GreenCitizen offers our staff a very different type of career opportunity, one that speaks to their passion for the environment and their desire to use their education and experience to address our planet’s pressing problems with accelerated training in management, operations and business development. In a sense, an on-the-job “green MBA.” Ours is a dedicated team of professionals working at the intersection of information technology, social entrepreneurship, retail and operations…all while saving the environment. We’d like to start introducing you to the people that make GreenCitizen go, starting with one of our earliest team members, Nafisah Ali.

Name: Nafisah Ali
College/University: UC Berkeley, BA – Physical Geography
Your role with GreenCitizen: Senior Center Manager. I started as an intern in 2005, became Assistant Manager in 2006 and Manager in 2007 and now Senior Center Manager
Past positions held: Intern at Cal EPA – State Water Board
Years with Green Citizen: 6!
How did you discover GreenCitizen? Through the counselor of the Geography Department at Cal
What were your initial thoughts about the company and the position when it was first presented to you? I thought it would be a great opportunity to work for a start up and work for a company model that did not really exist at that time. When I first started there were only 4 full time staff members so there was great opportunity to help create a new system and help continue to build the company.
What does it mean to work at GreenCitizen? I personally feel that my work is important in the great scheme of things. Yes, there is the daily grind but I know I’m making a difference and I know we’re offering a valuable service to the community.
What is a typical day like? Right now I’m only working 2 days in Berkeley so my typical day is not what it used to be. When I was full time my day began with checking my emails and listing any priority tasks I needed to get done. Before my maternity leave, I was responsible for continual training of new staff, scheduling pickups, sending reports to property managers, updating our pickup database, invoicing, updating our vendor (majority ECS) payments, sending SB20 logs to ECS, along with other daily tasks.
Now at Berkeley for 2 days, it is much more relaxed =) I have delegated most of my major responsibilities to new staff members. Now I am here to be a mentor and help cover the Berkeley center and attend other events if necessary.
What do you enjoy most about what you do? Again, when I was full time, my day was full of responsibilities and deadlines, but I knew at the end of the day we had accomplished something. When logistics returned from the day’s pickups with reuse items that will in turn bring in revenue for GreenCitizen, I know it was our team effort that made it possible. It is the ability to work with great staff that really keeps me going.
How is your education being put to work? My general education is really being put to work. The ability to communicate clearly either verbally or in writing is important when dealing with customers and in having intelligent conversations with CEOs or heads of departments to build our customer relationships. My education included environmental studies so I have a better physical understanding of the effects of global environmental damage which in turn allows me to also have in depth conversations with customers. Not to say those who did not study in this field cannot have intelligent conversations, but it does allow for a greater appreciation of the issues when you dedicate years of study.
What new skills have you learned? I never thought I would be a managerial position so quickly but that meant I had to learn to problem solve and resolve customer issues in ways that wouldn’t hurt the business relationship. I’m confident in my ability to train and build a team. I have become more conscious of the business end of making a socially responsible company survive. I have learned a lot from James Kao, our CEO, on how to literally build a company from scratch from hiring and developing staff members to increasing revenue to managing people.
What keeps you here? I have been fortunate to work with great staff and that is really important to me. I believe in GreenCitizen’s mission and I want to continue to contribute my skills to help build GC to reach its goals.
What would you say to a new graduate who is considering a career opportunity with GreenCitizen? If you really want to challenge yourself and not sit in a cubicle for eight hours doing the same thing every day, then consider GreenCitizen. Here, you will be part of a team with a common goal. Your day will be filled with different challenges and you will push yourself to think outside the box. You will have an opportunity to help build a system and truly contribute to our company’s growth
What do you see/hope for yourself and for GreenCitizen in the future? I truly see GreenCitizen being successful. I see it changing as we grow but in a positive direction. I see growth into owning our own de-manufacturing and research facility, hundreds of drop off location (either through partner locations or our own satellite location), hundreds of job opportunities, and a position as atrue leader in the industry. I hope to stay and grow with GC. I would like to oversee the growth of front counter department and perhaps oversee the overall operation when we get to a larger scale.
Is there anything else you would like to add about the green job market, your personal career journey or GreenCitizen? There are a variety of positions in the green job market but the most exciting careers are with those companies that are pushing the boundaries and not just maintaining the status quo. I have worked for the Federal government and the State, but working for a private company has been the most interesting, especially a company starting from the ground up. There is no other company like us, which makes GC truly unique.