I'm happy to present um our working at agen the balance conversation. Um So the idea of it will be that it now disappeared. Cool. Can you still see it?

No. Yeah, now. Yes.

OK. Well, we're gonna have to work on it like this technical problems. Um All right. So first of all, who we are, I'm Mika Yanga. Uh I'm an HRB P and uh diversity recruiter here for Aan and joining me is also Marta. Marta.

Yeah, I'm Marta. I'm a tech recruiter in the working to build the Madrid tech hub. Um Yeah, nice to meet you all.

Yeah. So, first of all, we thought it'd be good to kind of get an idea of what agent is. Um We're a financial services, fintech payment processing provider. I think we fall under a lot of different categories. But ultimately, the reason that we exist is because uh our founders, Arno and Peter, they realized that uh the financial services industry um is really, was really run by stewards at a certain time. There was a lot of things that happened because of legacy. Um and they found the current system in place to be somewhat inefficient they thought that um the structure in which it was operated had too many barriers to entry. There was too many complications for it. And they felt that as time is evolving, our customers are always getting more and more control and they want faster processing and the merchants want their money quicker. Right? So this is what the original cha the original value chain used to look like. Um Each one of these categories essentially was owned by a different intermediary company. Um which means that for the merchant to be able to process its full payments, it typically had to have a contract with one or more um uh companies for each individual pillar of this process.

So at the beginning, what agen decided to do was to essentially take as much of the process as they could and centralize it under one platform. Um At the beginning, we originally had the gateway risk management and processing and acquiring. Um We actually have an acquiring bank in several of our countries, which is something that's quite unique and has really helped us uh expedite this uh efficiency. Um And recently, we also started to extend our value change model um to also incorporate processing risk issuing KYC, printing and authentication. What all of this means essentially is that now we can get are merchants their money faster, we can secure their payments and make sure that uh you know, the money is actually coming from the right place. Um And we can make sure that nothing funny is happening with that money. Right. Um We've seen many times how traditional banks have fallen into massive debt or sorry, uh Massive fines. Um because, you know, uh their merchants were uh actually using things for anti money laundering embezzlement, um things like this. And obviously that's not a good look and we want to make sure that none of our merchants ever face that same problem.

Um But we're also a tech company, right? And it's always really important for us to emphasize that uh it's even the way that our company is structured, you know, we're 40% commercial, 40% tech, 20% staff and tech is obviously essentially what is driving our progress and innovation.

Um Some of the things that we do is obviously we get tons and tons of information from all the transactions that are being processed by our merchants and in a secure fashion, we make sure that we gather as many insights um for us to be able to really understand what are the things that our merchants need?

Um What are the things that their clients are asking for and how can we facilitate for all of this? Um We have, I wanna say 100 and 90 different payment methods in no sorry, 230 different payment methods in about 100 and 90 different countries. Um which means that we localize our checkout to wherever our merchant is operating. We make sure that we have all the major, um, payment options that they need, um, to make sure that when their clients get to the checkout, you know, that they can get everything processed as easily as possible. Um, of course, another really big motivation for us is to have a social and an environmental impact. Um, in a lot of ways it's quite easy for us. Right. Because, you know, we're tech and we don't produce that much waste personally. But of course, we want to go above and beyond that. Um Currently one that's relevant is we have really great initiatives right now with UN C hr and some other people where we are essentially activating the feature on all of our P OS terminals. Um as well as our emerant options where people, when they check out, they can essentially just opt in to donate 1 to $5 to, for example, the Ukrainian initiative and we've pledged to match them dollar for dollar in any donations that we acquire.

Um Of course, that's just one of the many initiatives that we're taking. And one of the things that we really believe in is recognizing not only our merchants but their clients, right? Um We really wanna make sure that we establish loyalty with our merchants, but our merchants can style loyalty with their customers as well. Um Here's a nice little spread of some of our merchants that we're more than fortunate to work with. Um As I'm sure you'll notice it also extends to all different um sectors. Let's say we have everything from, you know, makeup. Um What do they call the cafes, uh clothing stores, travel restaurants, you name it. Um So who are we? Right? Uh Ain of course is a service but we're so much more than that and the people that drive us um come from all over. So we have over 2500 employees uh representing over 100 in different nationalities. Um We work every month harder and harder to really grow our D I initiatives. We really hope that in the future, you know, it's always a work in progress, but we wanna make sure that we're an accurate representation of the places that we operate in. So what's the common thread? Of course, one of the biggest uh kind of mottos that we live by here at Agen is taking the un vi approach, right? We really like to think differently.

We really don't like to see the way things are done as the way things need to be done. We are very much of a culture that we believe in challenging anyone and anything when we believe that there's sufficient reason to. And we also think that sometimes those challenges might be wrong, but we appreciate them nonetheless because even if they're wrong, it'll still help emphasize the reason that we should keep doing the things that we are doing and it all goes back to our agent formula. Um We're very, very proud of this formula. Uh You haven't heard or seen about it. Um It's, it's really great and it's really interesting and I've had the opportunity to work in um a lot of different companies and they all obviously have their core values and beliefs. But I will say this is one of the first companies that both internally and externally, we really operate according to um these eight different points. Um So the first one obviously is we build to benefit all of our merchants, not just one, we don't think that just because Uber or Spotify tells us that they really need this one functionality or one feature, we should invest all of our energy just to accommodate for them. We always like to take a step back and say, ok, they, they are a big client, but we have so many other people that need our help as well.

Um So when we come and think about, um you know, a new product that we're gonna provide, we really assess how much impact does it have across the board? Not just for this one specific person. Um Next is, you know, we make good choices and build an ethical business and drive sustainable growth for our merchants. Um uh Exactly on the same note, you know, when there's a lot of money being thrown around and a lot of things, it's sometimes it's easier to, um, kind of look away from some obvious downsides in the hope that, you know, uh you can increase profit, you know, uh any of these sorts of things, but we don't believe that it's sustainable.

Um We think that in order to grow sustainably, you really always have to go back to, you know, your ethics and your morals and make sure that your decisions are being driven by those. Uh Next one is that we launch fast and iterate and this is so much of our, you know, start up scale of culture. We really believe that if you take the time to perfect anything, then it's gonna slow down the entire process and your merchants aren't gonna be happy because they're not gonna see what you're doing for them behind the scenes. Um We believe that it's better to get uh good enough model out there, really push it through and then listen to the feedback of our merchants, right? And listen to the feedback of our employees and see wh what is it, what is it that you find that is flying? How can we fix it? Who do we need to get involved? We'll fix it and we'll try again. Um One of my personal favorites is winning is more important than IGA.

Um So we work as a team, uh cross cultures and time zones and as I'm sure y'all are familiar, you know, every single culture has a different way of working and we realize that ours doesn't necessarily have to be the best. And if we don't put our ego aside, then we're never gonna be able to reach conclusions. So it's good to be confident and it's good to, um, really stand behind what you believe in, uh, in this company. But you also have to be careful and make sure that you're being considered of everybody else that's in the room. Um, we don't hide behind emails instead we pick up the phone. I think that's pretty self explanatory. Um We, you know, don't like to waste time. We're a fast paced environment. So if you ever need something, it's, it's always beneficial just to pick up the phone and call. We are a Dutch company as well. Um And if you're not familiar with the Dutch, this bullet point really resonates with the culture and it's uh talking straight without being rude, right? Um It's funny because when it goes back to the culture, it can mean a lot of different things in a lot of different countries.

But what we're really getting at is there's no need to beat around the bush or be indirect about your intentions or what it is that you really need from somebody. We would rather just be much more upfront, um without obviously offending or overstepping any boundaries, but making sure that our communication is clear and as concise as possible. Um And we include it from people to sharpen our ideas, right? This is why, well, one of the many reasons why DN I is so important to us because it's so easy for um a lot of companies and their cultures to really fall into this uh like mindedness and uh cultish mentality. And the only way that you can really avoid that is by constantly making sure that the people that are working with you and the people that you're working for are different, they have different perspectives, different values, different ideologies. Um And that's really what brings um these challenging voices through as long as you, of course, um provide the right environment for them to speak up in. And yeah, we create our own path and we won't be slowed down by stewards. This goes back to the reason that um Peter and Arno really started the company.

It's because it's um sometimes people think that just because there was great success in one form of doing things that it's all of a sudden a prescrip prescription for anybody else operating under the same assumptions and time and time again, we've seen that that's just blatantly not true.

Um There's always innovation and adaptation that can be done. So we're always looking for it now to go to um kind of the general topic of what this talk was about um promoting a work life balance, right? Uh We believe that of course, what work life balance is and means is so different from person to person, it it really is subjective. Um So we adapted it for the individual, right? And we can see this first of all and actually one of the most recent benefits that we um launched and our rewards team did an amazing job on um agent Plus. Uh I I was talking to Martha and debating if I should put anything more on the slide, but she decided that she thought this blank screen was actually fitting because it really represents the ideology behind um this benefit. And essentially we were thinking about, ok, what can we add to really like, help people, you know, change their lives in a positive direction? Um Of course, we threw around, you know, like different gym passes more contribution to um retirement funds. Um anything like this, uh you know, if you want to buy a bike, whatever we don't know for everybody, it's different, right? You need more like child support money, anything like this. The question is really up to you. So we implemented this un obvious benefit.

Um and the and the agent plus essentially gives every single one of our employees in all of our countries, the equivalent of €1000 buying power every single month um for them as a benefit. And um what they get to do with it is up to them. The only rule essentially is that they use it on themselves. So do you think you need more or do you think you need a massage every week. Great. There's the money, go get a massage every week. You wanna travel fine. I think uh 500 or sorry, €1000 gross will get you to a lot of places. Right. Um, and we really just think that it's the easiest way to make everybody happy and everyone make sure that they are more supported in the way that they deem fit. Um, it's

also aligned with our like values and the way we, we think we should like approach and, and we believe in, in we should um deal with um or, or treat our employees. So it's it, it's one like face different situations worldwide. They are like in different states or their life. So this also like is aligned with that. So in some moment maybe for you, it's important as, as I was saying to go to have a great uh gym member pass or to buy a house or to do a massage. So go for it. Uh Some people maybe you move forward and then you are thinking to buying a house or having Children and you need nursery tickets or these type of things. So that's, that's the idea behind a plus to be also um going through and, and being adaptable to your own path in life. So, yeah,

yeah, exactly. Thanks ma um the next thing that's also a benefit of arts, of course, is normal course of life. Um So when we were also adapting our original benefits, we realized, you know, like you can set a lot of conditions and procedures and the kind of how you operate, considering, you know, what different employees might have coming up in their life. But no matter how much time and effort you put into it, there's always gonna be different circumstances, different situations. Right? Um, one that's, I guess, rather morbid but something that's, uh, just something that I've been relating to recently that's been going on, um is, let's say you have a death in your family, right? Well, you know, my grandfather passes away, maybe I wasn't that close to him, but it impacts my family. So I feel like I need to go be there for my family and whatnot. Um But for another person, you know, it might be incredibly meaningful. It might have been their closest parent or sorry, their closest uh guardian or supporting figure in their life. And of course, that can have so many different connotations and an impact on an individual.

So we decided instead of setting one procedure, we really want to have this philosophy in our benefits that we'll work with you. Um Instead of saying beforehand, oh, this is your problem and this is a solution that we're gonna give you. We would rather sit down with you and say, ok, what do you need, what does this mean? Um Do you need to go home and work from home for a month. Do you need help with money because your family maybe can't afford funeral arrangements? Like, do you just need a distraction from that? Like we don't know. Right. Um, and we really want to leave it up in the hands of the individual and we will constantly work together with them because life isn't in a linear path and things come up that you could never expect and we want to be there for every single one of our employees and adapt to whatever it is that they need in those hard times and well being.

Um none of you all would obviously know this, but I also study um clinical psychology and mental well being is actually something that's really important to me. And um as I'm sure y'all are aware, it's something that, you know, anybody in, well, most people in, most corporations struggle with. And um over the past couple of years, we've really uh invested a lot in finding ways to support people um in kind of, you know, different stages of their life um whether it's physical or mental. Um And yeah, so we've established kind of these essential six different options or support uh procedures, I guess you would call them. Um And we're still continuing to adapt, but um one is well-being assessment. Um we have it readily available for all employees. Um We don't make anybody do it, but we always encourage them to do it, you know, as often as they feel needed, um to kind of understand where they're at in life where the frustrations might be coming from and to support that we also partner regionally with um, different psychologists and therapists.

Um And make sure that there's always somebody on call. Um if things were to like, you know, well, actually if they were to escalate or if it is something pre emptive, then we'll make sure that you're getting um the professional support that you need. Um And we also think that, you know, community and connectedness is an incredibly important part of not only like your work satisfaction, but your life satisfaction and, you know, feeling like you have other people to turn to and we have tons of different initiatives to help all of our employees stay connected internationally.

Oops, sorry. Um It can extend from coffee chats with, you know, somebody from one of our offices in Brazil who I actually do quite often with because she's one of my buddies. Um and we speak and of course, we have different perspectives and there's also kind of this like natural distance that really allows you to open up with people, but there's also community building things, right? Um Of course, hosting events and whatnot for people that feel that they need additional support. We'll always assign them a well-being buddy. And this is somebody that typically gets um a little bit more support and training and how to help people in their times of need and of course, they're not necessarily professionals, but they do spend a little bit of their time kinda dedicating their um their, yeah, free time and figuring out how that they can help, you know, the individual person that they might be partnered with, whether it's just listening to them talk or, you know, helping them get out more.

Um They're the people that the employee always knows that they can turn to um continuing education is also very important for us across all domains. But we've also invested in a library of different master classes and webinars that can kind of help people break down different challenges that that might they might face. Um And one that actually just happened um last week, yeah, last week was our recharge week. So once a year, we do this recharge week both as an opportunity for people to disconnect. But also just to have like a reminder around mid year about the importance of your personal well being and the distance that you need to have between your work and your life and making sure that you know, that balance is what you need it to be. Um And during this week, you know, um we set up introduction calls to these um psychological support um platforms that we have, we do breathing exercises, we say set up road cycle, spin cycle, I don't know, spin soul, spit, soul cycle. I don't even remember what they call them in all the different countries. But we, we provide different uh exercise opportunities. We had some at this uh old church where people were basically running around and dancing and singing and doing all kinds of crazy stuff.

We really encourage teams to take on, you know, team events that have nothing to do with work. Uh go sit in the park and barbecue. Um take, I don't know, we're in Amsterdam so people take the boats out and, you know, spend a couple hours, just disconnecting and also connecting. Um But yeah, so those are some of the things that we do for mental health and these are also the type of people that we hope we can attract into our company, right? Um We want people that see the value in this and understand that, you know, of course, compensation and, you know, um being able to provide for yourself or your family is super important, but also being able to, you know, keep a positive mindset and to be satisfied in what you're doing and feel supported in every step of the way is just as important.

Um And we've essentially designed our culture and you know, our recruitment process and everything to hopefully find the people that understand this value and really align with it. Um We're always looking for people who match our formula. Um And it really is a pretty awesome place to work.

So if y'all are interested at all, um please reach out to me or Martha. Yeah. Ok, cool.

I think we have still a few minutes left in case someone, uh, have any question or want to talk about anything particular.

Yeah. I also love, uh, love to hear if anyone has any things that they feel like have been missing from their work environment that would be nice to be supported. And because obviously I'm always very active in wanting to keep growing these benefits and you know, making sure that all of our employees are fully supportive and included Martha. Do you know?

Hm No, no, to be honest. Um

um see him, I can answer this one. So um we are very um because of our strong culture, we are very

sorry because I'm not getting the questions, someone or something because I'm, I'm not getting it.

So it's all good. I got this. Um See, I hope I'm, I know I'm not pronouncing that, right. But um there are some opportunities but they're very limited because as I was saying, our culture is um very strong and we really value it. So we like to position ourselves as an office centric company, but we also understand the times of change. So we do still run a hybrid model um where there's no real strict guidelines and what needs to be done and what doesn't organization wide um Each team kind of has different initiatives. But yeah, we go for more of the, for the flex one. Ok. Well, it looks like our time is pretty much up, but I appreciate everyone coming in and having listened and I hope you enjoyed this presentation.