Cara Martner
Practical systems support for work that has outgrown informal processes.
I’m a business systems and operations specialist based in the Twin Cities, working with healthcare services, founder-led organizations, and small teams to make messy data, scattered tools, and manual workflows clearer.
My work sits between strategy and execution: understanding what is not working, organizing the underlying system, and helping people build a practical way forward.
What I Do
I turn unclear operational needs into systems people can actually use.
For nearly a decade, I have worked inside the day-to-day operations of small and distributed teams: managing CRM structure, improving data quality, building recurring reporting, coordinating projects, documenting processes, and creating clearer client and internal workflows.
I am most useful when a business knows something needs to work better but does not yet have a clean technical specification or implementation plan. I can help clarify the problem, organize the moving pieces, carry out the cleanup, and leave behind a structure that is easier to maintain.
Core Strengths
Systems thinking with hands-on operational follow-through.
Business systems & CRM
CRM administration, contact structures, fields, tags, statuses, segmentation, data cleanup, migration preparation, and practical system design.
Reporting & data quality
Recurring client reports, leadership summaries, spreadsheet restructuring, data validation, reconciliation, and clearer operational visibility.
Workflow & process design
Intake, scheduling, client follow-up, task handoffs, recurring work, internal ownership, process documentation, and maintainable SOPs.
Project coordination
Translating ambiguous requests into defined work, clarifying owners and dependencies, organizing decisions, and keeping multi-step projects moving.
Implementation support
Carrying out the practical cleanup and configuration work after the strategy is clear, rather than stopping at recommendations.
Cross-functional communication
Working across leadership, operations, advisors, business development, vendors, and distributed teams to make information and next steps easier to understand.
Experience
A career built across systems, service, and real-world operations.
Healthcare services operations
Since 2016, I have supported Navigate, LLC across CRM administration, client reporting, business-development data, project coordination, documentation, and operational systems serving healthcare organizations and physician-focused services.
Independent systems consulting
Through Hipster for Hire, I work with founder-led, creative, and service-based businesses that need experienced short-term help cleaning up systems, data, workflows, and operational processes.
Live-event & hospitality operations
My work with First Avenue and Blue Ox Music Festival adds a different operational environment: fast-moving service, live logistics, situational awareness, team coordination, and practical problem-solving under pressure.
Selected Work
The kinds of problems I am usually asked to untangle.
CRM data quality & segmentation
Reconcile inconsistent records, fields, tags, and contact lists so reporting, communication, and outreach can rely on cleaner data.
Client usage & leadership reporting
Turn operational activity into repeatable client-facing reports and concise leadership views that support planning and account conversations.
Workflow & follow-up design
Map intake-through-delivery processes, clarify ownership and timing, and reduce reliance on memory with practical templates, reminders, statuses, and documentation.
Operational project visibility
Build trackers, dashboards, decision logs, and meeting materials that make priorities, dependencies, and unresolved decisions easier to manage.
Where I Work Best
Between “we know this is a problem” and “we have a clean plan to fix it.”
I work best in environments where there is meaningful work already happening, but the systems behind it have become harder to manage than they should be.
- The problem crosses tools, people, data, and process.
- The team needs someone who can investigate before prescribing.
- There is value in both strategic thinking and hands-on implementation.
- The organization prefers practical structure over unnecessary complexity.
- The work requires judgment, follow-through, and clear communication.
Professional Links
Looking for consulting work, my full background, or a professional connection?
Consulting & project work
Explore Hipster for Hire for systems cleanup, CRM and data cleanup, and workflow design services.
Professional resume
Review my work history, systems experience, selected projects, technology background, and education.
Connect with me professionally or view my current public profile and work history.
Cara Martner
Need the full professional background?
My resume includes detailed experience across business systems, healthcare services operations, CRM administration, reporting, workflow design, project coordination, and live-event operations.