Message from Paymerang’s CEO on AWS Services and Startup Success

Last month, Paymerang CEO Nasser Chanda spoke with Clarke Rodgers, an Enterprise Strategist at Amazon Web Services (AWS), to discuss the cloud training programs Paymerang has launched to drive business and employee growth and tips for startup success.

AWS is the world’s most comprehensive and broadly adopted cloud platform, offering over 200 fully featured services from data centers globally. Millions of customers—including the fastest-growing startups, largest enterprises, and leading government agencies—are using AWS to lower costs, become more agile, and innovate faster1.

Paymerang first moved to the AWS cloud in 2015 and began its journey toward becoming cloud native shortly after. Today, Paymerang utilizes approximately 60 AWS services for its operations and client services to support the company’s rapid growth. Its cloud-first approach helps maintain its growth strategy by providing speed, performance, and scalability.

“Our approach is to be infinitely scalable and to be coast-to-coast available for our clients,” said Chanda. “They really need us to be up and running all the time.”

During the interview, Chanda and Rodgers also discussed a range of relevant information for startups, including investments, The Great Resignation, learning & development, culture, and training. Below are some comments from Chanda on these topics.

Investments:

It’s no secret that 90% of startups fail2 and the number one reason startups fail is misreading market demand, which is found in 42% of cases3. Chanda said that, along with strategizing your priorities to determine where your focus should be, choosing product-market fits also plays a significant role in success. When Paymerang was founded, it recognized that Accounts Payable (AP) departments were overwhelmed and offered a solution to a fragmented system.

Scalability is also essential for a successful startup because it enables businesses to grow and generate revenue without being held back by their structure or lack of resources4. After determining product-market fit, you must create systems to support your business as it grows and then identify what can be outsourced.

The Great Resignation and Labor Shortages:

More than 4.3 million workers in the U.S. voluntarily left their jobs in February, an increase of 94,000 from the prior month5. Chanda understands that the FinTech industry, like others, is experiencing turnover. However, at Paymerang, he’s witnessed the phenomenon of the boomerang effect, or employees returning to Paymerang, which helps balance the turnover. Above all, Chanda reminds business executives to live by their values during challenging times, which makes it possible to navigate the ups and downs of being a CEO.

Learning & Development:

Since 2018, Paymerang has grown from 27 to approximately 230 employees while expanding company operations, new product development, sales, and marketing. Currently, the company is growing at 50% yearly, which quickly made the organization realize that Learning & Development must be the DNA of the company.

Learning and development are crucial for a successful career and important to those searching for a new job. A 2021 survey showed that 90% of 1,000 American workers consider strong training and upskilling programs an important feature of prospective employers. For tech workers, that figure is 98%6.

Last year, Paymerang provided cloud-training programs for its cloud engineers, consisting of general certifications and AWS programs and tools, including basic and advanced courses. By upskilling employees with AWS training and certification, Paymerang reduced deployment times by 4X, reduced recovery time by 5X, and achieved data and system resilience, benefitting customers.

Culture:

Maintaining a positive work culture is important at Paymerang, which is a values-driven organization. According to Forbes, core values are the soul of the business and inform your hiring practices, business operations, company culture, and business strategy7. Paymerang values passion and positivity, teamwork, simplicity, grit, customer focus, and integrity.

“The goal is to create a place where people feel safe, they feel connected, and they feel like they have a future,” Chanda said. “If you feel those things, and you have someone beside of you who can lift you up, when you’re down, that’s what builds culture, and that’s how we have a culture of 230 people that’s better than when we had 25 people.” 

Chanda added that you must never compromise your values for short-term wins and always look to them for guidance during tough times.

Training:

According to Robotics Biz, employee training and development are essential for startups because it boosts productivity, reinforce workplace engagement, strengthen team building and encourage networking, improve company culture, help employees feel recognized, and improve brand recognition8.

Moreover, comprehensive training sets employees up for success in the future. At Paymerang, new hires are given a detailed agenda with two weeks’ worth of scheduled training and in-person meetings with peers to get them acclimated to their new role. Creating an environment where employees enjoy coming to work also helps drive customer satisfaction.

Key takeaways:

While launching a startup is challenging, these tips help business owners navigate those challenges. Building a strong foundation through core values, a positive work culture, learning and development, and training sets your organization up for success. Also, Cloud-based tools and services like those provided by AWS make it easier to handle the unexpected when operating a new business venture.

“You can do this, and you can do it all with AWS,” Chanda said.


Sources:

1Amazon Web Services: What is AWS?

2Failory: Startup Failure Rate: How Many Startups Fail and Why?

3CB Insights: The Top 12 Reasons Startups Fail

4Business.com: Would You Make It on ‘Shark Tank’? The Importance of Scalable Business Models

5U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

6Inc.com: If Your Employees Aren’t Learning, You’re at Risk of Losing Them

7Forbes: The Importance of Values: 12 Ways Startups Can Build Their Ethical Foundation

8Robotics Biz: Why Employee Training and Development Are Essential for Startups


 

Anthony Burket

Anthony Burket

Anthony is a marketing professional passionate about leveraging automation and AI to drive meaningful engagement with the modern B2B buyer. He began his career in social media marketing while attending the Robertson School for Media & Culture at Virginia Commonwealth University. After graduation, Anthony joined a Richmond-based agency, honing his skills before starting his Paymerang journey in 2020. He managed the social and digital channels before moving into a leadership role on the marketing team. Now, he serves as Senior Marketing Manager, leading the Marketing team.