​How do we support people as our company grows? 🌱

​Scaling a company changes everything. Teams grow, structures appear, and policies become necessary.

​Along the way, many operations leaders worry about losing the care, flexibility, and empathy that defined their early culture.

​That's why we're hosting this very honest in-person panel discussion where ops & people leaders share how they maintain genuine care for their people as their orgs grow.

​You’ll hear real experiences from operations and people leaders who are navigating the tension between structure and empathy, and how they design people systems that support teams without losing the human element.

​Expect practical insights, candid reflections, and the kinds of conversations you can't find in a Google search.

​By the end of this session, you’ll…

​⚡ Understand how people practices evolve as companies scale on a deeper level

​💡 Learn how leaders introduce structure without losing empathy

​📊 See examples of systems and policies that support employees at scale

​🧩 Walk away with ideas for prioritising people initiatives in growing organisations

​You should join us if you’re…

​✅ A COO, Head of Ops, Head of People, Founder, or senior leader

​✅ Interested in building systems that support employees

​✅ Navigating the shift from early-stage flexibility to structured people practices

​However, you’re unlikely to benefit if…

​🚫 You’re not involved in team structure, People Operations, or organisational growth

​Event details 📝

​📌 Timings:

​9:30 - 10:00 AM: Arrival & breakfast snacks

​10:00 - 10:15 AM: Welcome & introductions

​10:15 - 11:00 AM: Panel discussion

​11:00 AM - 12:00 PM: Post-panel networking

​☕ Hot drinks and light breakfast bites will be provided. Think fruit, croissants, and good coffee!

​🎁 Bonus perk: Work.Life is generously hosting us in their beautiful space for the entire day. This means that attendees are welcome to stay and use the coworking space after the event ends.

​🎥 This session will be recorded and shared with the Operations Nation community after the event.

​Meet our speakers 👋

​Olya Yakzhina

​Head of People & Culture @ Work.Life

​Olya leads on all aspects of the employee journey, from recruitment to retention, development, and engagement. With over 9 years of experience in Tech scale-up startups, she's have successfully implemented People frameworks and processes, while nurturing a positive and inclusive culture.

​Olya is also a Co-Founder of People Stories, a London-based community of progressive, driven and engaged People professionals.

​Philip Newbald

​VP Payroll Operations & Experience @ Oyster

​Experienced finance leader with a track record of building and scaling global finance operations. Currently leading Oyster’s Global Payroll Operations, helping grow the function from seed stage through to Series D.

​A Chartered Accountant who began his career at PwC in M&A advisory and audit, he brings a practical finance perspective to scaling organisations: balancing structure, compliance, and operational complexity with the need to maintain empathy and genuine care for people as companies grow.

​Andy Meikle

​Co-Founder & CEO @ Foundation Partners

​Andy Meikle is Co-Founder and CEO of Foundation Partners. He has 20+ years of experience in People and Talent, specialising in scaling Founder-led tech businesses. He has previously worked in psychological research as well as in criminal intelligence for the government, and has supported scaling businesses in 15 countries.

​Moderated by

​JooBee Yeow, PhD

​Startup Advisor, People & Org Director @ Notion Capital

​JooBee is a Systems Engineer turned Chief People Officer with a PhD in Leadership Development, operating at the intersection of people, strategy, and business.

​She has advised founders, worked inside a VC, and coached HR leaders at scale, bringing a rare, multi-lens perspective to every engagement. With experience spanning 2-, 20-, and 200-year-old companies and revenues from £10M to £1B, she helsp founders and HR leaders to transition from STARTing to Build to BUILDing to Scale — developing the leadership and operating systems that fuel start-up growth.

​Together with 🙌

​​Work.Life

​​​Work.Life bridges the gap between your work and the rest of your life.

​​​​Their office spaces are designed to give you energy and flexibility so that you can focus on doing what you do best. A place where you can challenge yourself and be yourself – because happiness shouldn’t be reserved for out-of-office.

​​​Work.Life have 13 locations across London, Reading and Manchester and offer private offices, coworking, meeting rooms and event space.

​​Oyster

​​​Oyster's global employment platform enables businesses to hire compliantly, pay, and provide employee benefits in countries where the companies don’t have legal entities.

​​​This way, companies can look for talent anywhere in the world and let Oyster handle compliance, payroll, and employee benefits.

​​​Oyster also helps companies with global payroll in countries where they already have legal entities.

​Foundation Partners (part of Amplified Group)

​Foundation Partners gives you access to a People & Talent team that starts delivering impact in weeks, not months. Advisory, fractional, or fully embedded, their services span a continuum of support that can be scaled up or down, depending on your needs.

​Foundation Partners is now a part of Amplified Group - the People Services Partner for ambitious companies. Offering everything People, Talent, Development and Culture related, it's a one-stop shop for high performance.

​With a unique group model and a deep bench of commercial and operational expertise, they help leaders build the strong people foundations they need to succeed.