Although I knew Rushabh and Frappe for more than a decade, I never had the chance to work with them. Until the COVID-19 pandemic changed many things.

During the pandemic, just like many others, I was stuck in an uncertain situation at my previous workplace, due to which I decided to explore other opportunities and move on. Previously, I had applied to Frappe a couple times but never got an interview call. However, this time I got a call from Frappe unexpectedly for a Product Manager role. I went through the entire recruitment process under cover to avoid any external factors getting involved in the recruitment process. But, Rushabh recognised me immediately, breaking the cover that I had kept for 2 rounds.

At that time, I was already working in product management and looking to scale up in my career. So when Frappe offered me the job, I was excited, though the period was intense! I was hospitalised, getting aggressive treatment for severe COVID-19 and also preparing for my wedding scheduled in June 2021. After navigating through a wide range of uncertainties, I joined Frappe on 16th August 2021.

Early days: Unlearning & learning again

When I joined Frappe, the product management cadence at Frappe was still evolving under the leadership of Umair. So, the way I had worked in my past organisations was not applicable here, as things were unstructured and informal. I was required to unlearn several things and learn the way Frappe operates. I was fascinated by Frappe’s flat structure, democracy and transparency, but having worked in a few conventional organisations in the past, initially it was a bit challenging to get accustomed to it.

Upon joining Frappe, my learning began in two directions: product and culture. Though initially it felt a bit overwhelming, things progressed smoothly due to the support extended by all team members.

After a few months, the product management team was split and every individual was transitioned to a new role based on their liking and preference. Hence, I got an opportunity to move to the Implementation team where I worked on projects in Healthcare and Education. I have always enjoyed customer-facing roles in the past. So this was something I was excited to do.

Though I had worked as a Business Analyst in the past with overseas clients, implementing ERP systems was something new and I received adequate guidance from the other members of the team to deepen my product knowledge and implementation skills. This phase helped me understand the product from a practical perspective and also learn more about the nuances of these domains.

Partner visit with Greycube in Gandhinagar

Shifting gears: From implementation to Frappe Health

Around that time, Frappe was working on finalising a long-term vision for business scalability and growth. After several rounds of internal discussions, the company decided to move away from offering services and instead focus on building and maintaining innovative open-source products. This caused a significant transition within the members of the implementation team.

Then, I started working on Frappe Health and took responsibility for functional and pre-sales activities. Healthcare has always been a domain I am passionate about, and implementing Frappe Health for a couple of clients helped deepen my understanding of the space.

Later, Frappe Health was handed over to its original creator, Earthians. I had the opportunity to work closely with Anoop, a humble and thoughtful person who was trying hard to make an impact in the open source space for Healthcare and his team. Together, we explored various ways to grow the product and expand its reach in the market.

However, introducing a tech solution in healthcare had its challenges. Strict compliance standards and the general reluctance of healthcare workers to shift from paper records to digital systems made adoption difficult.

Despite these hurdles, the journey was incredibly enriching.

Pushkar & Anoop from Earthians

Partner Maturity Model: Building a stronger ecosystem

After making Earthians self-sufficient to take Frappe Health forward, I came across another interesting and equally exciting cadence called the Partner Maturity Model, which was initiated to bring more consistency and quality to the partner ecosystem. Ever since Frappe stopped providing direct services, the partner ecosystem has been expanding exponentially.

As I engaged more deeply with partners, I discovered how diverse the ecosystem is. Each partner we met had their strengths, domain expertise, accomplishments and motivation for collaborating with Frappe.

During PMM sessions, we were engaged in wide-ranging discussions that extended beyond PMM and offered fresh perspectives on technology, business, leadership and human values. Visiting partners across India and experiencing their hospitality made the entire journey even more special.

PMM Session with Frappe Partner Tridots in Chennai

This role pushed me beyond my comfort zone, where I was given an opportunity to present the PMM vision to large audiences and actively engage with the wider partner community during Frappeverse events.

It turned out to be a memorable learning experience which helped me grow professionally, build strong relationships and contribute meaningfully to align partners more closely with Frappe’s mission.

Talk at Frappeverse 2024

Unexpected discovery: Compliance

Frappe became ISO compliant soon after I had joined. However, my contribution to it was minimal and not beyond facing a couple of audits for the delivery team.

Unexpectedly, I had an opportunity to lead the ISO 9001 and 27001 recertifications under tight timelines. That experience triggered a new interest in compliance activities. From there, I went on to lead all phases of our SOC-2 attestation from selecting vendors to securing the final certificate. This journey not only enhanced my understanding of compliance but also gave me valuable insights into various departments across the organisation.

Road ahead: Back to PMM with a renewed focus

I am back with the PMM team, and I now have a much clearer understanding of our direction and priorities. With the backlog finally cleared and the PMM <> Partner Tier automation now live and running smoothly, we can shift our focus to other important areas like QMS and ISMS for Frappe Partners.

I aim to ensure that PMM becomes more than just a routine process review. I am actively exploring new ways to make our partners feel truly supported and valued so that, together, we can achieve great results through collaboration with Frappe.

It has been an incredible journey so far, and I would like to thank the entire team for their support and especially Rushabh and Umair, for having faith in me and constant motivation and support. As I step into my next year at Frappe, I am excited about the road ahead. I look forward to growing with Frappe and making an even bigger impact in the future.