Spotlight Series: A Conversation with Casey Chang

In the PayNearMe Spotlight Series, we shine a light on the people that make our company thrive. In this month’s interview, we sat down with Casey Chang, Account Manager, to chat about his role in the company, why he loves working at PayNearMe and his life outside of work.

Q: Can you tell us about your career journey and what led you to PayNearMe? 

Casey Chang: I’ve been in the payments industry for over 22 years. I started working at another payments company, and during my last 12 years there, I was involved in the payments division in a similar role that I’m in now—serving auto finance lenders. I enjoyed working at my old company, but from a technological standpoint, they had legacy systems that only offered limited ways to expand. 

I joined PayNearMe because it was simply time for a change. When I joined the company there were around 50 employees, so I’ve seen the company grow exponentially in my time here. This conversation is very timely, in fact, because on April 1 I will celebrate my 10th year with the company!   

Q: Have you always wanted to pursue a career in Account Management?

CC: At my previous company I worked in sales and account management. I enjoyed the account management aspect because many of the clients I worked with became my friends, so I was using my knowledge and experience to help them overcome challenges, so that made me really enjoy and build a passion for account management.     

Q: How has PayNearMe supported you in your career development?

CC: Even though I’ve been essentially doing the same type of work for more than 22 years, coming to PayNearMe has made me feel rejuvenated and inspired. I’m never bored. I feel young again! Having the opportunity to marry PayNearMe’s technology with the real-world application that helps our clients—many of whom I get to call friends—has reinvigorated me. 

I work alongside brilliant engineers, developers, account managers and executives. PayNearMe is disrupting the old, legacy payments industry, using the newest technology and that makes my job of serving my clients easier. All in all, I’d say these last 10 years have been really great! So because I’m more tenured in my career, I’d say PayNearMe’s support in my development has really been about making me feel young, invigorated and passionate about my work.    

Q: Do you have any advice to share with those who are just getting into the fintech industry who might want to join a company like PayNearMe?

CC: It’s important to work at an organization where you truly enjoy what you’re doing, otherwise it will become a job. The fact is, we spend the bulk of our time at work, so it’s okay to take your time to find the right company that is going to support you and your growth. If you’re considering joining a fintech company, one thing you can do is talk to other employees at the company to get a true feel for what the culture is like.  

Q: What are some of your favorite things about working at PayNearMe?

CC: Many companies say they have a fast-paced work environment, but there has to be balance. At PayNearMe, we are definitely a fast-paced company, but we have work life/balance; we have unlimited FTO and our People Team works really hard to come up with new and interesting virtual events to keep us connected. 

One of my other favorite things about PayNearMe is that I have access to resources that allow me to be a consultant to my clients—or my friends—as I like to refer to them! 

Q: Let’s shift the focus to your role. What does a day in the life of an Account Manager look like?

CC: Like most account managers, I wear multiple hats. I spend time problem solving and assisting with issues for my Merchants, especially newly launched ones.Their initial experience with PayNearMe makes a huge difference on us getting higher payment volume and faster ramp up.

I put a lot of thoughts into preparing business reviews and formulating plans to take 100% of the payments or upsell.

Lastly, I’m tasked with launching new merchants. Being a more tenured account manager, I’ve learned that it’s really important to ask probing questions and really listen to ensure we provide our merchants with the products they need to meet their goals and in turn meet our goals of more payments faster. 

Q: Let’s talk about remote work. How are you able to stay connected with your team virtually?

CC: Remote working is great! Video conferencing is the greatest invention for fully remote environments. Because I’ve been with the company for so long and have had so many video conference calls with team members from across the company, I often feel like I’ve known people for years, even though I’ve only met them in person once or twice!

Q: What are some things that you’ve learned about yourself while working at PayNearMe?

CC: Sometimes I think there is a perception that more seasoned employees have a harder time learning and understanding new technologies, but I’ve learned that’s certainly not the case with myself and others in our organization! 

I’ve learned during my time at PayNearMe that I’m really good at understanding technology. I have a curious mind, so if I don’t know something, I will Google it or ask my colleagues so that I can learn how things work.  

When I first joined PayNearMe, I noticed how many brilliant engineers we have. Joining the company early on, coupled with my experience, I was able to help us streamline and simplify the standard product features we offer to merchants, and that’s something that I’m really proud of.   

Q: So what about you—what kinds of activities or hobbies are you interested in outside of work?

CC: I  regularly play badminton. I also love the Los Angeles Chargers; I’m a season ticket holder! I also really enjoy going to classic rock and Korean concerts, and I play golf every once in a while. 

Q: If you could do another job for just one day, what would it be?

I’d be an usher at rock concerts—especially the concerts that are hard to get tickets to!

Q: Any fun facts you’d like to share with us?

I’ve been married for over 33 years and I have two adult sons. Both of my sons are USC graduates. My oldest son graduated with his MBA from UC Berkeley and founded a startup company in San Francisco. 

My youngest son works as a finance manager for Steve Ballmer’s company. His office is at The Kia Forum and then will be at Intuit Dome, which is the new home of the LA Clippers! I bring that up because he quickly became my favorite son because he got me VIP tickets to some amazing rock concerts including the Eagles, Billy Joel, Journey, Santana and Eric Clapton!