Favor Delivery Leadership & Management

Tell us about yourself. Why were you brought on to lead this team?

I moved to Austin in 2011 to pursue a degree in computer science at the University of Texas at Austin and instantly fell in love with the laid-back and retro vibe of the city. I built my career by moving up in engineering roles at Tableau Software. 

With a desire to serve fellow local Texans, I joined Favor in April of 2023. Favor’s engineering culture is fast-paced, and modern technology is infused with ingenuity and creativity to solve unique problems in a multifaceted and complex space serving multiple user groups simultaneously. I currently lead two engineering squads made up of extremely talented backend engineers. My experience of co-founding a start-up several years ago, as well as my complementary engineering skills, made me a perfect fit for this role to build product-oriented solutions using technical algorithms and systems that continually grow the business.

How would you describe your approach to leadership, and how do you plan on building team culture?

Leadership starts with setting the right team structure. Each team member brings their aspirations, goals and levels of motivation that are in constant flux and evolution. I strongly believe an emphasis on individual growth and a lightweight, personalized team structure build a happy, high-performing team.

I also work to create the right opportunities for my team. Through collaboration with business peers and leaders, I keep tabs on the overall direction of the business. This helps uncover opportunities for not only my team to impact, but to influence. I’ll connect the right initiative to the right team member, balancing the needs of the business and the growth of the individual.

Finally, a strong leader finds ways to maximize levels of autonomy. High-performing individuals are often empowered in their ability to be autonomous. Each team member, regardless of their seniority, should have the freedom to make decisions, execute, take ownership and make mistakes. This cultivates spikes in motivation to make an impact and enables them to be creative.

What initiative are you most excited to tackle, and what impact will it have?

I am grateful to have the exciting opportunity to lead the assignment squad at Favor. Though this squad is small, its potential impact on the business is huge. Over the past year, the squad has built, tested, and deployed a new assignment engine designed with flexibility for all user groups. The number of business use cases is explosive, and this system provides a platform to address all those use cases at a massive scale.

Favor primarily powers H-E-B’s e-commerce home delivery business. The assignment squad and the new system we have built play a pivotal role in supporting that business. I’m excited to support my product, operational, technical, and business partners at H-E-B. Together, we’ll develop and manage the technology needed to scale up highly effective batched assignments at H-E-B locations. This will create efficiencies in Favor’s service and for H-E-B partners operationally, ensuring a healthy business for the future.