In the Spotlight: Getting to Know Andrew Villasenor, Your New Business Development Manager
Can you share your professional journey and how it has prepared you for your role at Nuvei?
My journey in the payments industry began 8 years ago on the operations side as Head of Customer Support. I gained experience in backend systems, developed the ACH Reject process, and worked closely with enterprise clients and ISOs on pricing strategies and tech knowledge.
After transitioning to the Sales side, I contributed to building out the RM, BDM, and operations auditing processes, which led to significant growth. Through trial and error, we assisted our ISOs in increasing submissions and expanding portfolios, primarily through comprehensive training, education, and toptier support at all levels. Our submissions escalated from 30-40 a month to averaging 200 new accounts monthly.
Subsequently, seeking to enhance my expertise, I pursued opportunities in the high-risk space as a BDM. Here, I honed my skills in selling to both direct merchants and ISOs, mastering account approval, processing, and long-term account management. My genuine passion lies in the RM role, where I can foster partner growth and cultivate client relationships, leading me to Nuvei.
What attracted you to join Nuvei, and how do you envision contributing to the company’s success in your role?
You don’t have to be in this industry long to hear the name “Nuvei”. You then look into the company and find out how beneficial it is for partners to join the Nuvei family because of the endless amount of solutions we have to offer, not only in the US but globally. All of that excited me but ultimately what brought me in was the initiative to make Nuvei the best environment for partners. The clear drive and vision set by Casey Russell, Christina Poliquin, and Trey Swallow to do whatever it takes to make Nuvei not just a place for some ISOs to submit deals but a home for our partners.
www.nuvei.com
What excites you the most about your new role at Nuvei?
The staff and culture at Nuvei make me so excited to be here. My teammates have been helpful and ready to assist at any time which is amazing especially when you’re new. Our management is absolutely amazing. My managers are willing to assist with questions, guide me on processes, and not only allow me to voice an opinion but they welcome it.
What key factors do you think contribute to successful partnerships, and how will you prioritize them in your role?
Communication, education, and setting correct expectations.
Throughout your career, have there been any mentors or influencers who played a significant role in shaping your professional development? What valuable lessons have you taken from them?
Of course! I was 21 years old when I started in the payments industry, and I’ve had the privilege to learn from veterans from various departments in the industry. From UW to operations to sales, I’ve had the opportunity to get a deep level education from industry veterans with various points of view and backgrounds. This gave me a lot of insight into what the industry is, the do’s and don’ts, relationship building, and management experience. The best part of this industry is the constant room for growth and education. My new managers here are providing new knowledge, and I’m so grateful that I get to learn from them.
What do you see as the biggest challenges and opportunities in managing partner relationships in the current business landscape, and how do you plan to navigate them?
Bridging the gap between a new partner’s requests/demands with the solutions we currently have to offer.
Building strong relationships is crucial in your role. What strategies do you believe are essential for developing and maintaining successful long-term partnerships?
Constant communication with both the good and the bad, educating partners on our solutions and processes, transparency, setting correct expectations, and following through on requests which means getting the job done or advising that something can’t be done (or something we don’t offer) and providing an alternate solution.
What’s the best piece of advice you have ever received?
Slow is steady, steady is smooth, smooth is fast; For example, if you want to cook dinner, you can do it in 2 ways: Rush, skip steps in the recipe and do the basics of what is required. You’ll get a completed dinner at the end (and possibly a bit quicker), but it most likely won’t be very good. Or, you can take your time, go step by step with the recipe, and get a wonderful dish at the end. We often put too much focus on getting a task done rather than getting it done correctly. By taking your time, going step by step, doublechecking items, and communicating along the way, you not only get the job done correctly and create trust/ satisfaction for a partner but you pave the road for these processes to become quicker in the future.
www.nuvei.com
To wrap things up, could you tell us a bit about your life outside of the office, both physically and virtually, and how you maintain a healthy work-life balance?
Outside of work, I live with my beautiful girlfriend who I intend on marrying soon. We both have big families so we spend much of our time on family outings. We love sports, traveling, and cinema. We just came back from a trip to Japan and will most likely be going to Italy on our next vacation. We also travel for sports; we want to go to every ballpark in the MLB and also travel for college football (Go Trojans!).
If you could hop into a time machine and visit any era in history for a day, where would you go and why?
I love history. It’s not only a telling of the past but an explanation of our present. If I could go back in time, I’d love to see what Ancient Egypt, Rome, or Greece was like at their peaks.
I’d love to sit with either Anthony Bourdain or Andrew Zimmerman. Not over a cup of coffee but in another country eating food at some random street vendor.
www.nuvei.com