As Director of Finance Operations, Sarah Jimenez manages your complete order-to-cash course of at Department. She began her profession at Department as Supervisor of Billing Operations 5 and a half years in the past with zero direct stories, and now manages three groups with dozens of direct and oblique stories stationed throughout the globe in India, China, London, New York, Chicago, California, and Texas (and her crew continues to be hiring!)
When Sarah isn’t at work, she’s both spending time along with her son, learning, taking part in tennis, or gardening (at the very least making an attempt to). On high of this, she dedicates her weekends to philanthropic endeavors. She’s enthusiastic about what she does at work, however is already wanting ahead to a retirement the place group activism turns into her full-time mission.
What would you like individuals to learn about Department?
That is the very best place I’ve ever labored. The belief I obtain to construct and study day-after-day is a singular asset of Department, and that’s the framework that enabled me to construct a world crew.
What made you select Department?
I joined for the individuals, however I’m staying for the influence.
Shortly after I joined, the dialog about founding worker useful resource teams (ERGs) actually received began. Seeing the chance to construct a world crew whereas serving to construct an infrastructure of ERGs that have an effect not solely within the Department group, but in addition exterior of Department, is what makes me keep. It reaffirmed that that is the place I wish to be. Right here, I’ve the chance to not solely construct and scale finance operations, but in addition to assist numerous and infrequently underserved communities by way of ERG efforts.
What do you’re keen on about your job?
Individuals. 100%. Fingers down. Particularly, I really like the range of my crew. I’ve at all times had the precedence of a various crew, however I by no means imagined we’d accomplish it to the size that we have now.
How does the range of your crew influence your day-to-day work?
Variety influences every part. Each choice that we make, each undertaking that we work on is made higher with a various group of individuals. Everybody brings their distinctive and specific perspective to each undertaking or drawback, and I might say that is likely one of the issues that has made us most profitable through the years.
What motivates you at work day-after-day?
Firstly of my profession, I used to be results-driven. I used to be metrics-focused on a regular basis, and I discovered rather a lot alongside the best way. At this stage of my profession, significantly at a startup like Department, I’ve realized that there’s extra to work than metrics. Department is shifting quick, so now I’m people-driven in all that I do.
Working as a supervisor, I must have my crew as my primary precedence and ensure we will discover pleasure within the number of initiatives we tackle in a fast-moving firm. After I come to work with a people-first mentality, the outcomes observe.
How has being a lady of shade impacted your profession?
It’s impacted me fairly a bit, however I attempt to function with out being attentive to whether or not I appear like everybody else within the room or not. After I began at Department, it was a small crew and I seen that I’m a part of a minority. Now, particularly with the revamp of VIVA, an ERG serving the Hispanic and Latinx group, I’m becoming a member of conferences and seeing massive teams of people that share my expertise and my historical past. Seeing how a lot we’ve grown as a various firm makes me really feel that I’m one among many, giving me a way of empowerment.
Now I don’t have a look at my skilled self based mostly on the place I come from or that I’m a lady. Now I consider myself as knowledgeable based mostly on what I do day-after-day. Everybody right here is on an equal taking part in subject and my identification isn’t one thing that makes me really feel separate at work. These issues that do play a job exterior of labor don’t play a job in how I come to Department day-after-day.
What’s the finest piece of recommendation you’ve acquired in your profession?
If issues should not going proper on the subject of a bunch or particular person not performing, your first thought ought to be to search for issues within the course of.
As a pacesetter, you must have a look at a bunch or an individual struggling as a chance to higher set them up for achievement, relatively than blaming them for poor efficiency. As a supervisor, your focus ought to at all times be making processes and sources higher for everybody in your crew, making certain they really feel supported and motivated in doing good work.
