Understand before automating.
I audit the current process, learn how the business works and speak to the people doing the work, so the fix targets the real problem.
PMP® CERTIFIED, 2024
Carla
Fernandes.
Creating better systems. Delivering business value.
I connect people, processes and technology to solve the right problems, make better use of time and resources, and create value that matters.
Johannesburg, South Africa · UTC+2
THE THROUGH LINE
Thinking in systems.
Creating efficiencies.
Delivering value.
I started in campaign delivery and moved into the systems behind it: how teams share information, plan capacity and make decisions. Now my focus is simple: making sure a team’s time goes into the work that creates value.
CAREER AT A GLANCE
Hello Yellow · Digital Project Director+
First PM hire. I audited how work moved through the agency, then built the project management function, operating systems and AI-enabled workflows. The result: less friction, clearer visibility and more time for higher-value work.
The Hub brings scattered status documents, client files, policies, metrics and dependencies into a clearer view. Resource weightings help the founders see where team effort is going. The team reports to me, and I report to the founders.
Jellyfish · Project Manager to Senior Project Manager+
Led global delivery and owned a regional P&L of about R70M, building matrix teams of up to 20 specialists and protecting margin through rate management, change requests and scope control. My proposal to templatise how we worked across regions became the agency’s blueprint for ways of working and onboarding, and helped eight interns move into PM roles.
Reported to the VP of Project Management, with a regional reporting line to the Managing Director.
EssenceMediacom · Client Manager, The Coca-Cola Company+
Coordinated the roll-out of integrated marketing strategy across eight African markets and the TCCC multi-brand beverage portfolio. I joined as COVID hit and helped pivot campaign strategy with no playbook, keeping client, media and creative teams in different countries working to one plan.
Sprout Performance Partners · Digital Account Manager, FNB (FirstRand Group)+
Grew from junior to account manager on FNB, owning client relationships across retail, business, brand and sponsorships, and private clients, with a paid media budget of about R40M. I rolled out FNB's first e-migration campaign as the bank drove app adoption, and ran lead generation for Save the Children.
Golo · Brand & Business Marketing Manager+
My first full marketing role, in my home city of Maputo. Client and project management for TV, radio and out-of-home campaigns, coordinating production crews, talent and clients from brief to broadcast, and localising work for brands entering Mozambique.
02 / CLIENT LANDSCAPE
A career across brands,
markets and industries.
A selection of brands I've delivered for, across five agencies and four continents.
Golo
Traditional advertising
Sprout Performance Partners
Performance marketing
EssenceMediacom
Integrated, multi-market campaigns
Jellyfish
Global delivery and digital services
TIH portfolio included First for Women, Auto & General, Dialdirect, Virseker and Budget.
Hello Yellow
UK · US · Australia · New Zealand
AllBright
Wood Veneer Hub operates across the US, UK, New Zealand and Australia.
03 / WHAT I BELIEVE
“
Culture is a consequence,
not an initiative.
The way people experience work is shaped by the systems, decisions and behaviours they encounter every day.
Systems only work if the people in them feel supported. I lead with clear expectations, accountability paired with care, and real investment in people’s growth, from onboarding new starters to helping eight interns into PM roles. At Jellyfish, I led Jellyfish in Colour, our employee resource group, and moderated a conversation about belonging at work.
04 / AI & WORKFLOW DESIGN
AI should remove friction and protect thinking time.
At Hello Yellow, I introduced an AI-enabled meeting workflow that captures discussions, turns them into owned actions in Asana and shares summaries in Slack. The aim is simple: an effective team that spends less time chasing information and more time delivering strategic value and solving business problems.
Build and test together.
I work with the teams affected to test the workflow in practice. We check that actions are accurate, ownership is clear and information reaches the right place before launch.
Launch, learn and improve.
After launch, I review how the workflow is being used, listen to feedback and refine it. The measure is whether it removes friction and gives people more time for work that needs their judgement.
05 / HOW I WORK
High standards.
Low ego.
Make ownership clear.
I set out who owns the work, what needs to happen and where a decision is needed.
Build around the real process.
I design systems around how the work actually moves, not how a template says it should.
Develop people as well as process.
I onboard every new starter at Hello Yellow, supported an intern into the team, and helped eight interns move into PM roles at Jellyfish.
Stay close to the business.
I connect delivery decisions to client priorities, commercial needs and the people available to do the work.
06 / PLATFORMS & SYSTEMS
Systems first. Tools second.
I design the way work moves: how projects are briefed, ownership is set, dependencies are tracked, capacity is understood and leaders see what needs attention. The tools below support that system.
DIGITAL MARKETING
COMMERCE & CRM
FOUNDER EXPERIENCE
I also founded Studio.13, a hair and beauty e-commerce business on Shopify. Running naturallyshop.co.za gives me a hands-on view of the operational details behind an online store, from product merchandising to customer experience.
07 / BACKGROUND
Grounded in delivery.
Focused on the whole system.
Johannesburg, South Africa
Time-zone overlap with UK and EMEA teams, and experience working across global markets.
PMP® certified
Project Management Institute · 2024