Introduction
Vasco Rodrigues: So I guess this is the first podcast that we are doing. I don't know about you guys, but for me it is.
Rebeka Mizzi: Please, I do one every day.
Vasco Rodrigues: Well, I'm glad that we are all on the same page here. So, first of all, thank you so much for coming, and for being on the podcast. My name is Vasco. I am the CMO at Aurum Solutions.
With me today, I have, Rebecca - it feels weird to say Rebecca. So Becky is one of iGaming Academy's first hires six years ago, and has since been a major contributor to the commercial growth across the US, Canada and Europe recently promoted to Commercial Director, she plays an integral part on creating the commercial and strategic plan for the business.
Becky is extremely passionate about business growth and tackles new challenges with enthusiasm, and she now has experience working with hundreds of companies to build the right training solutions, which match their unique business requirements.
Rebeka Mizzi: I'm not sure who wrote it in the company, but I like it.
The challenges that finance teams face in scaling companies
Vasco Rodrigues: Well, on this podcast, we are going to discuss finance operations at scale. We know that gambling companies are growing every day and at the pace of this industry, that everything changes and moves and they grow really fast, and that's noticeable and transactions increase, complexity increases, and we are here with them to discuss how can these teams be prepared for those moments. How can the operations be in place, to make sure that everything runs smoothly and that scaling won’t. make the business go backwards.
So, my first question for you two are based on your experience, what do you say are the challenges that these finance teams can expect when companies start growing and scaling?
Tiago Veiga: I think from my point of view, the challenges that gaming finance teams are facing can be quite complex. You see, we've been working in this industry for a long time. So many operators we've seen scale - including one of our guests today, Miguel, this is the second time we're working with him – and companies start to grow, CEOs really push for growth. I mean, I'm guilty of that myself. However it might be – new markets, tracking down new clients, revenue, revenue – and sometimes we forget that processes need to be in place, and systems need to be in place to help people out.
How can finance teams prepare for growth?
Vasco Rodrigues: Yeah, I agree. So what do you think they can do to be ready? What do you suggest they do in order to prepare for these moments and for these challenges?
Tiago Veiga: One of the things that we mentioned is that we've just been in a conference and an element of that's key – talking to people. Talking to people who've seen it before, attending interesting panels.
It's a special industry. Online gambling's been legal in the UK for the past 20 years yet in some other countries, we’re talking about 18 months. So there's thre’s people who've been doing it for a long time and they know how to scale. – they've been successful before. And above all, they know the right processes that they need in place, the right technology to have etc. So, I'll say number one thing is try to get that know-how and there's a number of ways to do it.
The second thing is, try to learn from other people's mistakes, rather than learning from your mistakes. That makes a big difference, hence why conferences are a great place to meet people, to talk, to understand things, to share ideas. I mean, listen to this podcast as well!