Before founding Cheetah Stories, Fiorella had an extensive career in humanitarian work. She spent her twenties and early thirties working in conflict zones in the Middle East and East Africa for the International Committee of the Red Cross, where she specialised in negotiations with armed actors.

Later, she joined the Competence Centre on Humanitarian Negotiation (CCHN), where she conducted research on negotiations and trained humanitarian frontline workers and diplomats in high-stakes negotiations.