Welcome to the Operating Manual for working with me, Jess! I’ve recently created this document as part of my onboarding to [hedgehog lab](https://hedgehoglab.com/) and wanted to share it more widely too, in case it’s helpful or interesting to anyone. ### About Me 💡 A little bit about me - In the last 11 years of building products I’ve worked in; global pharmaceuticals, FinTech, Management Consulting, The Guardian, Google. I’ve built services for UK Government including NHS, Courts and Policing, and Counter Terrorism. - I was born and raised in central London, having flown out of London more times than I’d left the M25 circle I decided it was time for a change. I asked me fiancé 3 years ago (who I regularly call my wife, sorry for any confusion!) if she wanted to move to Portugal or Newcastle – a week later we’re living in Newcastle and haven’t looked back since, we love it here! - I’ve been diagnosed with ADHD. I probably didn’t need the diagnosis, for anyone who’s met me it’s quite obvious I have a spicy brain (and that’s okay). - Outside of work I’m; lifting heavy weights and putting them back down again, hiking a new trail with my wife, reading in my home library, playing board games, or card games – I’m currently actively playing [Magic the Gathering](https://magic.wizards.com/en), [[Sorcery TCG; A Fresh Take on Card Games]]] and [Netrunner](https://nullsignal.games/about/netrunner/), I’ll be going to the Netrunner World Championships later this year. ### Core Values & Principles 🗒️ What are my values and principles? - **I’m radically transparent:** I care personally and challenge directly. - **Tech isn’t everything:** Technology is cool but it’s the people that make our jobs interesting. - **“Repetition doesn’t spoil the prayer”:** My old manager at Google taught me this phrase. It works wonders to ensure everyones on the same page and understand priorities. ### Communication 🗒️ What is your preferred communication style? - **Slack**: My completionism brain wont let me leave a Slack channel unread so I often mute channels I’m not often needed in, so please tag or DM me to get my attention quickly. - **Video/Call/WhatsApp/In person**: I’m always happy to talk about any length of subjects from shorter to longer topics. - **Walk ‘n Talks**: I’m a big fan of moving and talking, especially when the weather is nice. - ==**Emails**: This is where information decays, please do not send me useful things via email and expect me to do something with it!== - **I like to receive regular updates via Slack:** I like to hear about all the great things people have done over the course of the week, plans for the next week, and anything I can help with. - **I like to keep a list of bullet points of the most important updates:** It’s a great place to find talking points to be used during catch-ups. - **I like helping people solve problems:** Help me help you by sharing what the situation is, what you’ve tried already, and what you think might help. ### Meetings and 1-1’s 🗒️ What’s your preference for meetings and how you like to engage with people? - **Slack is great, until it’s not:** A long Slack thread could have been a quick call. - **Recap meetings:** I like to recap a meeting before we all leave, as I think it helps us all leave with the same understanding. - **Let’s talk regularly:** Aiming for weekly, I’d like to recap what’s gone well, what hasn’t, and anything exciting happening soon. - **Take charge**: From appraisals to feedback, the more you take charge and lead the better the outcome. ### Feedback 🗒️ How I like to give and receive feedback? - **I love feedback:** Please give me feedback via any mechanism; Slack DM, video call, email, Leapsome, post-it notes left on my desk, whatever way works best for you! - **I like to give feedback often:** From a quick ‘well done on XYZ’ to a longer Leapsome feedback. If there’s a way you’d like to receive feedback, please get in touch. ### Ways of Working 🗒️ How I like to work including my preferred working times? - I work 4 days per week, Monday – Thursday. - I start at 9:00am and leave at 5:00pm, although it’s usually flexible and I often over run due to interesting conversations and topics. I aim to take an hour for lunch everyday to switch off and reset before the afternoon. I’m contactable whenever, drop me a message on WhatsApp as Slack notifications are paused Friday – Sunday. - Due to my ADHD brain, I’m often working at random times. I try and remember to `schedule send` messages, but please don’t feel like you have to reply outside of working hours. ### Other Useful Stuff 🗒️ Any other interesting things you should know about me or working with me? - I’ve had Mental Health First Aid training; please reach out and we can have a chat whenever I can be of help. - I’m 11 years sober (🎉); I’ll have a Diet Coke on our nights out. - Here’s my LinkedIn: [https://linkedin.com/in/jessbuildstech](https://linkedin.com/in/jessbuildstech) - I sometimes blog: [www.JessWritesThings.com](https://jesswritesthings.com/)