Sarah Ferrara.

Chief Operating Officer at COLAB, Richmond, Virginia

SarahFerrara

Good operations is how a company takes care of its people.

Sixteen years inside digital agencies, the last ten at COLAB, making sure teams feel supported, clients get what they were promised, and the goals we set actually get hit.

Sarah Ferrara, smiling, in an ivory top against a sage green background
Richmond, Virginia. Born here, came home, and stayed.

The short version

Finance degree, agency heart, Richmond roots.

I grew up in Richmond and studied finance at James Madison University. My career started in the Washington, D.C. area, where I found my place in digital agencies, first as a project manager and then running operations for the whole company. Eventually Richmond pulled me home. I live here now with my husband, Mike, and our two energetic boys.

I joined COLAB in 2016 as a senior project manager, became Director of Operations in 2018, and have been Chief Operating Officer since 2020. Today I hold the Operations, Finance and People seats on our leadership team.

In practice, that means I keep three groups in view at once: the people doing the work, the clients counting on it, and the numbers that tell us whether it's working. When one of them is off, the other two feel it soon after.

Role
Chief Operating Officer, COLAB
Seats
Operations, Finance, People
At COLAB since
2016
Education
B.B.A. in Finance, James Madison University
Home
Richmond, Virginia
“Setting a goal is the easy part. I care about hitting it, and about the people who get us there.”
Sarah Ferrara

What I pay attention to

People first. Then the plan that supports them.

  1. For the team

    Taking care of the people doing the work.

    Agencies run on people, and people have lives outside of work. I plan a new hire's first weeks before they start, help people grow into bigger roles, and check in on the person, not only the project. When someone is going through something hard, part of my job is making room for it.

  2. For our clients

    Keeping the promises we make.

    Every engagement gets a weekly health check, and I co-lead COLAB's client outcome score so we judge delivery by what clients actually gained. When something breaks, like a critical security issue on a client site, the goal is a same-day fix and a clear update.

  3. For the business

    Setting goals, then hitting them.

    This is where the finance degree shows up. I own COLAB's scorecard, track profitability by account and by project, and turn each quarter's priorities into commitments with a written definition of done. A goal without a finish line tends to drift.

  4. For what's next

    Adapting as the company grows.

    Companies outgrow their processes. I've written, rebuilt and retired plenty of them, from the project rating system I created early in my career to the way COLAB organizes its delivery teams today. Staying curious keeps that work honest.

Career

Sixteen years in agency operations, every one of them people-first.

  1. 2020

    Chief Operating Officer

    COLAB, Richmond

    Leads operations, finance and people for an 18-person digital agency serving healthcare, credit unions, member organizations and nonprofits.

  2. 2018

    Director of Operations

    COLAB, Richmond

    Took on company-wide operations and the systems behind delivery, from onboarding through launch.

  3. 2016

    Senior Project Manager

    COLAB, Richmond

    Joined COLAB to run client engagements end to end.

  4. 2014

    Account Supervisor & Program Manager

    Create Digital, Richmond

    Primary client contact and day-to-day lead for a cross-functional team of strategists, designers, developers, analysts and community managers.

  5. 2011

    Director of Operations

    Carousel30, Washington, D.C. area

    Ran day-to-day operations and all financial planning and reporting. Managed the creative, accounts, strategy and technology directors, and documented every business and project process the company used.

  6. 2010

    Project Manager

    Carousel30, Washington, D.C. area

    Sole project manager for the agency's largest projects. Created a project rating system so the team could learn from every engagement.

  7. 2007

    B.B.A. in Finance

    James Madison University, College of Business

How I lead

Four things you can count on.

  1. I own the outcome.

    If it's mine, it gets done. If it's going to slip, you hear it from me first.

  2. I stay curious.

    The best fix usually comes from asking one more question. I'm always learning something, usually from the team.

  3. I adapt.

    When the facts change, the plan changes with them. Ten years at a growing agency will teach you that.

  4. I take care of people.

    Family, team members, clients. The same rule applies to all of them.

Reasons to reach out

I'm glad to help. Here's where I can.

You lead an agency or services firm.

Compare notes on operations, profitability, or running EOS in a creative business. Bring the messy version. That's where the useful conversation is.

You're planning an event or writing a story.

Topics I'm happy to speak on:

  • Running EOS inside a digital agency
  • Measuring profit by project and by account
  • Supporting people through growth and change
  • Moving from project manager to COO

You're early in an operations career.

I started as a project manager in 2010 and remember how much good advice helped. I'm happy to pay that forward.

Where I work

COLAB, since 2016.

COLAB is a digital agency in Richmond, Virginia. We plan, design, build and support websites and digital products for healthcare organizations, credit unions, member organizations and nonprofits, the kind of clients whose work centers on people.

If you're evaluating COLAB and want to know how your project will be staffed, managed and supported after the contract is signed, I'm the right person to ask.

Founded
2009
Team
About 18 people
Average client relationship
About 5 years
Runs on
EOS
Delivery cadence
2-week iterations

Contact

Let's talk.

Tell me what's going on, whether it's a project, a team or a career question.

onLinkedIn atteamcolab.com seeCOLAB's work