Account Settings
Email Preferences
You must be logged in to update your preferences.
You must be logged in to update your preferences.
DataCash, a UK pioneer in eCommerce payments and fraud prevention had expanded through multiple acquisitions without integrating them technically or commercially. There was a large Sales team without a clear idea of what services could actually be sold, and whether they could actually be delivered and scaled live to customers. There were instances of mis-selling, where delivery was impossible within the anticipated timescales.
Acquired companies maintained their own Sales and Product Development activity without any navigation/co-ordination from DataCash. The Digital Commerce market was experiencing explosive growth but DataCash were poorly prepared to target expansion in International/ Cross Border Payments; a move towards ‘Real Time’ Payments and Fraud Prevention, and diversification away from their Core market – Gaming, Gambling and On Line Poker. Products and Services weren’t documented.
The 200+ strong Tech Team had no Roadmap, weren’t working with Agile Mentality/ Approaches and were driven by short term, non-qualified and poorly understood ‘customer expectations’ dictated by Sales people. DataCash hadn’t won a new customer deal over the previous 12 months and had no clearly understood/communicated Strategy for growing the business other than acquiring more companies.
There was no Product and Service portfolio, and no Product Management, just Short Term Projects that were customer specific with no overall Direction or C0-ordination. Project Managers were pulled in different directions by Sales Leads.
I was brought in by the main Shareholder and CEO Ashley Head to build a professional product function, develop a Strategy, create a Roadmap and execute versus qualified customer demands.
As Ashley said “I am looking to be bought by Visa, MasterCard, or American Express within the next 18 months.” My task was to fix the key issues with DataCash – Integrate the acquisitions; Set the direction and roadmaps for the products and services in line with market trends; provide a technical roadmap for the technology team and develop agile mentality; win as much Retailer business as possible via a clearly defined, technically feasible, and customer focused product portfolio, and make the business attractive to Visa, MasterCard and Amex.
In addition I had to take over Line Management responsibility for the Co-Founder of DataCash, the Founder and MD of Datacash’s ‘Card Present’ acquisition ACK, all Business Analysts and all Project Managers.
My most urgent action was to structure, qualify and prioritise customer communication on products and services as well as specific requirements/expectations. Sales people had been selling off of inaccurate 5 year old vision statements rather than actually valuable and ready to deliver products and services. Early on I had to resolve issues with a key customer and identify their genuine needs, after they were sold an inappropriate service for their business that also was only just being reviewed for potential development.
My second priority was to stop the 2 Top potential Product Managers resigning and leaving. Both had found new jobs outside of DataCash before I joined. I had to secure significant Pay Rises for both from my CEO and Board, but that proved to be a good investment once we had to sell the business.
I re-organised a consolidated group of project managers into 2 areas:
1. Product Groups, including a Product Manager and Business Analyst in 3 separate product areas
– Card Payments (Visa, MasterCard, Amex)
– ‘Alternate’ and Localised Real Time payment partnerships/Solutions including Wallets such as PayPal
– Fraud Prevention.
I trained each Product Manager up in terms of the basics, such as Customer/Market Requirements/Pain Points; Product Definition/how pain points were addressed; Competitive/Market Positioning; Product Vision/Roadmap and Customer centric prioritisation. I recruited to add extra experience, particularly BA’s so we could flesh customer and market requirements out and start to extend the Roadmaps. I engaged and collaborated with all of the companies that DataCash had acquired but not integrated. This ‘onboarded’ all of the DataCash acquisitions into an Holistic perspective, and prioritised/planned their initiatives out without compromising their autonomy/influence.
2. ‘Professional Services’/Technical Sales and Implementation
I inherited 3 Project Managers with a Technical background, who also had excellent customer facing skills. This allowed me to build a bridge directly into customer organisations to flesh out the right solutions for each customer, as well as forming a fast way to prototype and trial new products and services. It also formed a credible bridge into our Technology teams to fast track feasibility and finesse products through direct lead customer interaction.
I had confidence that our key initiatives, whilst based on the needs of a lead customer each time, would be attractive to other customers and aimed for 80% standardisation with 20% customisation. This became immediately scalable and I planned out the priority order of customers for each planned Innovation.
Within weeks as a team we had defined, roadmapped and updated communications/collateral to train the Sales teams with and enable re-organisation of processes plus ways of working, including introduction of ‘True’ (customer interactive) Agile across all teams and creating a positive impact with customers.
This fertile period enabled creation and delivery of more than 10 new Products, each with lead customers – and our lead customers were opening up new markets (including International expansion beyond the UK) for DataCash. Lead customers included ASOS, Boots, Regus, Sony, Paddy Power, BetFair and Tesco.
The investments in the consolidated Product and Professional Services teams in my first 3 months paid off very quickly.
It wasn’t an 18 Months wait for Visa, Mastercard or Amex to knock on Datacash’s Door. MasterCard arrived to visit us as part of a ‘Beauty Parade’, eager to gain a foothold in the Digital Commerce market. DataCash was one of 8 European Payment Service Providers assessed, and invited to respond to an RFP. I was requested by my CEO to lead the RFP response and subsequent presentations/meetings with MasterCard, ultimately including Board Members. As well as Product and Professional Services I was able to orchestrate Sales team involvement too.
We were able to present a full Roadmap and order book to MasterCard, as well as a fully co-ordinated approach and processes across all Teams and Functions – Including Technology. Within 1 more month MasterCard negotiated the acquisition of DataCash for $500M. This was a 50% premium to the Share Price/Market Capitalisation immediately before the offer. It was a 100% premium to the value on the day I had joined.
In the first year the Actions raised DataCash’s Annual Revenue by 25% from £36M to £45M, and the Roadmaps/New Business were set up to grow the business to £60M+ in the Second Year.
In principle MasterCard were going to give Autonomy to DataCash, and all of the team that I established within Product & Professional Services went on to have very successful careers within MasterCard, then subsequently outside too – one member that I recruited making it to SVP level within 12 years, having started as ‘Assistant Product Manager.’
Improved business agility and ability to rapidly respond to change and opportunity
Digital transformation that drives, moves and resets the organisation’s vision
Driving a culture of innovation for easier and faster adoption of future digital trends
Successful, timely delivery of evidence-based digital transformational outcomes; beyond digitisation
Lack of transformation, change and agility mindset in leadership
Unclear and siloed business strategy leading to misaligned goals across the organisation that conflict with transformation
Lack of sufficient customer and market insight to inform digital transformation
Cynicism, lack of buy-in and resistance to change