Women are known to be empathetic and sympathetic and sensitive, especially compared to their male counterparts.
Many women are also strong and brave and wicked smart.
As humans, we are complex beings—people with needs and feelings and thoughts and wants and desires. It is not as simple as saying, “Women are this and men are that.” Nope.
Here at Stax, we value all voices, all opinions, all feelings, all perspectives.
And during Women’s History Month, we wanted to showcase and amplify the voices of women and their allies.
Over the next few weeks, we will be sharing eight short videos featuring Stax employees—six women and one male ally—who share their personal stories of being women (or a male ally) in tech, why empowering women is important, and what Women’s History Month means to them.
Meet the Stax Women in Fintech
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- Suneera Madhani, CEO and Founder
- Katie Rosa, Manager of Customer Onboarding
- PJ Spelios, Vice President of Talent
- Sarah Schlott, M&A Finance Integration
- Zayma Flores, Sales Operations Manager
- Jonathan Morales, Senior Payment Consultant
- Casie Shimansky, Stax Creative Director
- Valeria Morales, People Operations & HR Manager
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Women in Fintech: Meet CEO and Founder Suneera Madhani
In case you missed the news, Stax recently joined the ranks of the unicorns—a business valued at more than $1 billion.
Over the past eight years, Stax has grown into a 300-person company, processing $23 billion in payments for more than 20,000 customers across multiple sectors.
Our fearless leader, Suneera Madhani, is a huge reason for that success.
Listen to Suneera…
- Explain why she feels it is extremely important to have women in fintech
- Why diversity is critical across every industry type
- Only woman working at fintech company
- Discuss how her idea to start Stax was rejected by her (male) bosses
- And how that rejection inspired her to launch Stax
- Shatter the biases in our mind (ones that often don’t exist)
- Be the voice for other women in fintech—an opportunity for all women, everywhere
Meet Katie Rosa, Manager of Customer Onboarding
“Women’s History Month is important here at Stax because we have a woman who is making history here. We’re living it right now.”
As we honor the contributions of women who have opened the path for the women of today, it is equally as important to recognize those around us who are making history right before our very eyes.
Listen as Katie also shares…
- How representation opens up a world of opportunities for young girls
- The positive impact female role models have had in her life (shoutout to Katie’s mom!)
- How women in leadership today are changing the world
Meet PJ Spelios, Vice President of Talent
“One of the reasons I wanted to work at Stax is because we have a woman CEO.”
That’s right, Suneera Madhani, CEO and Founder is leading the charge here at Stax—check out her 2-minute video.
Listen as PJ also shares…
- Some of the obstacles she’s faced being a woman in a traditionally male-dominated industry.
- The importance of bringing attention to the opportunity to learn more about women in technology and business, and in our culture.
- The positive changes for women in Fintech she started to see more and more.
- How Stax is reshaping how women are seen and heard in Fintech.
Meet Sarah Schlott, M&A Finance Integration
“Stax gives unique support to a woman’s voice that I’ve never experienced in any other company I’ve worked for.”
As one of the newer members of Team Stax (less than a year), Sarah talks about how women in any industry can present a unique perspective. Women typically have a ton of experience balancing many aspects of their lives. And they often bring that innovation and creativity to many roles in many industries, especially Fintech.
Listen as Sarah also shares…
- The importance of showing her daughters they have it all—leading by example.
- How passion can sometimes be misconstrued as weakness (spoiler alert: It’s not).
- How refreshing it is to not have to “walk on eggshells or tiptoe around the office” to have her voice heard.
Meet Zayma Flores, Sales Operations Manager
“Working at Stax has proven to me that women are capable of being part of Fintech and to excel in it.”
Stax has been a “whole new experience” for Zayma. Instead of an “it’s only driven by men” mentality, she now embraces the fact that women are not only capable of being in Fintech, but they can also excel in the industry.
Listen as Zayma also shares…
- Why Women’s History Month is amazing
- How she feels about women breaking boundaries
- What gives her an “I can do this” drive
- How she sees herself as being part of the change: “If I can do it, they can do it as well.”
Jonathan Morales, Senior Payment Consultant
“When I think of Women’s History Month, I think of empowerment, of strength.”
Jonathan Morales was raised by an “army of women.” Working at Stax has been a smooth transition. After all, Stax is a woman-led company. But, per Jonathan, Stax is also a company that includes everyone.
Listen as Jonathan also shares…
- How women in Fintech inspire him
- How women in tech help other women
- The importance of Women’s History Month (and how Stax fits in)
Meet Casie Shimansky, Stax Creative Director
“Being able to find an amazing CEO right here in Orlando doing incredible things with amazing people just blew me away.”
Casie {kay-cee; KC} Shimansky used to hear things like “You can’t have a career in tech without a 4-year degree.” Well, she does. At Stax. So she’s proved them all wrong.
Casie feels It’s incredibly important to have women in Fintech—different ideas, different stories, different experiences can all be conveyed to bring a unique perspective to the Fintech space.
Listen as Casie also shares…
- Her reaction to meeting everyone at Stax and instantly experiencing the “power of diversity.”
- Her thoughts on how women can change the Fintech industry
- Why she believes its important to celebrate women in Fintech and why that’s so exciting
Meet Valeria Morales, People Operations & HR Manager
“It’s really awesome to see what women can do in the FinTech industry and to see the company grow as fast as it’s growing.”
Valeria “Val” Morales knows that Women’s History Month is important at Stax because it amplifies and celebrates ideas and people we may not learn about growing up.
Val is not only inspired by the women at Stax, and our CEO Suneera Madhani, but knows that we are also inspiring future generations of women in FinTech.
Listen as Val also shares…
- Why Women’s History Month is important at Stax and beyond.
- What it’s like to work for a women-led company.
How are you continuing to celebrate Women’s History throughout the year?
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