Financial technology is key to great customer service says Imperial alumnus

Women shouldn't be put off pursuing careers in financial technology because of its male dominated image, said an MBA alumnus.

Ahead of a panel discussion tonight at the Business School, Holly Peters-Wright, a Product Manager for Global liquidity and Cash Management at HSBC, highlighted the growing number of opportunities within the fintech arena, whether in start-ups or big businesses.

In her current role at HSBC, she is helping the bank to develop an approach that makes it more focussed on improving the customer’s experience when using its payment products such as mobile banking apps.

Holly graduated from the Business School’s Executive MBA programme in 2015. She spoke to Laura Singleton about her career in fintech.

How do you define fintech?

Fintech actually means ‘the technology of finance’, but I tend to think of it as a tool to improve customer services and solve specific problems. For example, when HSBC created its first online banking platform it made a huge difference to the way people experienced banking. It’s important to always put yourself in the shoes of your clients by providing products such as apps, which are very easy for them to use. This customer-centric approach is the reason why many small companies are so successful, and big banks have only recently caught on to this approach.

What do you see as the next big trend in fintech?

Open banking is definitely the next big trend. This is a new concept that will enable third party software developers to build apps and services around a financial institution. It will allow small start-ups and enterprises to access the historically closed financial industry through allowing them access to customer data to offer add in and added value services.

Can you describe your career path since graduating from Imperial?

During my MBA last year, I was working on a start-up in the logistics field, which was a spin-off from a group project I was doing as part of my Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Design module. It was at this time that HSBC got in touch with me to ask if I would be interested in joining their digital team. I had previously worked at the company as a programme manager within IT team. However, the company has recently gone through a big digital transformation programme, so they asked me if I would join one of the streams on this new programme.

I look after the payment products delivered through digital channels such as online banking, online payments and mobile apps. I’m responsible for forming a strategy that enables customers to improve how they interact with our products so that they can have a better banking experience.

How can big businesses such as banks compete with smaller fintech start-ups?

People normally associate the term ‘fintech’ with start-ups rather than big corporate companies. However, many big companies such as HSBC are recognising the incredible potential of financial technology to enhance their services. HSBC is actually working with a number of small fintech start-ups to tap into their technological expertise to help improve our products and add value to the customer experience.

What are the main challenges facing women who are looking to get into fintech?

People tend to think of fintech as applying mainly to the start-up scene, which can be very male dominated, given that more men than women tend to work in these companies on the technical side. This was certainly my experience of working in start-ups as an IT consultant prior to studying at Imperial.

However, I think women shouldn’t be put off pursuing careers in fintech, as there are now so many career paths on the business side rather than the technical side of fintech – both in start-ups or in big businesses.

Women in all industries face challenges, but I think a lot of the time women tend to impose challenges on themselves. In a male dominated work environment, women need to have more confidence to make their voices heard, particularly by senior management, to help them build their careers. I think that business schools such as Imperial’s can help encourage more women to pursue careers in fintech by providing more talks by female guest speakers who work in the industry. This would enable students to learn more about the multitude of career choices available to them in this evolving area.

What specific skills did you learn on your MBA that you can apply to your job?

Having started my career in IT, one of the reasons why I decided to do an MBA was to move my career away from consulting work into corporate management. If I hadn’t studied for my MBA at Imperial then I wouldn’t have secured my current position. My experience at Imperial was invaluable for helping me learn the softer skills needed in business, such as team work and negotiating skills. The experience has made me a better manager and employee.

The MBA was also very useful in getting me to think about the big picture of where a company fits within the wider economy and how your skills can make an impact. Ultimately, the MBA gives graduates a tool box to succeed in business, by providing them with the skills and knowledge needed to tackle almost any career.

What advice would you give to current students looking to pursue a similar career path?

Don’t be intimidated by fintech as a career choice. Remember that it can be just as exciting working for a big corporate company as for a smaller start-up as you can still get the ‘start-up feel’ in a big company. In particular, banking can be much more dynamic and exciting than people imagine. Ultimately, you need to look at the entire industry and decide which area you want to be in.

Holly will be speaking at tonight’s Women in Fintech panel discussion at Imperial College Business School. For more information visit our website.