Any first day in a new job is daunting…but I think, after years of being in one job, it’s easy to forget how truly daunting it is to start another. Despite this, I walk through the door and say hello to Kim, the receptionist.
I take in the numerous heads that bob up from their desks to have a nosey nod hello, and then find my way to the kitchen for what is sure to be my saviour in starting a very long, but exciting day. 2 sugars and a tea bag later and already I’m feeling better!
I settle in at my desk, go through some paperwork and meet my ClearCash team: Andrew Smith (Marketing Director for ClearDebt Group plc), Jax Cohen (Marketing Manager for ClearDebt Group plc) and Simon Lee (General Manager of Abacus (financial consultants) Ltd are the core heads involved with the development of ClearCash on an internal level. In fact, you can twitter them if you like or check out their own blogs at:
Andrew’s is http://rednelly.wordpress.com/
Jax’s is http://littlejbigadventure.wordpress.com/
And Simon is starting his soon!
Externally, our team includes working with pre-Paid card gurus’ Paul Swinton and Rob Anderson of Payment Card Solutions. Together, I knew we had all the ingredients for a successful venture.
Knowing the importance of understanding both the market we were entering and the clients we wanted to appeal to, I spent a considerable amount of time researching what was currently available in the pre-paid card industry and how ClearCash compared, in its’ current form. The standard of competition was extremely high - which did unfortunately make the task ahead much harder and in essence, much more challenging! Furthermore, since I accepted the role at ClearCash, Grupo Santander had taken over Alliance and Leicester (ClearCash’s previous banking support) and had, with this takeover, decided not to be involved with the prepaid industry/
In no time at all, as Santander left….Newcastle Building Society and MasterCard arrived! These two brands were well known and respected financial institutions and by having them connected with this project, I felt instantly confident that ClearCash will be the success we plan it to be - helping our clients to become more prudent in managing their funds.
Tags: ClearCash, First Day, icount, PrePaid Card
