Nikhita Hyett is the EMEA General Manager at Signifyd.
Prior to joining Signifyd in 2024, she held senior leadership roles at BlueSnap, Adyen and Global Blue, where she worked across payments, fintech and ecommerce fraud prevention. At Signifyd, she spearheads growth initiatives and drives the company’s expansion across critical EMEA markets. Nikhita holds a BA in Philosophy from University College London.
I never imagined that interviewing Barack Obama would one day lead me to a career in fintech.
But looking back, it makes perfect sense. The same curiosity and skills that defined my years in journalism – asking the right questions, uncovering stories and making sense of complexity – are the very ones that have shaped my journey after I made the career switch.
Like many others, my journey into tech was anything but straightforward. I studied philosophy at university and had my start in newsrooms, covering everything from celebrity features to global events like the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks. It was an intense and incredible experience but after returning from maternity leave, I found myself wanting something different.
It wasn’t an easy choice to leave. I’d built a career I was proud of and had made a network that I could lean on. But I also knew I was ready for something new and became increasingly interested in fintech, particularly after seeing the kind of impact it was having through my husband’s work.
Building the confidence to make a career change
The pace of change and ability to work in a team to problem solve global issues in tech really struck me. I started learning more about the industry and soon after, Global Blue gave me my first opportunity. I’ve since gone on to work with some of the most innovative players in payments, but what has stayed constant is the importance of storytelling and clarity in all areas of my job, be it developing a product, managing stakeholders or leading a team.
The decision to leave journalism felt risky at the time but what helped was realising that I wasn’t starting from scratch. I unwittingly already had a toolkit of skills from my time in newsrooms that I could take anywhere. Reframing the move as growth rather than a gamble made it easier for me to make the jump.
I was also fortunate to have people around me who encouraged me to back myself and trust my instincts. That, alongside a hunger to learn, gave me the confidence I needed to move forward and it’s something I still draw on today.
The myth of a ‘traditional’ tech career
When I first moved into the tech sector, I was worried I didn’t quite ‘fit the mould’. I wasn’t a developer or engineer and didn’t have an MBA. But what I quickly realised is that there isn’t one kind of mould to fit. The best teams I’ve been part of have brought together people from completely different education levels and backgrounds.
It’s that combination of experiences and perspectives that drives synergy and progress. I often say that “you don’t know what you don’t know” – and it’s true. What makes tech so interesting is that it cannot exist in isolation. The best ideas often come from those simple moments; for instance, when someone asks a question others hadn’t thought of or spotting a small detail that changes the way a product works. I’ve seen entire strategies shift because someone offered a different perspective or noticed something the rest of the team had missed. These things would never have happened if everyone came from the same ‘mould’ so to speak.
Of course, I need to caveat that the technical skills are important too – it won’t be wise to ignore them completely, but a job in tech will rely as much on communication and critical thinking as it does on technical expertise. It’s that combination and the opportunity to learn from one another that makes the industry so exciting.
Reframing transferrable skills
In my experience, the challenge when starting something new is often one of perspective. It’s easy to underestimate the value of what we already know because it’s familiar to us, but it is often what can be most impactful.
When I first moved into fintech, I realised the skills I built as a journalist were just as valuable in business. The difference was learning how to apply them in a new context.
That’s the real power of transferrable skills: they give you range and enable you to adapt and connect ideas you might not be 100 per cent familiar with, with confidence.
If you’re considering a change, or even thinking about your first role in tech, don’t try to rewrite your story to fit what you think the industry needs. Your experience isn’t baggage. It’s your advantage.
