Roopesh is so respected and loved by our nearly 500 employees largely due to his immense amount of transparency and compassion. He is an approachable and understanding leader … always bringing people together. He is a unifier. That’s not to say he doesn’t make extremely difficult decisions and lead tough conversations: through an acquisition in late 2019 (and others before), right into the COVID-19 situation (managing teams in NY, UK, Bangalore, Belfast and Italy), right into the BLM movement across the globe (in the most diverse company I’ve worked for), he’s somehow remained honest and human while keeping the entire company moving forward on the same path in the most tumultuous year any of us has experience. In 8 months since Symphony Talent’s acquisition of SmashFly, he’s led the merger of two global companies, combined product and engineering teams to reimagine and relaunch a leading technology platform, initiated necessary conversations (and actions) about Black Lives Matter throughout our domestic offices in Houston, Atlanta and New York, and proactively managed the COVID-19 pandemic in our New York HQ ahead of any state bans or requirements. He’s incredibly intelligent and business-minded, but he’s really the first CEO I’ve reported to that is truly a people manager. Other CEOs I’ve worked for are functional managers; Roopesh is that as well, but he truly hears, pauses, reacts to the people who need him most, whether VP-level direct reports or junior level team members making a transition. He is thoughtful and passionate, and has an unbelievable balance of customer centricity, product innovation and business growth. He invests in people and isn’t afraid to take risks … or let them take risks. Roopesh is a necessary example that a CEO can lead WITH his company, not above them peering down.
Roopesh is so respected and loved by our nearly 500 employees largely due to his immense amount of transparency and compassion. He is an approachable and understanding leader … always bringing people together. He is a unifier. That’s not to say he doesn’t make extremely difficult decisions and lead tough conversations: through an acquisition in late 2019 (and others before), right into the COVID-19 situation (managing teams in NY, UK, Bangalore, Belfast and Italy), right into the BLM movement across the globe (in the most diverse company I’ve worked for), he’s somehow remained honest and human while keeping the entire company moving forward on the same path in the most tumultuous year any of us has experience. In 8 months since Symphony Talent’s acquisition of SmashFly, he’s led the merger of two global companies, combined product and engineering teams to reimagine and relaunch a leading technology platform, initiated necessary conversations (and actions) about Black Lives Matter throughout our domestic offices in Houston, Atlanta and New York, and proactively managed the COVID-19 pandemic in our New York HQ ahead of any state bans or requirements. He’s incredibly intelligent and business-minded, but he’s really the first CEO I’ve reported to that is truly a people manager. Other CEOs I’ve worked for are functional managers; Roopesh is that as well, but he truly hears, pauses, reacts to the people who need him most, whether VP-level direct reports or junior level team members making a transition. He is thoughtful and passionate, and has an unbelievable balance of customer centricity, product innovation and business growth. He invests in people and isn’t afraid to take risks … or let them take risks. Roopesh is a necessary example that a CEO can lead WITH his company, not above them peering down.