I Am the CTO of Grubhub Maria Belousova, and This Is How I Work
Since joining Grubhub in 2014, Maria Belousova has served as VP of Engineering, Senior Vice President of Technology, and now CTO, where she oversees Grubhub’s technical infrastructure and product vision. She previously held technology leadership roles at Microsoft and Bluefly , and founded social networking platform Davai. She told us how she grew up in a family of software engineers and how she gets her job done without a to-do list.
Location: New York. Current job: CTO, Grubhub. One word that best describes how you work: focused. Current mobile device: iPhone. Current computer: MacBook Air.
First of all, tell me a little about your past and how you became who you are today.
I grew up in a family of computer scientists in Minsk, Belarus. I woke up to my mom talking on the phone in the meeting; software development has always been a family craft. However, growing up I was fond of mathematics and thought that one day I would become a mathematician.
Then, at 19, I left home and came to the United States as a political refugee. Away from my family, I focused on supporting myself and building a career. I found myself best at solving problems with software. The rest is history. I have built a variety of things, from device drivers to distributed systems, navigation software, search engines, and more.
At some point in my career while working at Microsoft, I got into search, relevance, discovery, and hyper-local commerce. I later left Microsoft and started a data mining company that focused on identifying business intent on social media.
However, engineering has always been a passion of mine, and Grubhub is the perfect place for a technologist – a mix of hyper-local commerce, logistics, and a treasure trove of data. I’ve been at Grubhub for almost four years now, and it’s incredible to look back and think about how much we’ve accomplished in that time.
What apps, software or tools can’t you live without?
Well, of course, Grubhub, but beyond that, communication applications are important to me. Gmail, Slack, Bluejeans , Facetime, Whatsapp and Skype all help me stay in touch with my team throughout the day, as well as my family in Europe.
How is your workplace arranged?
I have a permanent desk, like many of my team members, in an open workspace. I enjoy working side by side with my team and making sure that I am available and accessible to everyone; it really encourages openness and collaboration.
What’s your best time-saving shortcut or life hack?
I don’t believe in multitasking, with one exception: training and thinking.
I usually train for an hour in the morning. During this time, I enter the zone, think about what I want to achieve during the day, and go back to any open questions. By the time I finish training, I have a game plan for the day.
What’s your favorite to-do list manager?
No one. I think to-do lists are evil. They take mental energy and pull you down. If there is something important, I immediately take it upon myself, or write it down on my calendar, or ask someone on my team to work with it. Luckily, I have an amazing team that can handle anything that comes our way.
What are some of your best everyday activities? What’s your secret?
Laser focus. I can easily develop a sense of urgency for key tasks and then block everything else by focusing on them.
In addition, as a leader, I am very confident in the success of my team. When I see them making a breakthrough or reaching an important milestone, I feel a tremendous sense of pride and achievement, and I acknowledge and congratulate those achievements. I work to ensure that my team is successful and that they feel supported.
What do you listen to while you work? Have a favorite playlist? Maybe we can talk on the radio? Or do you prefer silence?
I spend a lot of time in meetings, so I usually listen to people. When I really need to get into the zone, techno, trance and ambient music are the best sound to focus on – a habit I developed during my programming days. When I’m under pressure, heavy industrial rock works better than triple espresso.
What are you reading now? Or what would you recommend?
I recently read The One Thing. While this was not a big eye-opener, it did a great job of summarizing what I had suspected for a while: focusing your energy and efforts on what matters most helps to reduce noise and achieve your goals. At Grubhub, we often shorten our goals to one or two so that it’s absolutely clear what is important.
How do you replenish? What do you do when you want to forget about work?
I love to walk. My family and I go hiking almost every weekend. We either go out of town or travel through the concrete jungle of Manhattan. My 7 year old has become a great traveler! Also, I have always wanted to play the piano, so I recently started taking lessons. It’s amazing how much fun and stress relieving it is.
What’s your favorite side project?
I love to eat and want to pass this passion on to my daughter. We often cook and try new dishes together. We try new restaurants on weekends and I encourage her to order something new and exciting. For a seven-year-old child, she has a very developed palate, which my mother is proud of.
What is your sleep pattern? Are you a night owl or get up early?
Before I became a parent, I was a huge owl. Now that I have a baby, it turns off at 10pm and wakes up at 6am.
Fill in the blank: I would like _________ to answer these same questions.
What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?
Don’t take things personally. In fact, I received this advice several times and it took me years to develop. Taking personal concerns out of the equation really helps you assess each situation more objectively and understand alternative perspectives.