Consider your company like a sports team. This is a fun way to comprehend the position of the Chief Operating Officer: your CEO is the head coach, and the COO is the captain. A COO, also known as a Chief Operations Officer or Vice President, is a senior executive who serves as the CEO’s second in command. Their main tasks include overseeing the company’s day-to-day operations, managing significant initiatives, and putting company-wide objectives into action.
With over 10 years of global experience in start-up operations and financial management, Maya Steiner, COO at vcita, is a seasoned operations executive with solid business and legal experience. She grew start-up businesses by establishing them and rapidly expanding their budgets and personnel. Finance management, program creation, data-driven performance evaluation, and internet presence were among the significant organizational efforts she spearheaded.
vcita is an all-in-one small business management platform that helps small and medium-sized businesses operate their businesses online. vcita is beneficial to small enterprises. Maya is in charge of the company’s legal, HR, and worldwide operations, which means she has an impact on many aspects of the business.
A Journey towards Proficiency
Maya served as the COO of two new non-profit organizations in New York before joining vcita, where she was a member of the seed team at both. She was in charge of all operations at headquarters, which she found exciting and demanding.
Maya worked as a lawyer at two big law companies in Israel, where she specialized in commercial law and renewable energy.
Maya was one of the first female paratrooper instructors in the Israeli Defense Forces, paving the way for future females to participate in this hitherto “male-only” job. In addition to her military duty, she volunteered as a counselor at a rape crisis center, where she assisted victims in coping with their ordeals.
Changing her career path from law to operations enabled Maya to diversify her areas of knowledge, expertise, and responsibility, and Maya thoroughly enjoys her work in the operations field. She says, “I chose business operations for many reasons, the most important being that you can combine various disciplines and be able to decide which approach is best for each aspect of the job. You also get to use both the analytical and creative sides of your brain, which I find exhilarating.”
Operations, in addition to being ever-changing, imply having a direct impact on an organization’s dynamics. Maya particularly appreciates having many tasks running at the same time, claiming that it keeps her alert.
Contributing to the company culture
Maya believes in an open door policy, which is an important part of the vcita culture. “Ask any five workers about the benefits of working at vcita, and they’ll tell you that the opportunity to come forward with ideas, concerns, and criticism helps the firm move ahead.” “They don’t have to be afraid to come forward with their ideas and test them out,” Maya explains. This is what fosters and enables the company’s creativity.
Because vcita is such a varied and inclusive organization, with a nearly 1 to 1 female to male ratio and applicants from all walks of life, the communication atmosphere is courteous and open. vcita takes pride in recruiting people from a variety of backgrounds. “It’s what adds to our openness and helps us solve problems more effectively.” “If vcita employs 200 individuals, each of whom may contribute their own ideas, style, criticisms, beliefs, and so on, the end result is generally more creative.”
Facing Challenges with a Balanced Mindset
Maya has a lot of challenges being a woman in a company, especially as a COO. She says that anytime she is confronted with a problem, she prefers to discuss it with influential role models in her life. The goal is for her to have a fresh perspective on her problem so that she may tackle it in the most rational and balanced manner possible.
Maya also approaches issues by recognizing the dangers involved and taking steps to mitigate or eliminate those hazards. She suggests that while deciding how to respond or navigate through a certain scenario, one should consider the impact on the people involved and manage the situation to get the best possible conclusion.
Working to Achieve Greater Good
Maya has had a slew of accomplishments throughout her life and work, propelling her to the rank and competence she enjoys now. Maya considers it a success when she can contribute to the greater good, the wider picture. The greater good, in her opinion, might be for someone’s local surroundings or the entire planet.
At vcita, success is defined as objectives and goals being met or surpassed, as well as the path to these goals being one to be proud of. Maya and her team have a number of strategies in place to ensure vcita’s long-term success. The first step is to stay current with new business and professional conventions, and to be proactive in putting in place methods that are most appropriate for vcita’s culture.
Maya wants vcita to stand out among other hi-tech firms, and she emphasizes the significance of carefully deciding where to put the company’s resources and labor.
Leadership Views for Female Business Leaders
Being a pioneer is empowering, despite the obstacles that come with it. Maya shares the importance of having role models in addition to pioneering and breaking norms. She clarifies, “Look for inspiration from other women, such as your neighbor, a celebrity, a tale about an influential woman, or others.” She further adds having role models motivates you to do more, be more, and speak more in order to improve yourself.
As she progresses professionally and personally in the business world, future generations of female business executives may learn from Maya’s tenacity and endurance. Her final advice for young female business leaders is “Don’t be scared to defy expectations and enter settings where women have historically been underrepresented.”
Website: www.vcita.com
