Episode #12 - Operations project deep dive with Green Dot Public Schools COO Ellen Lin

GUEST

Episode Guest: Ellen Lin, Chief Operating Officer at Green Dot Public Schools National

Connect with Ellen on LinkedIn 

School / Organization: Green Dot Public Schools National.

Website: https://greendot.org/

EPISODE SUMMARY

Ellen Lin, COO of Green Dot Public Schools National, discusses the implementation of a help desk ticketing and knowledge-based solution at Green Dot. The project aimed to streamline operations and improve efficiency by replacing the use of email for ticketing across departments. Ellen shares the challenges faced, the evaluation process for selecting a vendor, and the fast onboarding and implementation timeline. She also highlights the impact of the ticketing system on agents and the organization as a whole. Ellen encourages operational leaders to prioritize projects that align with organizational goals and to think strategically about system redesign.

EPISODE TAKEAWAYS

• As your organization scales, systems and processes require new design and often new technology to maintain efficiency.
• When selecting a new vendor to redesign a system, consider the specific needs of different departments and ensure the technology can accommodate differentiated use cases, workflows, and security requirements.
• Change management is always difficult at scale, but onboarding and implementation timelines can be accelerated by involving department managers early and frontloading training for end-users before rollout.
• Continuously evaluate and iterate on your operational systems. In the case of Green Dot's helpdesk solution they are regularly looking to track tends, improve response times, decrease the number of tickets, and increase user satisfaction.

RESOURCES

CSP Dissemination Grant Materials: helpdesk.greendot.org
Helpdesk software: www.deskpro.com

CHAPTERS

00:00 Introduction and Podcasting Recommendations

03:06 Background on Green Dot and Green Dot National

04:43 Size, Scope, and Scale of Green Dot

06:38 Conditions that Led to the Ticketing Project

08:07 Prioritizing the Ticketing Project

10:22 Challenges with Legacy Systems

12:34 Using Email for Ticketing Across Departments

13:49 Beginning the Project and Evaluating Vendors

15:32 Choosing DeskPro as the Vendor

20:28 Fast Onboarding and Implementation

22:38 Departments Integrated with DeskPro

24:36 Impact of the Ticketing System

26:20 Long-Term Iterative Approach

30:16 Encouragement for Taking on Projects

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Ellen Lin serves as the Chief Operating Officer at Green Dot Public Schools National. Ellen is responsible for overseeing the Human Resources, Information Technology, Information Systems, Data and Analytics, and Compliance services for all Green Dot regions. Ellen joined Green Dot in 2007. Prior to joining Green Dot, Ellen worked as a Center Director for SCORE! Educational Centers, a subsidiary of Kaplan that provided supplemental tutoring for students pre-K through 9th grade. Ellen earned her Bachelor of Arts from Pomona College with a major in Politics and a minor in Music and an MBA from UCLA Anderson.

You can listen to Charter School Insider: Lessons from the Nation's Top Charter School Operators on your favorite podcasting platform...

Spotify

Apple

Google

Amazon