Katharina is based in Vienna and has previously held senior operations, marketing and management roles at Kalixa Payments Group (which merged with PXP Solutions in 2019 to form PXP Financial), bwin, GVC Group, and most recently, at DIMOCO Payment Services as Director of Operations and Merchant Risk Management.
Having strong expertise in digitalisation, e-Customer Relationship Management (CRM), online marketing, and payment technologies, her focus is on building long-lasting customer relationships.
How did you land your current role?
I graduated in business administration and then worked my way up through a range of management roles in the payments industry, developing expertise in digitalisation, e-customer relationship management, online marketing and payment technologies.
Now, I am the chief operating officer at PXP Financial, an end-to-end omni-channel payment provider that helps businesses accept payments online and on-premise.
I have been with PXP from the beginning, and although the company has evolved, its basic premise is the same now as it was when it started; we are willing to take risks and to innovate to meet the needs of our customers.
What are you most proud of in your career, so far?
I would say that my focus on building lasting customer relationships has contributed to PXP Financial’s success and growth trajectory, so I am proud to have played my part in these achievements. I love being creative, taking on a challenge and solving problems, so am also very proud of the sustainable solutions I have implemented over the years.
Has anyone ever tried to stop you from learning and developing in your professional life, or have you found the tech sector supportive?
Being a woman in technology means operating in a traditionally male-dominated field so finding supportive people to work alongside is important, and not always the case in our industry.
However, I feel I have been very well supported in my career at PXP. PXP is all about progression, and this is reflected in the workforce. There are many women in crucial roles, and they never have to worry about being given a fair chance. For example, I have two children and never worried that I would be treated differently for taking maternity leave.
What advice would you give other women wanting to reach their career goals in technology?
Building anything from scratch, or indeed fixing something that’s broken, is always hard work. There’s not always a clear picture of the end result, and it’s a challenge to start a journey when you don’t know where it will lead.
The key is to keep focussed on what you want to achieve – always have a goal in mind and work towards it. We can’t move forward without trying new things, and there is always room for improvement.
Be confident in yourself. It won’t all work out the way you want, but that’s OK. If you’re convinced that you’re doing the right thing, then fight for it. Set out a clear idea of what you want to do and work towards it.
Finally, remember to enjoy the small things in life and remember to bring positive energy to what you do.
