I'm the assistant to the CEO of 23andMe. I do yoga during meetings and answer 400 messages a day here's what it's like.
Kristin Quint, left, with her boss, Anne Wojcicki, a cofounder and the CEO of 23andMe.Courtesy of Kristin Quint
- Kristin Quint is a senior director at 23andMe and the assistant to Anne Wojcicki, the firm's CEO.
- She's had the position for six years and receives 350 to 400 daily messages that require responses.
I typically archive, forward, or reply to around 50 emails before I get out of bed. I get up at around 7 a.m. and make a coffee while jumping on a Zoom call with a team administrator who helps run Anne Wojcicki's calendar.
A Zoom meeting and coffee in the Chemex. Courtesy of Kristin Quint
On days when I'm home, I leave to drop my daughters off at school at around 8:10 a.m. and start laptop work as soon as I get home at 8:40 a.m. I live near Sacramento, California, and am usually in the Sunnyvale office two to three times a week.
Quint's daughter getting out of the car to go to school. Courtesy of Kristin Quint
Wojcicki had an interview for CNBC's 'Disruptor 50' list this day, so I greeted the camera crew that came to her house and helped them scout different locations around the property. The set-up process from arrival to teardown took around three hours.
Quint scouting locations around the property. Courtesy of Kristin Quint
Wojcicki never works from a script, but we provide a backgrounder in advance of each interview, which includes anticipated questions, relevant logistics information, and any new 23andMe releases or statistics. We used this downtime while waiting for the interview to start to run through open-action items and calendar questions, and I provide updates on projects.
Wojcicki and Quint preparing for the interview. Courtesy of Kristin Quint
We're always integrating exercise into our work, such as going on walks while we're meeting. One thing we do every week is team yoga, which I love. We even do it over Zoom when we're not together. Sometimes we talk about work while we're doing it.
Incorporating exercise into work. Courtesy of Kristin Quint
Juggling everything at once is my job, so my colleagues like to joke when they see me carrying my laptop, lunch, and water in my back pocket.
Quint "juggling" during lunch. Courtesy fo Kristin Quint
In our Sunnyvale office, we have these couches for working away from your desk or for having informal catch-ups. It's also a very family-friendly environment — sometimes Wojcicki brings her daughter in, and sometimes I bring my kids.
A baby in the office. Courtesy of Kristin Quint
I recently redecorated the kids' playroom we have on-site. The walls looked a bit sad, so I ordered different wall art from Amazon and put it up.
Quint's kids in the office playroom. Courtesy of Kristin Quint
Our day-to-day isn't all photoshoots and yoga meetings. In fact, it's not very polished at all. We have around six to 10 meetings each day, most of them via Zoom.
Quint and Wojcicki in meetings. Courtesy of Kristin Quint
Paul Cusenza, one of the cofounders of 23andMe, dropped by recently, so I gave him a tour of our new building and took him around to meet different people. On any given day, I never really know what's going to come up.
Cusenza, one of the cofounders of 23andMe. Courtesy of Kristin Quint
We attend a lot of conferences, like the inaugural Illumina Genomics Forum on October 1 in San Diego. Barack Obama opened the conference, and Wojcicki closed it.
The 23andMe team. Courtesy of Kristin Quint
We like to do regular team outings together, usually at least monthly. Recently, we all went to see Adam Sandler's comedy tour. My team is just the three of us, but dinners to discuss projects or to bond are a wider mix of our leadership team and a couple of colleagues from other teams.
The 23andMe team. Courtesy of Kristin Quint
My commute home can take anywhere from two and a half to three hours, so I usually like zoning out to music. When I get home, sometimes as late as 9:30 p.m., I immediately hang out with my kids and check in on their homework and activities from the day. I love squeezing in some evening yoga or a walk around the neighborhood in the summertime with my husband and dogs.
Driving home across the Bay Bridge in San Francisco. Courtesy of Kristin Quint
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