Meet Blagica Dimitrova, Our Head of Product Ops From Macedonia

Today, we’d like to introduce you to Blagica Dimitrova, also known as Blagica Of All Trades!

Blagica comes from Macedonia and has been with Native Teams for about a year and a half. She’s our Head of Product Ops and we truly cannot imagine Native Teams without her!

Check out the interview below to get to know her a little better. 👇

Hi Blagica, how are you today?

Always feeling great when Spring is on the doorstep 🌸 There’s some peculiar excitement in the air!

Can you tell us more about your role at Native Teams?

The Platform Ops’ job is a fairly multi-faceted one. On one hand, the team is mainly responsible to make sure that the great variety of day-to-day operations inside the platform run smoothly. On the other hand, i.e. in the long run, our job is to work closely with the wider team, especially the Product Team, in order to constantly improve the platform and add functionalities based on the users’ and our needs in order to ultimately provide as seamless customer experience as possible.

What motivated you to join Native Teams?

My number one reason was remote work, of course! But also the fact that I’m a tech-savvy person who likes playing around with all kinds of apps. I often see our app as a (dead-serious) game in which I have to finish all these different tasks and put everything in order. My OCD also plays a part here.

How long have you been on the team and how has your career developed over time?

I joined Native Teams about a year and a half ago, starting off as a Junior Administrator. You could say that my career was developing together with the platform itself. As the platform grew, so grew my responsibilities and the team. Here, I also have to add that it’s so rewarding to know that you’re a part of that growth and to actually see your contribution there!

What are the biggest challenges and opportunities facing Native Teams in Macedonia?

To be honest, I don’t think there are many challenges for Native Teams in Macedonia. Or at least there aren’t any challenges that we haven’t overcome so far. I only see opportunities – there are a lot of freelancers and remote workers in Macedonia who deserve to be paid for their hard work and get all the employment benefits for a fair price.

In your opinion, what are the advantages and disadvantages of remote work?

If you ask me, there are literally no disadvantages of remote work. Many people say the main disadvantage is that you don’t get to meet and hang out with your coworkers, but there are so many ways to overcome that (if you’re an extrovert who really really wants to hang out with coworkers😁)

When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

This wasn’t exactly my childhood dream, but Literature and/or Translation was something I was truly passionate about for a long time. I still try to maintain ties with this part of me – I’m currently pursuing my MA in English Literature and Cultural Studies while also being a teaching assistant of Translation at the Faculty of Philology in Skopje.

What do you like to do when you’re not working?

I like to sleep, but I never have enough time for that. Social life is really important to me, so you will find me either hanging out with friends and/or hitting the road 😄. Finally, whenever I can, I like to spend my free time contributing to a few social and cultural local initiatives I’m involved in, which is something I take great pride in. 

What is your hidden talent?

Cutting my own bangs ✂️

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you choose?

If I absolutely have to move, it would be somewhere (anywhere) along the Mediterranean.

What advice would you give to anyone who wants to start freelancing or working remotely?

Since freelancing can be a bit of a struggle, I’d say do it if you feel comfortable and safe enough. As for working remotely in general, I can absolutely, with 100% certainty, say: go for it, you won’t regret it!