Groupon Employee Spotlight:
Patricia Gogova

Introducing Patricia, a BI analyst at Groupon, leading Tableau self-service adoption and fostering agile methodologies.
With a marketing background, she thrives on collaborative efforts and unwinds through wakeboarding, embodying Groupon's ethos of transformation and purposeful growth 🚀

Tell us a bit about yourself and your role at Groupon. 

Hi! I am contributing to the transformation as a BI analyst in the Core BI team, working mainly on Tableau self-service adoption and also very closely with the marketing team on fulfilling their data needs. 

How did you get started in your career, and what brought you to  Groupon?

Originally working in marketing myself, I got interested in analyzing and reporting the results of campaigns more than actually setting them up, so I changed direction and started exploring the data world around four years ago. I joined Groupon very recently -  only three months ago, to contribute to such significant change and to everything that follows.

What's the most exciting thing happening in your department right now?

At the time of writing this answer, it has to be the Q2 planning. :-) Apart from that, we are on a path of applying an agile way of working while delivering data products to various stakeholders - which brings a lot of interesting learnings! 

Describe your team in three words.

Ambitious, skilled & supportive.

What's a fun or interesting way your team collaborates or bonds together?

Since most of the team is located outside of the Czech Republic, a lot of team building and collaboration happens online. But when the team came to Prague, I enjoyed the escape room game we went to and also the walk to the Prague Castle. At six o’clock in the morning! 

Share a memorable moment, project or event from your time at Groupon.

That mentioned six a.m. walk to the Castle. :-) and meaningful activities the Core BI team does, such as Tableau self-service approach deployment or Tool adoption activities.

What's the best piece of advice you've received from a colleague at Groupon?

I like one point from Dusan’s (our CEO) presentation he had at university just few weeks before I joined - no bullshit & tough love approach.

Which of Groupon's values do you feel most in tune with, and why?

Ownership & Accountability resonate with me the most as having a workspace where I feel empowered and seeing the meaning in what I do is crucial for me. 

Can you share any tips for staying productive and motivated?

Having a clear goal in mind definitely helps - to really know why I am doing what I am doing. That applies to both short- or long-term oriented goals. Also having regular ‘me’ sessions where I go over my notes, things I am currently working on and just stopping and evaluating if I’m moving in the right direction. 

How do you maintain a healthy work-life balance?

By engaging in activities where I can ‘turn my brain off’ from work-related stuff - be it doing sports, meeting friends for coffee walks or doing some manual work. And also turning off all notifications for at least one full day over the weekend and in the evenings. 

What is one non-work activity or hobby that you're into? 

Wakeboarding! 

What’s one thing about you that surprises people?

The amount of tattoos I have. 

Rapid and Fire Questions

If you were stranded on a deserted island and could only have three items, what would they be?

A knife and two good books 📚

If you could have any fictional character as your best friend, who would it be?

Hermione Granger.   

What's the most embarrassing song on your playlist that you secretly love?

I will not admit to the most embarrassing one for sure :-) but 90s pop song is something you can hear me sing often.

If you could only eat one cuisine for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Salmon Poke Bowl from this one specific place. Easy. 

What was the last book you read?

Augusts by Jakub Stanjura - touching story by Czech author 📚

If you could time travel to any era, past or future, where would you go?

Few hundred years to the future to see how we evolved (assuming the global warming wouldn't interfere with that idea).

What's the most unusual talent or skill you have?

I can read really really fast.

If you could have dinner with any historical figure, who would it be and why?

Florence Nightingale - a pioneer of data visualization - to show her how far we came and also to let her know how her work is still admired! 

What's your guilty pleasure when it comes to TV shows or movies?

I don't have any as far as I know. I’m not a huge TV show fan - I actually have seen only 2-3 series so far!