Getting to know the Folklore team – Meet Laura

Our team Q&As give you an inside look at the people behind Folklore.‍

Since starting as the Head of People and Culture in 2021, Laura’s tenure at Folklore has gone from strength to strength; most recently being promoted to Head of Operations in late 2022. She’s seen the firm expand, supporting numerous founders on their journeys as we continue to assist the most ambitious ANZ founders scale.

Laura brings deep recruiting, people and culture and operational expertise to the Folklore team. This includes learnings from 6+ years at Hays, leading a division at Google that ensured the cultural and operational success of 1,000+ staff, and more. This conversation with Laura focuses on her personal motivations, trends she thinks will shape the future of operations/people, as well as a few recommendations on what to read and listen to. Enjoy.

‍What brought you to Folklore? 

“That’s easy - the mission of the firm. Folklore continues to partner with the most innovative, impressive and technical founders helping bring their big ideas to life. I love that the Folklore team (of ex-founders, builders and operators) are so passionate about helping our portfolio companies achieve their mission. 

Aside from the founders and firm's mission, I value the culture of the team itself. Assumptions are challenged and the team is constantly iterating on the best way to achieve an outcome. This attracts a certain type of person, and what drew me to the role (and the team) at Folklore. ‘Resting on our laurels’ doesn’t exist here, and I’ve always appreciated that.”

What do you enjoy most about the role itself? 

‍“It is hard to pick one thing; I have three.

• The variation - working with incredible people in solving big, complex and difficult problems, as well as the smaller operational niggles. I love getting in the weeds of a problem to help solve and progress ideas. 
• Seeing direct impact - the ability to make an impact and see the progress of your work.
• Third, the people - hands down the smartest, most motivated group of people I have ever worked with.” 

What are some enduring trends you’ve seen across the operations/people spaces over the past few years?

‍“On both sides, there’s been a heightened focus on productivity; innovating, streamlining and simplifying processes through effective use of technology. ‍

‍On the people side specifically, a focus on balancing culture and productivity, with some people functions now being called “people and productivity”. There is an increased focus on driving business performance and outcomes through people processes and initiatives. With beneficial outcomes for employees and businesses, this is a no brainer, but this evolution also takes true skills and knowledge to execute well, especially if there is a need to change internal processes and embedded behaviours to get there.”‍

What learnings from your time at Google do you bring to the Folklore team? 

‍“My team at Google led staffing operations globally; over a million interviews a year, working with every stakeholder in the business. And while many would think we had our ducks in a row (and we made sure it looked like that on the surface), we were building the plane as it was flying. It was essential to build operational rigour at scale and at pace, while communicating exceptionally efficiently internally and externally, a skill that is too often overlooked. ‍

‍VC in ANZ is currently smaller than my team at Google, but there are a lot of similarities and I have been able to apply and evolve all these learnings. VCs and startups are scaling at great pace and cannot lose sight of implementing and then managing strong operational processes with rigour, that’s what I continue to love and focus on in my role.” ‍

What’s one piece of advice for early-stage startups when it comes to people and culture? 

‍“The sooner the better! ‍

‍Whether you are a team of 5, 20 or 100, people, culture and productivity related work can be a full-time job with critical business risks associated with not getting it right. My advice is to work with someone highly skilled in this space when rolling out processes, or hiring a people and culture employee (or operator with knowledge in this space) at the earliest possible chance.”‍

Where can we find you outside of work? 

‍“I am an art lover. Having studied History of Art at The University of Manchester, UK, I soon knew I would not become a curator, however I still have a very fond love of art and will explore art galleries wherever I go. I also spend a lot of time outdoors with my Golden Retriever (pride and joy), Sunny.”‍

What books or podcasts would you recommend to the budding VC operator? 

• “Thinking, Fast and Slow, by Daniel Kahneman - smart thinking is essential in operations.
• WorkLife podcast with Adam Grant - exploring the science of “making work not suck”.
• a16z podcast - industry leaders diving into technology, innovation and culture.”

Get in touch with Laura to discuss emerging trends in operations, how to effectively scale people with operational processes - and for art gallery recommendations, via LinkedIn.