Case Study: Building Support from the Ground Up at Fishtank
When I joined Fishtank, there was no dedicated support function. Customer requests were being handled ad hoc by project managers and developers, usually over email. Issues slipped through the cracks, response times varied wildly, and leadership had no way to measure how satisfied clients were with the service they received. It was clear the company needed a true support department—something that could scale, deliver consistently, and give clients the confidence to stay and grow with us.
I started by mapping out the customer journey. Where were clients getting stuck? What kinds of questions or problems came up most often? From there, I designed a support model that matched those needs. I chose a helpdesk platform that gave us visibility and accountability, set clear SLAs for different types of requests, and built workflows so the right issues landed with the right people every time.
The next step was people. I hired and onboarded the company’s first support staff, and worked closely with them to build confidence in handling a wide variety of client issues. I set up coaching rhythms, established expectations around quality and empathy, and made sure the team felt trusted to take ownership of their work. My leadership style has always been about balancing accountability with autonomy—clear expectations paired with the space for people to do their best work.
Within a year, the impact was clear:
• 100% customer satisfaction (CSAT) — every survey response we collected came back positive.
• 100% customer retention — not a single client churned during this period.
• Full operational visibility — leadership could finally see trends, volume, and performance metrics.
• A scalable foundation — processes and tools that could grow with the business instead of breaking under pressure.
Just as importantly, support became more than a reactive department. By tracking and surfacing recurring issues, we influenced product decisions and prevented problems before they reached clients. The department itself became a selling point: prospective clients wanted to know they’d be well cared for after signing on, and our structured, high-quality support helped close deals.
The key takeaway from Fishtank is simple: support isn’t just about solving tickets. It’s about creating trust, stability, and growth for both the customer and the business. Building the department from scratch showed me how powerful it can be when support is treated as a core part of the customer experience—and as a driver of long-term business outcomes.
Case Study: Incident Response Leadership at Shopify
At Shopify, I worked as part of the Incident Response team, handling some of the company’s most critical and high-pressure situations. When issues affected merchants at scale—whether downtime, payments, or security—our team was the one that stepped in to coordinate a fast, effective response. These incidents were complex, often involving multiple engineering teams, external partners, and senior leadership. The stakes were high: every minute mattered, and clear communication could make the difference between resolution and escalation.
My role was to serve as the coordinator, strategist, and communicator. I ran war rooms, kept stakeholders aligned, and ensured merchants were informed. I managed multiple fast-moving streams of information, prioritized accurately under pressure, and made decisions quickly when clarity was hard to find. The goal wasn’t just to fix the immediate problem, but to do it in a way that preserved merchant trust and maintained Shopify’s reputation as a reliable partner.
Beyond incident management, I contributed to improving the system itself. I helped refine triage models, documented best practices, and mentored others on how to stay calm, decisive, and empathetic under pressure. I also partnered cross-functionally with teams outside Incident Response to strengthen prevention measures, reduce risk, and make sure lessons learned from incidents translated into better long-term processes.
The results:
• Faster resolution times — by standardizing coordination and decision-making across incidents.
• Clearer communication — leadership and merchants had timely, accurate updates even in complex situations.
• Stronger trust — incidents were handled with transparency, empathy, and professionalism, reducing customer frustration.
• Scalable practices — playbooks and coaching that helped newer responders perform confidently in high-stakes moments.
The key takeaway from Shopify is that incident response is more than just firefighting. It’s about leading through uncertainty, protecting trust at scale, and turning moments of crisis into opportunities for resilience. My time in this role sharpened my ability to think quickly, communicate clearly, and keep both people and outcomes front of mind—even when everything feels on fire.
Case Study: Scaling Support and Implementing Live Chat at Hospitable
At Hospitable, I joined at a critical inflection point. The company was scaling quickly, support volume was rising, and we were preparing to introduce live chat as a new channel—all within just a few months. To make it work, I had to account for coverage across time zones, cultural differences in outsourced BPO partners, and limited internal knowledge management systems. The challenge wasn’t just about adding a new channel, but about building the structure to sustain it without burning out the team or breaking SLAs.
My first step was to assess the current state of support. I mapped coverage across Honduras and the Philippines, noted gaps where customers were waiting too long, and created a plan for true “follow the sun” support. I then partnered with BPO leads to standardize processes and expectations, ensuring cultural alignment and consistent quality across geographies. I also worked to strengthen our internal documentation so agents had the resources they needed at their fingertips.
For live chat, I defined the rollout strategy from end to end. I established coverage schedules without a dedicated WFM team, balancing staffing with demand to avoid overloading agents. I also helped introduce SLA targets specific to chat, trained the team on real-time communication, and built reporting dashboards so leadership could track progress.
The results:
• Successful launch of live chat within the five-month timeline.
• Increased coverage across time zones, reducing response delays for customers globally.
• More consistent service quality from BPO teams through process alignment and shared documentation.
• Improved customer satisfaction by offering faster, more convenient real-time support.
• Clearer visibility for leadership into SLAs, volume, and performance across channels.
The key takeaway from Hospitable is that scaling support isn’t just about adding people or channels—it’s about building the systems, processes, and partnerships that allow a team to grow sustainably. By combining automation, playbooks, and cultural alignment across BPOs, I helped Hospitable deliver faster, higher-quality support while laying the groundwork for future growth.