Get to Know Neervi Patel, Faire’s New Chief People Officer

Authored by Max Rhodes for the Newsroom

We’re thrilled to announce that Faire’s Head of People, Neervi Shah Patel , has been promoted to Chief People Officer. Over the past three years, Neervi has thoughtfully steered our team through growth alongside an unprecedented global health and economic crisis. As Chief People Officer, Neervi will continue leading the experience and development of Faire’s employee community while staying responsive to the ever-changing needs of our business.

Neervi joined Faire in May 2020 when the world was only just beginning to grapple with the onset of a global pandemic. From day one, she embraced the adventure, one of our core values at Faire, to help us navigate a new normal in the way we work and live. Under her leadership, Faire established new disciplines that serve our employees, like Learning and Development, and scaled from a 200-person startup to a fully-hybrid global workplace operating across four continents. 

We’re incredibly fortunate to have such a talented and dedicated leader who consistently upholds Faire’s values and inspires those around her to do the same. 

Read on to get to know more about Neervi and her impact at Faire.

What are you most proud of over the last 3 years at Faire?

I’ve been so impressed with the team’s ability to pivot with rigor and intentionality. Like all companies, Faire has had to find a “new normal” over the last few years, and we knew from the beginning that taking no action would be taking action in and of itself when it came to policies around how people work. Since then, we have iterated by getting a deeper understanding of what policies and decisions will set our employees up for success and help us achieve our goals as an organization.

This type of rigor has also allowed us to lead from a place of transparency and authenticity. Since the beginning of this process, we’ve been open with our employees about how we got to certain decisions. It doesn’t always mean everyone will agree with the path forward, but it does allow us to have an open dialogue with our employees on the why along with the what. 

The last few years have seen so much change in the HR space. What’s one piece of advice you have for building a people-first organization during periods of transition?

Leverage your company’s values and or a set of guiding principles to help guide your decision-making and be really intentional about what you want to achieve. At Faire, we often look to our values and operating principles to help inform our decisions. The work we’re doing is more art than science, and there is rarely a silver bullet answer on how to solve for something. What works at other organizations may not make sense for your company at this moment and time. In addition to the goals you’re looking to achieve, it’s important to consider the context and how that might impact your path forward. Being able to rely on your organizational values as a North Star allows you to stay in line with the integrity and DNA of the company and culture while optimizing for your customer - which, in team’s case, is our employee base. 

What excites you most about Faire’s future?

The immense opportunity that exists in front of us to continue serving our global community of brands and retailers continues to excite me. We get to see firsthand the incredible impact we’re having on the livelihoods of over 800,000 small business owners around the world. We regularly invite Faire’s customers to talk to the team during our company all-hands meeting. It’s inspiring to hear about their entrepreneurial journeys and how Faire is helping them live their dreams. More than half of our customers are female and many more are minority-owned small business owners. We’re able to have a significant impact on the trajectory of their careers. It’s an incredible honor and opportunity we take very seriously. 

If you could open your own retail shop, what would you sell?

As an avid reader and someone who still sends handwritten cards, I’d have to say a combination of a bookstore and a lifestyle store that includes stationery, wrapping paper, and other home stuff. Disclaimer: I’m inspired by a real bookstore in my neighborhood (that’s also a Faire retailer)!