In this special episode of Fintech Chatter, host Dexter Cousins speaks with Paul Roos, an AFL legend and founder of Performance by Design. They explore the parallels between elite sports and startup culture, discussing how founders and leaders can build high-performance teams on a budget!

Paul shares insights from his trophy winning coaching career, steering the Sydney Swans to their first title in 72 years! The culture Roosy built at the club is still legendary 20 years later. He's spent the past decade advising startups and executives at some of Australia's largest companies on building high-performing cultures unique challenges faced by Fintech founders.

In the interview Dexter and Paul discuss the importance of self-awareness, the role of leadership in shaping culture, and the challenges startups face as they grow. The conversation also touches on the significance of health and wellbeing in leadership, and how small companies can create a positive culture that drives success.

Takeaways

The culture built at the Sydney Swans is a model for startup success.
Leadership behaviors directly influence organisational culture.
Self-awareness is crucial for effective leadership.
Startups must define their culture early to avoid fragmentation.
Investing in culture can prevent costly turnover.
High-performance teams require clear role definitions.
Remote work challenges can be overcome with a team-first mindset.
Health and wellbeing are essential for leadership effectiveness.
Leaders should model the behaviors they want to see in their teams.
Incremental changes can lead to significant improvements in culture.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Guest Background
04:38 Transition from Sports to Corporate Culture
09:30 Building a High-Performance Culture
14:11 Leadership and Self-Awareness in Startups
18:44 The Importance of Foundational Culture
23:25 Role of Leaders in Shaping Culture
27:16 Navigating Growth and Leadership Challenges
30:13 The Shift to Remote Work and Team Dynamics
33:11 Hiring for Culture and Team Cohesion
36:32 The Importance of Defining Company Culture
39:07 Mental Health and Personal Wellbeing in Leadership
42:02 Looking Ahead: Commitment to Growth in 2025

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About this Episode
Dexter Cousins welcomes Rob Lincolne, Founder & CEO of PayDock to the latest episode of the Fintech Chatter Podcast.
Rob shares Paydock's unique position in the payments ecosystem with a deep-dive into payments orchestration and the importance no-code solutions.
He discusses the challenges of attracting top talent, and the complexities of building a global team. He highlights the resilience his team in Ukraine who have operated under tough conditions since 2022.
Rob shares with Dexter his daily routines and the importance of maintaining a healthy work-life balance as a founder of a global Fintech venture.

About Rob Lincolne
Rob Lincolne is an accomplished entrepreneur with extensive experience in the payments industry. Founder and Co-CEO of Paydock, he is dedicated to transforming how we transact by creating the world’s most trusted payment orchestration platform.
His journey began in Sydney 2007 when he founded a digital marketing agency specialising in the not-for-profit sector.
The Paydock vision arose from the need for better integration between financial institutions and their merchant clients. Their innovative approach aims to unlock the fintech market's true benefits.
Rob has also founded a successful "near-shore" talent placement agency in Ukraine, connecting software engineers with fintechs around the globe.

About Paydock
Paydock is a payments orchestration platform, leading the way in resolving costly merchant issues with its innovative API-first technology that harmonises payment, fraud, identity and other vendors (such as Stripe, PayPal, etc.) through a single interface.

Key Takeaways

• PayDock addresses the technology gaps between large banks and fintech.
• Adopting a no-code solution within the payments industry is essential for merchant adoption of fintech.
• Orchestration should be about enabling merchants, not commoditising services.
• Building a global team has been crucial for scaling the business.
• Customer relationships are vital in the fintech space.
• The future of payments is modular and interoperable.
• Attracting talent requires offering challenging problems to solve
• Character and resilience are more important than skills.
• The hype in fintech is over; it's time for real business.

Chapters
00:00 Introduction to Fintech Chatter
01:59 Understanding PayDoc and Its Unique Position
06:06 Innovation and the No-Code Approach
10:58 Defining Payments Orchestration
14:58 The Journey of PayDoc: From Australia to the UK
19:09 Building a Global Team and Talent Acquisition
21:54 Supporting Teams During Crisis: The Ukraine Experience
25:32 Attracting Top Talent in Fintech
29:26 The Importance of Character in Hiring
33:56 Resilience and Overcoming Adversity
38:33 Current Trends in Fintech
42:14 Daily Routines and Habits of Founders
45:06 Looking Ahead: PayDoc's Future

Links
Visit Paydock
Connect - Rob Lincolne
Connect - Dexter Cousins

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Fintech Chatter is brought to you by Tier One People - the executive search firm dedicated to connecting high-growth fintech companies with exceptional leadership talent.

About this Episode

In the latest episode of Fintech Chatter, host Dexter Cousins chats to Simon Schwarz, Co-Founder and CEO of FreightInsure, about his journey from fintech to insurtech.

Simon shares how his career from investment banking, to fintech, to insurtech (working with SocietyOne, Zip and BizCover along the way) has shaped his current scaleup, FreightInsure.

We take a deep dive into Simon’s strategy to build FreighInsure and how the MGA (Managing General Agent) model has enabled the distribution of embedded insurance products.

Simon reflects on the dual responsibilities as Co-Founder and CEO, and his life hacks for balance and well-being.

About Simon
Simon is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of FreightInsure, Australia’s leading platform for embedded freight insurance.

He started his career at Investec Bank in Australia, holding roles as Head of Investments, Head of Credit and Head of Board Risk and Capita. Simon has sat on boards as a Non-Executive Director and Chairman at several investee companies. He has also acted on advisory boards at Zip Co and Middle, and is a Board member of Insurtech Australia and the Regulatory and Compliance Working Group.

Simon is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, holds an MBA (Exec), Masters of Applied Finance, and is the recipient of the University Medal for pure mathematics from the University of Sydney. He was an Honorary Fellow at Macquarie University’s Applied Finance Centre and a member of the Menzies School of Health Research Development Committee.

About FreightInsure
FreightInsure offers embedded goods-in-transit insurance directly from a transport company's booking platform. Shippers no longer need to buy annual marine insurance policies, but can simply purchase insurance on a needs basis, when booking their freight, within less than a minute.

Key Takeaways

• How the MGA model allows for rapid growth without the need for capital reserves
• How distribution innovation is big Insurtech opportunity
• How AI applications are being developed to enhance underwriting processes
• Freight and logistics market isn’t sexy but it presents vast opportunities for growth
• Identifying profitable market opportunities is crucial for business success
• The quality of founders is the key to a startup's success
• Focus on distribution to solve market problems effectively
• The role of a founder differs significantly from that of a CEO
• InsurTech in Australia is gaining momentum and attracting capital

Chapters
00:00 Introduction

05:54 The Birth of FreightInsure

12:01 Innovation in Distribution

17:57 Future Innovations and AI Applications

25:15 Identifying Market Opportunities

30:54 The Dual Role of Founder and CEO

39:00 The InsurTech Landscape in Australia

Links & Resources:

• Visit FreightInsure website
• Connect with Simo

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