podcasts(Other) CallingOperator.com

Laura Nicol dials into Emer McCann, Head of People & Chief of Staff at Simply Wall St.Emer scaled Deputy’s people and culture through hypergrowth (70 to 350 employees) before joining Simply Wall St as employee #15 to build from zero. She’s the quiet force behind the chaos. The puppeteer, the glue, the phrasebook for hard conversations.Inside this conversation:Irishness, “Notions” and confidence. How cultural conditioning shapes self-advocacy.When to hire your first people lead (or fractional exec)—and what happens if you wait too long.The capacity reality of becoming a new mum while building companies: “I can’t do what I used to do. What’s next is understanding my capacity—and not overpromising.”From solo people operator to team of eight: When Deputy hired its first Chief People Officer, Emer’s one-person people function turned into an eight-person team. “I didn’t know any different—I just thought, oh, this is normal, this is what a startup is. But no, that’s not what a startup is.”Rebuilding from zero at Simply Wall St: Taking lessons from a wild scale journey—and starting again.Gap-filling as a career philosophy: Spot the strategic holes no one else sees—and fill those boots.Why Emer spends time in “small little huddles,” mapping what matters to each person before the big meeting.Signs of people pleasing yourself into burnout: “You do everything—but don’t do anything really well.”Her winning formula: First-principles thinking. Solving for what matters. Tying it all back to the business metrics.Want to connect with Emer? Find her on LinkedIn.Also mentioned:Xavi FerróAl BentleyNaveen NAlex LunnonSparketypeJefferson FisherNadine Blackie Guest ideas?Do you have an operator on speed dial who could be perfect for the show? Please share your suggestions with me via LinkedIn. A note from your host, Laura:My goal for Calling Operator is to open-source stories from startup operators across various functional areas and learn how they excel at building and scaling companies. As a Chief of Staff, I often find myself in (virtual) rooms with people facing similar challenges and reinventing the wheel. I want this podcast to open a line for operators across Australia and New Zealand to learn from fellow operators. Each episode shares personal stories, the execution behind big ideas, career-defining moments, successes, failures, and lessons. Never miss an episode:Subscribe on your favourite platform:SpotifyApple Podcasts(Other) CallingOperator.com

Laura Nicol connects with Liani Strauss, Chief of Staff at Tracksuit.Liani’s background in industrial engineering gave her structure. Startups gave her speed. Today, she works at the intersection of strategy, systems, and people—helping shape how Tracksuit scales from the inside out.Inside the conversation:Early days of BizOps at Tracksuit: “We were the bridge—setting up scaffolding for new functions, then stepping back so specialists could help them fly.”Evolving from "make it work" to "make it scale". How a Zapier x Google Sheets x DocuSign piece of art turned into a multi-jurisdictional global ESOP system.Why Chief of Staff effectiveness hinges on intentional relationship design. Liani's experience building deep trust with CEO and co-founder Connor ArchboldMovement unplugged. Her go-to for staying groundedA lesson in acceptance... a Blue Crush storyWhy continuing to invest in relationships is her theme of her yearGetting creative under pressure (especially when the fridge is empty)Her quiet superpower: regulating emotional temperature in high-stakes moments—something others spotted in her long before she named it in herself.Want to connect with Liani? Find her on LinkedIn.Also mentioned:Daniel LombardAlexandra GnossMatthew HerbertChristine van HoffenJulian RapattoniHarry FlettDan DanilovDave from LegalJason Wilby Guest ideas?Do you have an operator on speed dial who could be perfect for the show? Please share your suggestions with me via LinkedIn. A note from your host, Laura:My goal for Calling Operator is to open-source stories from startup operators across various functional areas and learn how they excel at building and scaling companies. As a Chief of Staff, I often find myself in (virtual) rooms with people facing similar challenges and reinventing the wheel. I want this podcast to open a line for operators across Australia and New Zealand to learn from fellow operators. Each episode shares personal stories, the execution behind big ideas, career-defining moments, successes, failures, and lessons. Never miss an episode:Subscribe on your favourite platform:SpotifyApple Podcasts(Other) CallingOperator.com

Laura Nicol connects with Paul Redfern, Chief Operating Officer at Big Picture Medical. He’s someone who’s spent most of his career toggling between product and operations, and getting pretty good at living in the grey. And becoming “reasonably okay-ish” in a whole bunch of different worlds.This episode is all about a tension every operator knows too well: the never-ending juggle between growth and scale. Serving today’s customers while building for tomorrow. Every decision has a cost. The real skill is knowing which ones are actually worth it.Inside this conversation:The journey from Bank of Queensland, Tyro, Brighte and now Big Picture MedicalWhat scaling a global healthtech startup looks like behind the scenesThe Red Line Framework for sustainable leadership and life momentsHow to grow up as a company (we’re talking communication maturity for scaling orgs)Context switching and energy management as a new parent-leaderWhy the chaos never really ends. It just shapeshiftsTreating operations like a product and how that changes what you optimise for[Relationships] The power of weekly Notion check-ins. A quick gut-check on what’s happening, where you need flex, and how you’re showing up for each otherWhat it feels like to have an imaginary infinite batteryA tiny mental trick: asking “Will this move me closer to my goals this week?” And sometimes “Will this move me closer to my goals, full stop?”For every operator out there, pausing to rethink your own operating system and patterns is a real level-up momentWant to connect with Paul? Find him on LinkedIn.Also mentioned:The psychological reason journaling makes you better.Kate GlazebrookJackie RabecPriya VaseDr Tom McKinnonBen Colley Guest ideas?Do you have an operator on speed dial who could be perfect for the show? Please share your suggestions with me via LinkedIn. A note from your host, Laura:My goal for Calling Operator is to open-source stories from startup operators across various functional areas and learn how they excel at building and scaling companies. As a Chief of Staff, I often find myself in (virtual) rooms with people facing similar challenges and reinventing the wheel. I want this podcast to open a line for operators across Australia and New Zealand to learn from fellow operators. Each episode shares personal stories, the execution behind big ideas, career-defining moments, successes, failures, and lessons. Never miss an episode:Subscribe on your favourite platform:SpotifyApple Podcasts(Other) CallingOperator.com

Laura Nicol connects with today's co-host: the wonderful Gaby Howard, Head of Growth and Operations at Carted.Gaby’s no stranger to the podcast—she first appeared on Ep 23. Gaby Howard on Navigating the Shift from Founder to Operator in Tech: Insights from Carted and Flaunter, where the wonderful Paloma interviewed her about her journey from founder to operator. (If you’re here for her backstory, head there first—we’re not retelling it today.) This episode is something different: a pulse check. A water-cooler moment. The kind of chat Gaby and I usually have off-mic—only this time, we hit record. If the noise of the internet lately feels like a never-ending hamster wheel, you’re not alone. In this chat, we cover:A mid-year temperature check from two operatorsHonest reflections on how we’re feeling in our operator rolesA pulse check on what’s happening out there: Insights surfaced from operators at our first-ever community meetup (Calling Operator x Notion coffee)Questions like: Am I ahead? Behind? Keeping up?Plus a few laughs as we find our rhythm as co-hosts (I left in the bossy host blooper 🙃)Huge thanks to Gaby for jumping into the co-host seat. We hope this chat feels like the water-cooler moment you didn’t know you needed.Want to connect with Gaby? Find her on LinkedIn. Guest ideas?Do you have an operator on speed dial who could be perfect for the show? Please share your suggestions with me via LinkedIn. A note from your host, Laura:My goal for Calling Operator is to open-source stories from startup operators across various functional areas and learn how they excel at building and scaling companies. As a Chief of Staff, I often find myself in (virtual) rooms with people facing similar challenges and reinventing the wheel. I want this podcast to open a line for operators across Australia and New Zealand to learn from fellow operators. Each episode shares personal stories, the execution behind big ideas, career-defining moments, successes, failures, and lessons. Never miss an episode:Subscribe on your favourite platform:SpotifyApple Podcasts(Other) CallingOperator.com

Today, I’m turning the mic inward for my first-ever solo episode of Calling Operator. I’m Laura Nicol, your host and Chief of Staff at Co Ventures—and in this conversation, we’re talking burnout. The kind that creeps up. The kind that hits hard. The kind that startup operators know all too well. It comes up on the pod all the time—for a reason. I'm calling it my #buildinpublic reflection on this topic from the operator’s seat. I chat through: The aha moment: Being a great operator starts with self-workMy journey from an epilepsy diagnosis to todayPhysical health, mental health and wellbeingBurnoutGiving yourself permission to step off the treadmillTrying to prevent itBuilding an environment that catches it more oftenShoutout to past guests whose wisdom shows up throughout (check out their full eps here):Ep 42. Olivia Panzic at TikTok ANZEp 45. Anitta Krishan at Hoogly AIEp 38. Alice Hehman at Glue ClubEp 39. Harry Uffindell at PartlyEp 32. Maxine Minter at Co VenturesEp 30. Emily Robinson at Kic Guest ideas?Do you have an operator on speed dial who could be perfect for the show? Please share your suggestions with me via LinkedIn. A note from your host, Laura:My goal for Calling Operator is to open-source stories from startup operators across various functional areas and learn how they excel at building and scaling companies. As a Chief of Staff, I often find myself in (virtual) rooms with people facing similar challenges and reinventing the wheel. I want this podcast to open a line for operators across Australia and New Zealand to learn from fellow operators. Each episode shares personal stories, the execution behind big ideas, career-defining moments, successes, failures, and lessons. Never miss an episode:Subscribe on your favourite platform:SpotifyApple Podcasts(Other) CallingOperator.com