Are you considering the Director of Operations certification program, but want to hear from someone who has been through the process?
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Today, I am talking with a graduate of The Director of Operations (DOO) certification program, Nicola Peters. She shares her experience with the program, and the difference it has made in her business.
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Meet Nicola
Meet Nicola, a Certified Director of Operations and Founder of her agency Systems Haus which helps 6 fig coaches and consultants work towards making their business vision a reality. Nicola spent 5 years running her first business as a wedding stationery designer alongside her busy 9 – 5 and quickly learnt the importance of operations in any business success story. Since 2019, Nicola has shared over 15 years of business support & operations experience with her clients. She scaled her business by helping business owners implement Dubsado to improve their client experience and has since expanded her expertise as a ClickUp specialist helping her clients to implement scalable processes that simplify business, team management service delivery. She’s a coffee lover, brunch bestie and cat mama to her fur baby coco, in her spare time you’ll find Nicola spending time with her family or catching a flight to anywhere with a beach and cocktail!
Nicola’s Background
- Worked in financial services, putting in over 11 years as an executive assistant to one of the Big 4 accounting firms
- Her goal was to get into a company and work her way up. Operations wasn’t necessarily in her sights, but her managers encouraged her to apply for an operations role because she had a side hustle and they thought her skills would transfer
- Supported a high profile banking audience
- Did one year of college then went into the workforce
- The DOO program was her formal investment in her education, and was a great way to plug in the gaps in her skill set
What made you consider the DOO certification program?
- She knew she wanted to start a business, and knew that she enjoyed Dubsado setups, so she set up an offer and it became the sole skill that she sold
- She had a coach that encouraged her to purse an OBM
- She started to research this and found The Ops Authority Podcast
- In 2020 her business started to take off and she was able to quit her job
- Even though she was booked with work, she felt she needed some formal training in the operations space, and felt the need for validation
“This [DOO Certification Program] checked all of the boxes, and I felt that it was what I needed to give me the confidence to really validate my skills.” – Nicola Peters
What area in the certification made the biggest difference?
- Before she joined, she was looking through the curriculum and thought that the Strategic Mapping Model™ was something she was really excited about
- Was already doing quarterly planning with her clients, but was excited about taking it to a whole new level
- Once she learned Strategic Mapping™, she immediately started to sell it
- Project management: she had really underestimated her skills in this area and it helped her put the pieces together
- The metrics and KPIs, because the content was just what she needed to support her clients because none of them tracked their data
- Her accountability coach was cheering her on the entire time. She focused on what was right in front of her and just did the work and took action (and recouped her investment by the time the program was over!)
- There was so much tangible content and access to a community of people that was worth volumes, so she felt supported every step of the way
“I feel a lot more confident to stand up and own my voice and know that I know what I’m doing.” – Nicola Peters
“Nothing is more gratifying than seeing someone step into leadership because they believe in themselves.” – Natalie Gingrich
What is your business like now?
- Since finishing the program, she has stopped selling her Dubsado setup service, and is now offering ClickUp set ups, and structures it around bringing operations into ClickUp
- Also has a Strategic Mapping offer
- Has a team now, and has been learning to delegate
- Has been very transparent with clients, and presents it to them as having additional support
- Has strong systems, processes, and communication
- The clients she serves now are different than she served a year ago, and she has had to make adjustments
What is your advice for someone considering the DOO certification program?
- Truly consider it!
- If this is what you want to do, this is the best place for you to get the skills, the support, the confidence, the resources, and really build a business
- She wishes she did it sooner!
- Be present, go through the trainings and stay on top of them, bc it’s more valuable to keep the pace and be able to go to the live coaching calls and ask questions
- Keep the momentum going
“You could [start] this program with no offers and come through with a whole business.” – Nicola Peters
Don’t forget to register for the Scope Creep Solution! It will give you lots of specific tactics on ways to set yourself up for success as an operator.
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