Oh, Internet,
It is with great sadness and deep pride and just every feeling imaginable that we wish Chelsea, our Director of Operations a fond farewell from APW.
She’s been on our team for five years. In fact, the first time I interviewed her I loved her, but didn’t hire her for the job (she would have hated the role). But she kept following up with me for the next six months, and we even invited her to watch the (horrible) inauguration of DJT at our brand new offices before she was a team member. After six months, I finally found a spot for her, and she took that spot and RAN with it. She went from being a general assistant, to developing systems, and running well, pretty much everything.
It wasn’t an easy five years either. There were four painful years of the DJT presidency, an office break in, some staff shake ups, and two years of a pandemic where we had to pivot the business over and over and all work remotely. But I can’t imagine our team getting through all of those years without Chelsea, and her new team is so lucky to have her.
Beyond that, on a personal note, Chelsea taught me how to be a good boss, probably more than any other single employee ever has. I’m so proud to see what she does next, and a little bit heartbroken that we won’t Slack with her everyday. But still… having employees, training them, watching them grow and gain skills, and then seeing them leave and do great things is the very best part of being running a company.
Because she deserves it, a thoroughly incomplete list of Chelsea’s accomplishments in her five years at APW:
- Designed / Art Directed many photoshoots for APW.
- Got sucked into modeling for a small handful of photoshoots (like the Cottonelle shoot, below, that she modeled in. The photos ended up featured in Ad Week!).
- Did floral design for a (not small) number of photoshoots and events.
- Coordinated details and oversaw the success of lots of large and small events (examples: The APW 10-year roller rink party, The Compact Feminist Summer Camp, and so many more).
- Designed and or refined every single ebook, graphic, brand element, or visual you’ve seen on the website or social media over the last 5 years (including, but not limited to, Practical Business School, MegKeene.com, Niqeva).
- Ran (quite literally) all the behind-the-scenes for APW (day-to-day office and team management, project management, office relocations, administrative tasks, HR, social media, content, and so much more).
Chelsea has also been the queen of content around APW and she is leaving us with some amazing reads and round-ups. She gave us the San Francisco City Hall Elopement Guide, a thorough guide to wedding flowers (her secret sauce is that she was a florist for years, and is a total pro!), her eye-opening encounter with Shonda Rhimes, this stylish courthouse outfit roundup, a list of summer wedding guest dresses you shouldn’t miss, and so many more.
What’s next for Chelsea? She’s moving on and moving up. She’ll be taking on a new role as an Art Production Manager, combining her love of design, art, and organization/planning. She gets to use power tools, work with her hands, play with plants, and be a bunch of people’s boss. Oh, and she’ll probably keep kicking ass, quietly, from the background of any and every organization she comes in contact with. It’s just who she is.
Here is wishing one-and-only, the jane-of-all-trades, the amazing Chelsea and happy, healthy, and successful farewell from APW and into the next phases of her life. Congrats, Chelsea! We love you and are so grateful for every moment of your years with APW. Cheers!