TECHNOLOGY
“ When you ’ re scaling rapidly , it ’ s so easy to lose sight of culture . When we were growing Pleo , we were determined to build a company that employees love and where they feel truly recognised . To make that a reality , we ’ ve had to keep a laser focus on culture and ensure our core values are upheld to a high standard .”
The war on talent is a very real obstacle when it comes to scaling a fintech in the current marketplace . As technologies evolve , specific skills are required to implement them and market demand for the right staff can be extreme .
“ When you ’ re scaling at a unicorn pace , there ’ s a real pressure to ensure you ’ re hiring the right people in step with the company ’ s growth . This becomes even harder when you factor in a war for talent , the likes of which we haven ’ t seen in decades . In order to win , it comes back again to that crucial point of true employee satisfaction . You can try and draw people in with all the salary and material benefits you like , but what employees are also looking for is compassion , understanding , and a culture of belonging to support their growth and development .”
Unicorns are no longer a rarity As of March this year , the global count of unicorns is now well over 1,200 , with a cumulative valuation of $ 4.2trn . Mani says that although the arrival of new unicorns has slowed down in the last few months after a record-breaking 2021 , in light of ongoing trends like the platformisation of financial services and the huge opportunities created by the metaverse , 2022 is set to be another big one .
He also predicts many more unicorns to emerge across Europe over the next few months , as entrepreneurship flourishes and fintech , which was once almost entirely associated with Silicone Valley , has gone global .
“ We can expect to see increasingly more ‘ home-grown ’ unicorns on this side of the Atlantic … thanks to a surge of entrepreneurship and innovation , there are now over 100 here in Europe .”
He concludes : “ I ’ m a firm believer that achieving meteoric growth , whatever that means to you , is not just about revenuesetting . The secret that the fastest-growing , most successful businesses have all understood is that you need an inspiring vision , and the people to support you in achieving it .”
“ YOU CAN TRY AND DRAW PEOPLE IN WITH THE SALARY AND MATERIAL BENEFITS , BUT WHAT EMPLOYEES ARE ALSO LOOKING FOR IS COMPASSION , UNDERSTANDING , AND A CULTURE OF BELONGING ”