Ilaria Barbon

Headshot

What’s your job title?

Chief Operating Officer

Company / Organisation

FLOX

LinkedIn profile

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ilaria-barbon/

Your journey into Ops - how did you get here, and how has your remit changed over time?

After moving to London, I stumbled upon a start-up job as EA to the execs. Within 3mo I was running the people operations, hiring and team culture. Within 6mo, I was getting the business certified with ISO27001. I followed this thread hard and got myself involved in all areas of the businesses I operated - leading with curiosity and a doer spirit. Founders loved this attitude and, paired with my EQ, they brought me closer and closer to the centre of the organisation - ultimately becoming the COO of my current company. Now, my leadership spans across all areas of the business - I am the compass for my people, my Founder and our customers alike.

We know not every day or week looks the same in Ops - but if you could design your perfect week, what would it look like?

ZERO admin, all big thinking! I love sinking my teeth into big strategies and churn out pathways for my teams to pursue and get them some wins.

What’s the work achievement you’re most proud of - and why?

Scaling my current company's product deployment. We work in complex on prem situations and I have brought in a huge amount of quality in our processes, while managing huge construction sites (and men, sigh!) - making our on prem operations cheaper, more efficient and smooth like butter. To put it in numbers, that was a 17x growth in 6mo!

What’s your self-declared superpower?

I am unshakeable! I might be drowning or firefighting, but I am just such a fan of the ride that I am never fazed by it. My people compass is also very much alive through this so I often feel like Neo in the Matrix - hyper aware of everything around me and seeing it unfold without losing sight of the human element.

What’s a system, process, or tool you can’t live without - and why?

I am a huge fan of process mapping. Wether it's a Miro board or the back of a napkin, it has always brought me and the people involved a lot of clarity and empathy towards the process. It's also a great tool to de-risk and assign ownership. I love to see it come to life into tools and comms plans, and I couldn't live without Notion supporting all of this.

When everything feels like it’s on fire, what helps you keep on track?

The rest of my SLT - we are deeply bonded and aligned and I know I can reach out to them and centre myself again. We care deeply for each other and the business, so I always come out it more grounded and ready to fight the fires!

What does great operations leadership mean to you?

Leading from the heart. We are on the frontline of our businesses in many ways, however we are often winging it (with diligence, but still kinda winging it) and we have no crystal balls. Leading from the heart means giving yourself grace, allowing to receive empathy from the team / the business and push away the isolation that can come from our, often standalone, roles. Bringing your people in your operations journey is imho fundamental to be a great operations leader.

What’s a controversial Ops opinion you hold?

I used to think I'd never be a C-level because I don't have a university degree or big shiny certifications. I have changed that narrative and am living proof that you can achieve a lot without any academic status quo.

What excites you about the future of Ops?

I am excited to see what more AI can bring. Start-up operations is so varied that I am excited to see what different types of co-pilots will come out and empower us to innovate more and more.

What advice would you give to someone just starting out in Ops?

Don't worry too much about your credentials - observe, learn and sharpen your instincts along the way and you'll do great! Trust yourself and find your ops tribe - they will be your ride or die through all the ups and downs of startup life!