Behind the Scenes of Boss Mom with Dana Malstaff and Amy Lockrin

From the perspective of the CEO, what is it like to be supported by a Director of Operations? Why do you need a DOO? What are the first action items a DOO will handle in your business?

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In this episode, I visit with Dana Malstaff, CEO of Boss Mom, and Amy Lockrin, Dana’s DOO and CEO of The Operations House, about what the CEO-DOO relationship looks like. We pull back the curtain on how these two roles work together and why you need a DOO in your life.

If you’ve ever wondered what a DOO can do for you, listen to this transparent and honest conversation with Dana and Amy.

How the CEO & DOO Roles Work at Boss Mom

How Dana + Amy Connected

Dana started Boss Mom in 2015 after she’d had a baby and was starting her own business. She literally wrote the book on moms in entrepreneurship, “Boss Mom.” Then she started the Boss Mom community. Since then, she’s launched a podcast with a million downloads and has written two more books.

Amy joined the Boss Mom program and went to a Boss Mom retreat. She felt pulled to Dana’s leadership. While at the retreat, she talked to Dana about her future and joining her team. Amy has served as Dana’s DOO for the past two years.

How Dana Felt Once She Had a DOO

Dana says that Amy brings two wins to the table:

She takes all Dana’s ideas then organizes and delegates them. She tells Dana, “Here are all the things you’re not doing anymore.”
Amy is Dana’s “Brain Activator.” Dana loves to hop on a call or Vox with Amy and share all her ideas. Then Amy asks strategic questions about those ideas. Dana is thankful she isn’t the only “thinker” in her business because Amy can see the big picture and handle the details. It helps Dana that her creative ideas go into a logical space.

“A really good Director of Operations … is able to see the big picture of my business.” – Dana Malstaff

“You need somebody outside of yourself that you trust to make really good decisions.” – Dana Malstaff

What Amy Did First in Dana’s Business

Amy started out as a trial employee before coming on regularly, which is a good way to know if that person is a fit. She mapped out all the offers of Dana’s business on one page. Amy also looked at Dana’s structure.

Amy says her job is to see where Dana is coming from, what she wants the business to become, and to hold her accountable to that.

Summarizing What a DOO Does

Amy provides structure to the team: what they’re doing and who should perform each task. Amy is there to be a strategic sounding board and ask, “Does this make sense?” A good DOO understands human nature to leverage everyone’s skills and talents.

“A good director of operations helps ensure that the CEO isn’t the bottleneck that keeps the business from moving forward.” – Dana Malstaff

A DOO will meet the CEO where she is. You want to find someone you’re comfortable with, who gets your jokes and your energy.

How to Determine if You Need a DOO in Your Business

It depends on what kind of business you want and what you’re trying to build. As soon as you have more than one team member or if you’re launching a product or service, Dana believes you need someone to manage the team/launch.

A DOO helps you understand your goals and stay on task. The DOO will help the CEO spend her time in the right place. As the CEO, you need to spend the time your DOO is saving you on what brings in revenue.

Sharing Financial Information with the DOO

Dana and Amy have budget calls every other week because both parties need to know where the money is going, where they want it to go, and to see what products are most successful.

“You have to have somebody you trust.” – Dana Malstaff

You must be completely honest in your business so your DOO can set up the right processes. If you’re ready to open up your financials to someone else, you’re ready to have a DOO.

Why You Need a DOO in Your Business

“You can’t do it alone.” – Dana Malstaff

Form relationships with those that complement you. Find someone who helps you finish. You need someone in your business who can make it happen and manage it when you need to step away.

Connect with Dana and Amy

Dana Malstaff is the CEO and Founder of Boss Mom. She is a mother, author, speaker, business strategist, podcaster, blind spot reducer, and movement maker. She launched the Boss Mom brand with her first book Boss Mom: The Ultimate Guide to Raising a Business & Nurturing Your Family Like a Pro in 2015 and has turned the brand into an international movement.

Now she has over 20,000 students in various courses and an organically grown Facebook group of over 40k that helps women all over the world raise their businesses and babies at the same time. She believes that we need to show our children that doing what we love can be financially viable.

Amy Lockrin is the CEO and Head Integrator of The Operations House, an Integration and Implementation Agency for small business owners that are ready to thrive in their business and leave behind the overwhelm of “to-do’s.” She and her team make things happen in your business so you can go back to being creative through project management, back end “clean-ups”, launches, and strategic planning sessions.

Read the blog post “From the Experts: The Benefits of a Director of Operations” here

Learn about the Director of Operations Certification here