Meet the team: Kristie Bergamin, Chief Technology Officer

Kristie is our Chief Technology Officer and as our longest-serving team member, she is truly the heart of Payreq. Obviously Kristie is in charge of all things technology at Payreq, but her role certainly doesn’t stop there.

Here she is in her own words:

What are your primary responsibilities at Payreq?

As CTO, I’m responsible for managing:

• The product strategic roadmap and its delivery
• The Payreq platform’s operational stability and services
• The company’s security posture including certifications such as ISO27001 and SOC2

What inspired you to join Payreq?

The dream of making it easier to receive and pay bills. This has evolved during my time at Payreq to include all forms of important information. Why can’t we get all our bills and important information in a single place?!

What do you enjoy most about being part of Payreq?

Beyond the problems Payreq is solving, it is a great and supportive place to work! We have enormous respect for our customers and each other. We work smart, value diverse views and laugh a lot, especially at ourselves.

What is your professional background and expertise that you bring to the team?

My main background before joining Payreq was financial services. I spent time at Macquarie Bank and SmartStream Technologies, specialising in settlement and reconciliation systems. I also spent a period of time consulting, where I was able to work on a range of different technologies for different clients.

I would consider myself a jack of all trades in technology with roles spanning across development, project management, business analysis, operations, architecture and pre-sales.

What are some notable accomplishments or projects you have been involved in throughout your career?

My biggest career achievement to date is taking Payreq from a mere idea to a fully functioning global platform. As a very small team we definitely punch above our weight and work with some of the world’s biggest organisations, like Rio Tinto.

What motivates you at work?

Providing for my fur children. They are expensive…. Just kidding! I love hearing customers excited by how Payreq is making their life easier.

What excites you about the future of Payreq and the industry?

I’m excited that the industry is moving towards a digital future. This is an important step in doing our piece in reducing paper usage to help the environment.

What advice would you give to aspiring professionals looking to succeed in technology?

Technology is always evolving. There will always be new stacks, new languages, new frameworks… Try not to get too hung up on the tools and be open to learning. Understanding the foundation concepts will make it easier to understand and adapt to new emerging technologies.

I believe it is also important to recognise that there is more than simply technology that influences decisions and there will always be trade-offs. It’s sometimes more about the trade-off you are willing to live with.

What is your favourite movie?

The cult classic Donnie Darko. I mean who doesn’t love a troubled teen that sleepwalks and talks to a mysterious figure in a rabbit costume that says the world is ending in 28 days.

What is your life motto? Or what would it be if you had one?

Don’t be scared to LIFT HEAVY! You won’t get huge and bulky, you’ll just get amazing.

What is the first single/album you bought?

The offspring – ixnay on the hombre. I vaguely remember winning it so not sure if that really counts.