Vishakha Gupta has had an extensive career pebbled in payments, having lent her skillset to brands such as Highnote, Plastiq, Marqeta, Wells Fargo and Citi. Vishakha obtained her Bachelor of Technology in Maharashtra, India, and then her Master of Business Administration at the University of Maryland in the United States. Today, Vishakha looks after Nium’s Global FX Product Suite and Payins and is based in San Francisco.
Incredibly impressively, Vishakha can speak four languages; English, Bengali, Hindi and Arabic; and is trained in Classical Indian Dance, Salsa, Bachata, Hip-Hop and Contemporary. In this blog, we pick Vishakha’s brain to better understand how her enthusiasm for technology began and how she, and her team, measure product success when it goes to market (in English, and sadly, we are not on the dancefloor – this time).
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What makes you jump out of bed in the morning?
The opportunity to learn something new is what drives me. The ever-changing and ever-evolving nature of the payment industry quenches my thirst for continued education. Building the next generation of payments, on a global scale, to simplify money movement, is truly fulfilling for me. We are fortunate enough to touch the lives of those whom we are unlikely to even meet face-to-face. There are not many industries that have that reach.
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You come from a very extensive (and impressive) background in the fintech/finance/telecoms sectors in engineering and product. What initially attracted you to join #TeamNium?
There were two primary catalysts; one was the opportunity to build our Global FX products from the ground up and lead the team, which is something I hadn’t dabbled in previously. Secondly, the Nium’ers I met in interviews were truly inspiring, both from a knowledge expertise in product and technology point of view, as well as their humility and attitude.
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Where would you say your passion for tech began?
As a child, I was always naturally curious. I would perpetually ask “why”. As I matured, I realised that this mindset is valuable. In my opinion, being able to envision the “impossible” sits at the heart of technology. I am drawn to thinking outside of the box and enjoy challenging the status quo in pursuit of building the most innovative solutions.
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If you weren’t a Product Manager, and you could have any job in the world, what would you choose to do for a living? This can be a real or imaginary career!
Had I not encountered the world of product and technology, I would most definitely have pursed a career in the arts and dance industry. I was trained for 17 years in Indian classical dance, and was an instructor for Salsa, Bachata, Hip-Hop and Contemporary dance.
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In your opinion, what does Nium offer that differentiates us in the market?
A full-stack payments solution to serve complex business needs. Once a customer is onboarded onto the Nium platform, they have a plethora of flexible options to move funds across the globe, based on their unique needs. Unlike some of the other solutions, Nium is essentially a one-stop payments platform, eliminating the need for any additional partner integrations. We have a vast network of licensed partners in our network, which further supplements the industry-leading products and solutions we offer our customers.
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If you had to describe Nium as an animal, which would you choose and why?
I’d have to say a mythological creature; a phoenix. We offer the payment ecosystem, and our customers; hope, renewal, progress and growth. Nium is resilient, prosperous and motivated, despite the economic climate around us changing regularly.
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How do we decide what to build/what not to build for our customers?
Staying true to our Nium value - #MakeItBetter - we drive down and focus on the root cause of pain points our customers face before trying to solve issues. This enables us to narrow down so that we can truly provide an optimum and long-lasting solution. We chase that “ah-ha” moment when our customers realise that we have provided the “fix.”
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How do we measure the success of our products?
There are a couple of dimensions against which the success of a product release is measured. I focus on 3 key themes – (1) customer satisfaction and usage (2) API viability (3) meeting larger company objectives. Of course, each of these themes has detailed metrics that we track, which also determines the overall rollout and go-to-market strategy.
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Which characteristics/traits would you say make a successful Nium’er?
In my time at Nium, I have observed that those most successful are always hungry to learn and are unafraid to take calculated risks and be bold. The secret sauce in the way that we work is in adopting another value - #WinItTogether – which means that we are willing to collaborate cross-functionally to do the best for our customers and our business.
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Fun question! If you were a brand, what would your motto be? In other words, which quote/saying/sentiment keeps you motivated on your daily grind?
I have always loved Siemens’ motto of “ingenuity for life”. As someone dedicated to building innovative tech, I am truly powered by the idea of creating value in the society, by delivering expert solutions with a sense of responsibility.
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