Reclaim your time. Scale your impact.

Hey there! I’m Sumaiya.

I’m an Operations Specialist and People Partner dedicated to helping founders and businesses build the systems that allow their people to thrive, giving you the space to focus on the big picture.

ABOUT ME

The operational backbone your vision deserves.

Meet your behind-the-scenes powerhouse.

I’ve spent over 20 years mastering the art of managing the ‘behind-the-scenes’ operations. My journey began working as an EA supporting C-Suite Executives, before diving into the world of project management where I qualified in the Foundation Prince2 Certification, and culminated in strategic HR leadership.

Today, I blend that high-level oversight with practical execution. I don’t just manage tasks; I build the infrastructure that allows your business to breathe.

How I support your growth:

  • For Founders: I offload the operational complexity that pulls you away from your zone of genius, giving you the space to lead from the big picture.

  • For Business Leaders: I design and manage the full employee lifecycle, ensuring an exceptional experience for your people from recruitment to off-boarding.

I’m a self-starter who thrives where complexity meets pace. I’m here to handle the how, so you can stay focused on the why.

I combine my business operations expertise, HR specialism, tech mastery, and project management to become your operational backbone.

In a nutshell, I’m here to handle the behind-the-scenes complexity, so you can reclaim your time and scale your impact.

Your Expertise is Scalable. Your Time Isn’t

The Challenge

You have the vision to deliver incredible value, but the ‘business of running a business’ is becoming a bottleneck. When operational friction takes over, your growth hits a ceiling.

  • Fragmented Processes: Onboarding is ad-hoc, delivery lacks a repeatable system, and nothing feels truly streamlined.

  • Technical Friction: Your tech, project tools, and CRM feel like hurdles rather than accelerators.

  • Project Drag: Strategic work gets bogged down in coordination and follow-ups, diluting both your profit and your focus.

  • The Expert Trap: Your high-value strategic brain is being spent on administrative tasks that don't move the needle.

The Solution

You don’t just need an assistant; you need an Operator. A systems-thinker who manages the backend with the same precision you bring to your clients.

I provide the operational backbone you’ve been missing, integrating strategic operations, HR leadership, and project mastery to execute the work that supports your vision. This is a partnership designed to expand your capacity, elevate your service, and accelerate your growth.

It’s time to stop managing the chaos and start leading the mission.

How I Partner With You

Whether you are a team of 10 building your foundation or an organisation of 100 requiring cross-department coordination, I provide the operational backbone. By blending business ops expertise with inclusive process optimisation, I ensure your business scales with stability while keeping the human experience at its heart..

  • I take the operational chaos off your desk, turning manual, repetitive tasks into streamlined, scalable workflows.

    • Process Reviews & Optimisation: I conduct deep-dive reviews of your existing workflows to identify friction points and implement high-impact improvements.

    • Workflow & Process Mapping: I translate your complex internal movements into clear, visual process maps, ensuring every team member understands the path from start to finish.

    • Operational Infrastructure: Documenting SOPs to remove hidden rules and building a digital house that is organised, intuitive, and ready for scale.

    • Tool & Software Governance: Auditing and managing your tech stack so it serves your team’s productivity, not the other way around.

  • I act as your internal hiring lead, ensuring you attract top-tier talent through an equitable, efficient process.

    • ATS Selection & Implementation: I guide you in choosing and implementing the right Applicant Tracking System to streamline your hiring pipeline.

    • Employer Branding & Careers Page: I help you articulate your company’s unique value proposition, optimising your Careers page and job touch points to attract high-caliber talent that aligns with your mission.

    • End-to-End Coordination: From drafting inclusive job specs to screening CVs and managing complex interview logistics, I ensure a seamless experience for both you and the candidate.

    • Hiring for ‘Culture Add’: I remove coded language from job descriptions and create structured interview briefing notes to ensure you hire for long-term values and diversity, rather than just ‘fit’.

  • I manage the human side of your business, ensuring every employee has a professional, inclusive, and consistent experience from their first day to their last.

    • HRIS Selection & Implementation: I help you identify, set up, and launch the right Human Resources Information System to centralise your data and automate People Ops.

    • High-Impact Onboarding: Designing 30/60/90-day success maps and "ready to work" schedules that integrate new hires into your culture immediately.

    • Equity & Culture: Moving EDI from a policy to an operational reality through transparent SOPs and documented success maps that close the ‘insider gap.’

    • Retention & Performance: Managing performance rhythms, 1:1 templates, and team engagement rituals to protect your company culture.

  • You provide the vision; I ensure the team follows through. I turn the knowledge in your head into a repeatable company playbook and keep every moving part in sync.

    • Project Coordination & Accountability: Proactive deadline chasing and board management (Asana, Trello, Notion) to keep the team unblocked and focused on delivery.

    • Strategic Governance Tools: I build and maintain the essential architecture for project success, including comprehensive project plans, risk logs, and RACI matrices to ensure clear ownership and mitigate potential bottlenecks.

    • Knowledge Management: Building and maintaining your Company Wiki or Handbook so that internal expertise is documented and retained as you scale.

    • Executive Status Reporting: Providing concise, high-level updates on project health and milestones, allowing you to lead with total clarity.

“Sumaiya's extremely passionate about her work, especially in regards to company culture, always striving for inclusive, progressive policies, processes and hiring initiatives.”

— Zoe Hoyle VP of Finance

Get To Know Me

  • Myers Briggs INFJ

    Often called ‘The Advocate’, this means I am naturally wired for strategic foresight and deep empathy. I don't just see a spreadsheet; I see the people and patterns behind it. This rare mix allows me to build systems that aren't just efficient, but truly support the humans using them.

  • Mum of 4 Boys

    If you think your inbox is chaotic, try managing a household of four active boys! Planning, multi-tasking, and elite-level organisation aren't just skills I’ve learned, they are my second nature. I bring that same ‘nothing-fazes-me’ energy to your business.

  • I Love Candle Making and Florals

    These hobbies are my creative outlet for bringing order and beauty out of raw materials. I bring this same sense of peace, balance, and intentionality to your organisation, turning operational ‘noise’ into a calm, structured environment.

What People Are Saying

“Sumaiya was the very first person that I hired into the People Operations team. Throughout her time she has been an important member of staff, providing support to our people and always doing her best to make sure that they have a great experience in the company and a positive working environment. I have always been impressed by her attention to detail, her care for our employees, and her ability to improve our processes. She created major changes particularly in rolling out new policies and practices around mental health, along with significant improvements to our onboarding processes. She gives and receives feedback in a positive manner, collaborates effectively with her team, and she is a wonderful human and a joy to work with.”

— Siobhan McKeown COO

“I couldn't recommend Sumaiya more, she brought strong knowledge, skills and heaps of positive energy to the company and the team. She is very process driven and diligent in her work; I could always rely on Sumaiya and she was a pleasure to work with in the Operations team.  She's extremely passionate about her work, especially in regards to company culture, always striving for inclusive, progressive policies, processes and hiring initiatives, many of which are still in place today and have been a large part of our growth since Sumaiya joined back in 2019. She's directly impacted our culture and company in such a positive way.”

— Zoe VP Finance

“Sumaiya joined our People Operations team as its first member and worked closely with our Director of People to build out a scalable approach to people operations that has served us incredibly well as we grew from under 50 to nearly 100 people spread across the globe.  Sumaiya has a rare mix of positivity, initiative, and resilience. She deeply understood and cared about the culture of the company and worked hard to ensure it was reflected and embedded in our policies and processes. She also actively guided our culture as it evolved. Human Made is a better company because of Sumaiya's work.”

— Tom Wilmot CEO

Frequently Asked Questions

  • While a Virtual Assistant focuses on executing specific tasks, an Operations Partner focuses on the strategy and systems behind those tasks. I don’t just manage a list; I build the infrastructure that ensures your business runs smoothly. I act as a strategic peer, looking at the big picture of your people and processes to ensure they are scalable and sustainable.

  • My partnership is designed to scale alongside your business. Whether you need high-level strategic oversight or hands-on support to clear your plate, I can step into your organisation in the capacity you need most:

    • Founder’s Assistant / VA: For the leader who needs immediate relief from administrative rhythms, inbox management, and scheduling.

    • Operations Manager: For the business that needs an engine, building the systems, SOPs, and workflows that turn chaos into a repeatable process.

    • People Partner: For the team-builder focusing on recruitment, HRIS/ATS implementation, and an exceptional employee experience.

    • Chief of Staff: For the visionary who needs a strategic right hand to manage special projects and ensure the vision is executed across the team.

  • I view our partnership as a strategic investment in your business’s capacity and your own mental bandwidth. My goal is to provide a significant return on that investment by reclaiming your time and streamlining your path to scale. I offer three flexible structures:

    • Retainer Packages: Dedicated, ongoing support to provide a consistent operational backbone.

    • Project-Based Fees: Fixed fees for defined objectives like an ATS/HRIS implementation or a process-mapping intensive.

    • Strategic Intensives: Day rates for focused, rapid operational resets.

  • I am here to empower your team, not replace them. I provide the frameworks, such as RACI matrices, risk logs, and onboarding flows, that allow your people to do their best work. By clearing operational friction, I help your team members stay focused on their specific roles rather than getting lost in administrative coordination

  • Yes. I am a hands-on partner. I help you through the entire lifecycle: from selecting the right HRIS or ATS for your specific needs to the actual implementation and team training. I ensure the tech is fully integrated into your daily workflows so it actually moves the needle.

  • The transition should be as seamless as the systems we’ll build together. My onboarding process is structured to ensure we hit the ground running:

    1. The Discovery Call: We start with a free 30-minute discovery call to discuss your current bottlenecks and determine if we are the right fit for a partnership.

    2. The Strategy Session: Depending on the complexity, we’ll move into either a client-provided project brief or a 2-hour deep-dive strategy session to map out your requirements in detail.

    3. The 90-Day Roadmap: I will compile an initial 90-day plan designed to provide immediate relief and keep us focused on the high-impact milestones that matter most to your growth.

    4. Execution: We begin our retainer or project-based work, guided by the 90-day plan and your specific business needs.

Let’s Work Together.

Ready to step out of the daily chaos and back into your zone of genius? Whether you need a strategic partner or hands-on operational support, I’m here to help you scale with precision.

Complete the form below to book your free 30-minute Discovery Call.