We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Sonia Narvaez. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Sonia below.

Hi Sonia, thanks for joining us today. Let’s start with a story that highlights an important way in which your brand diverges from the industry standard.

We stay in our lane.

At Operation QOL, we feel it is super important to remain in your Zone of Genius. We are great at building out and implementing Operations, so that’s what we do. Many other businesses claim to do Operations work, but will also dabble in sales, marketing, etc. And while we’re thrilled to help implement the back-end Operations work associated with those departments, you’ll never find us dipping a finger in the pots of those other departments when it comes to strategy or tactics. We know what we do best, and we help you thrive by focusing all of our efforts in that vein.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Operation QOL develops customized systems, structure, and processes that provide a solid foundation for your business so you can make more money, and reclaim ownership of your time. We want you to give us your mess and go live your life. We’ll optimize everything you do, from emailing to file storage to team communication.

I am most proud of our unwavering dedication to Operations. Our team consists of people for whom Operations is second nature and comes naturally. We truly enjoy cleaning up the mess, creating order, and establishing systems that keep order maintained.

Operations is often the ‘forgotten’ department because it doesn’t have the front-facing glitz and glam of Sales or Marketing. The thing we want potential clients to know is that Operations is behind it all. Operations is what runs Marketing, Human Resources, Finance, Administrative work, etc. If there’s an issue with one of these departments, there’s a good chance it’s your Business Operations that needs tweaking.

Sonia Narvaez is the owner and Operations Strategist at Operation QOL, a BIPOC- and women-owned and operated business that supports altruistic entrepreneurs on their path to greater impact and a higher quality of life. Her approach is to assimilate with an organization as a Fractional COO to gain a clear understanding of its needs and goals, and then create a customized strategy which, when implemented, results in the entire organization efficiently and cohesively moving toward those goals. Sonia is a first-generation Latina in the U.S. who holds both a Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree in Public Health and has combined her background in Public Health with her skillset in Operations. Her aptitude for efficiency paired with her background in healthcare allows her to not only effect change, but also provide exceptional support throughout the process.

Sonia is an INFJ a.k.a The Defender

Sonia is a Type 3 Achiever

Sonia has a Kolbe score of 7-8-4-2

Sonia’s CliftonStrengths Strength Themes are: Responsibility, Achiever, Futuristic, Strategic & Belief

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

The lesson I had to unlearn is that the client is always right.

My clients are CEOs. They’re super intelligent business owners and became so for a reason. They’re great at what they do – within their Zone of Genius. However, some of my clients think, because they are incredibly smart and business savvy, that they also know exactly where they are failing and what they need to succeed. Earlier in my career, I believed them! I’d go in, check out their current situation, see the issues, call them out, and create suggestions for improvements. And I’d get push-back. I might be told “That’s how we’ve always done it,” or “We like it this way,” or “Nah, that seems like a lot – let’s try this instead.” I would acquiesce, and do what they suggested instead of what I knew was the right fix, and it made them happy. For a month. And then they would become upset because they’re still having issues.

I’ve had to learn to trust my expertise over the client’s suggestions because if they knew what the issue was, they wouldn’t have had to hire me. They’d have fixed it. While I do work with the client to make sure our strategies are maintainable for them, I no longer follow the ‘customer is always right’ rule. I’m the Operations expert, and I know what my clients need to thrive.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

While I truly feel the perfect Operations service is the all-encompassing Fractional COO service I offer, I realized the need to pivot when its high price tag made it a difficult sell. Lowering the price wasn’t an option, because it’s a massive service that encompasses all aspects of laying a cohesive groundwork of solid Business Operations. But, I needed to pivot and offer a more diverse set of services that were attainable to more business owners. That’s when I decided to offer, alongside my Fractional COO service, two other services that may be more affordable: Done-for-you Implementation and Hourly Operations. These services, while not as immersive as the Fractional COO service, provide clients with the structure and systems necessary to thrive, at a price that works for them.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.operationqol.com/
• Instagram: operation_qol1
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/operationqol/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sonia-narvaez/