Irina Parsina | Operations Manual
Insights about who I am, how I work and how to get the best out of me
HOURS » My working hours tend to vary as I cover multiple time zones whilst being based out of the UK.
I typically schedule work from 11:30 to 23:30 UK time (03:30 to 15:30 PT).
My meeting-free day is Friday.
My optimal duration for meetings:
10 - 15 min to consume information
20 - 35 mins to exchange ideas
50 - 75 mins for working sessions with brain engaged and focused on a shared outcome such as a deck, document or storyline
HOW I FUNCTION » I am a thinker which means that I am not only happy spending time thinking but actually need it. I am super comfortable with dwelling in the problem space, sitting with the challenge, and exploring ideas from different angles.
But there is no such thing as a quick question for me. And when I don’t reply to a quick question, it’s because I am still thinking about it :)
I have ADHD - rather on good days I have it and on rough days it has me.
On good days, I get to be hyper focused on the right things and tackle the toughest challenges with ease, I make it to things on time and don’t forget the priority tasks.
On bad days, I interrupt people (worried about the thoughts slipping away and never coming back), I struggle to listen and pay attention, and meetings, actions, promises simply slip my mind.
—>Best way to communicate with me is in IRL or virtual face-to-face conversation. Chat works too but I am not consistent with my responses (working on getting to be a better and prompter replier).
—> I appreciate nudges on actions and meetings I’ve accepted to attend but may be late to.
—> Give me a question to noodle on, then schedule a quick 10 mins sync with me to talk through things.
ONLINE MEETINGS » Camera on 95% of the time. May leave camera off to help focus on content. Will likely ask to record meeting so I can better recall what the discussion was about and next steps. I struggle with staying on top of meeting chat whilst the meeting is in progress so often just focus on the meeting content and what’s being shared verbally and follow up on messages after the meeting.
BOOKS » Love books by Adam Grant, Gretchen Ruben, Bill Bryson, Malcolm Gladwell, J.D. Kirk, Janet Evanovich, John McWhorter, … love books.
BIG IDEAS THAT BLEW MY MIND » Most recently it’s the fact that our understanding of fight or flight response is limited, and women can also experience tending and befriending instincts in times of crisis.
QUOTE » “Becoming is better than being” by Carol Dweck
FUN FACT » In my research, I discovered a novel structure for a nanoalloy and called it a hexistar.
MY TENDENCY » Questioner (see The Four Tendencies Quiz to find yours and learn more).
WIP » I am working on being more consistent and bringing sustainability into everything I do instead of the intensity that I tend to put into things to only see my attention and focus rapidly fizzle out.
LANGUAGES » I speak English, Russian and Italian. I am learning French and Finnish.
MY PROFESSIONAL PATH » Academia > Siemens as a technical publisher and Scrum master > jack-of-all-trades at a start-up in tech for transport > freelancer working on tech and digital workspace for transport sector > Head of Digital at Global transport provider > Microsoft Customer Success Unit > Microsoft CxP at Teams Engineering.
I CARE ABOUT » humans, fairness, dogs, kindness, climate change, women’s rights … human rights, doing the right thing, scientific approach, language, ideas, inclusion.
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