Started as a Step, Stayed for the Growth: how Tania fell in love with CS
At Preply, growth isn’t just about hitting targets — it’s about personal transformation, seizing opportunities, and embracing change. Tania’s journey is a perfect example of this. What started as a simple introduction to customer support quickly turned into a deep dive into the company’s culture, with a role that evolved right alongside her. Dive into our latest blog to learn more about Tania’s story — about owning her growth, adapting on the fly, and never waiting for permission to make an impact.
How your journey with Preply has started?
It all started eight years ago in Kyiv when I bumped into an Indian guy in my elevator. His name is Prateek, and he’d recently joined Preply as a Customer Support Team Lead. We quickly became close friends, bonding over conversations about the cultural differences between India and Ukraine.
Years later, during COVID, I was looking for a new job when Prateek suggested I join Preply. At first, I thought, “I could be a product manager,” but he convinced me that Customer Support was the right fit. He knew me well: how I connected with people from all backgrounds — and thought I’d be a great addition to the team.
I joined with the plan to move to another department eventually, but ended up falling in love with the role. Back then, our team was just 17 people. Today, it’s grown to 170, and I couldn’t be more proud of the journey.
Can you share the key moments that shaped your journey from Customer Support Agent to Team Lead?
When I first joined Preply, my plan was to start in customer support to understand how everything worked and then move into another department, as my background was in project management. But over time, I fell in love with the work and the spirit of the team; I realized I wanted to grow in this field.
At the time, our team was small — just agents, a few team leads, and the Director of Support. About six months after I joined, the role of Senior Customer Support Agent was introduced, which would focus on training and handling more advanced cases. I was really excited about this role.
During my interview for the senior position, I thought I had it all sorted out, but my manager gave me some candid feedback. He pointed out that my focus was on people, not on the processes and policies a senior role would require. Given my background in managing people, he suggested I consider the team lead role instead.
We began working on my skills in customer support-specific area, like data analysis and performance management. After a few months of training and practice, when a team lead position opened up, I applied — and got the role. It was a long journey, but it was the perfect fit for me, and I’m so glad I stayed in customer support.
What were the biggest challenges you faced during your transition?
The move from agent to team lead wasn’t an unexpected challenge — it was something I anticipated. With a background in philosophy, I’ve always believed in unlocking human potential through learning. Education, in its true sense, isn’t about filling minds with information; it’s about helping individuals bring out their potential, what’s already inside them. This philosophy became crucial as I transitioned to the team lead role.
One of the biggest projects I’m proud of was scaling customer support to a 24/7 operation. When I joined, we worked from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. But as the company grew, we knew we needed to extend our hours to improve customer experience. This required significant effort — coordinating with different teams, implementing new systems, and managing shifts. My team was the first to test night shifts, and we had to hire and scale up quickly. In one quarter, we doubled the team to make 24/7 support a reality. It was a massive challenge, but we pulled it off.
What positive habits or behaviors do you think have helped you get to where you are now?
For me, the key to success is ownership. One project I led as an agent really highlighted this. We had a backlog of 700 tickets, and my manager gave me the freedom to handle it however I saw fit. I led a small team of two agents, and we called ourselves the “Ticket Warriors.” The challenge was to close those 700 tickets quickly without compromising quality, so I created a system to efficiently handle different types of tickets. We finished in just 2.5 days, but the key was creating specific workflows to ensure quality alongside speed. That’s what ownership is about — taking initiative, driving results, and ensuring quality.
Ownership also means constantly seeking ways to improve. It’s also about taking responsibility, no matter the circumstances. Living through difficult times, like the current war in Ukraine, can make it easy to feel overwhelmed. But we can’t control the situation, only how we respond to it. As customer support agents, as team leads, and in our personal lives, we have the power to choose how we act, even in tough circumstances. For me, that’s the essence of ownership — it’s in the small actions, every day, that add up to something bigger.
What advice would you give to the potential candidates who are about to join Preply?
My advice is simple: Be brave, be curious, and take ownership of your journey. Don’t wait for things to happen — dive in, be courageous, and seek out opportunities. If you have a chance to connect with someone, ask questions. If you notice something interesting or a project you can join, get involved! Curiosity and diving deep are key.
Our Customer Support team is constantly growing, and we are looking for new team members to help us deliver exceptional support and provide our customers with the best experience possible. So if you’ve enjoyed getting to know Tania and would like to join the team, check out our open vacancies here!
