Kirsten Hoornstra on her first year at PaymentGenes

As Kirsten Hoornstra approaches her 1-year anniversary at PaymentGenes, we sat down with her to reflect on her first year with the consultancy firm, and how it has helped her grow her skills and experience.

Kicking off her career at Accenture, Kirsten Hoornstra initially spent two years working on large business-technology transformations at Airbus and Air France-KLM, among others, before moving on to a number of digital agencies. There, she gained experience with digital strategy and execution.

With that experience under her belt, Hoornstra transitioned into independent consulting work, and it was then when she first crossed paths with PaymentGenes.

“I've collaborated with PaymentGenes on a project basis for multiple years and always enjoyed the energy of the team and vision of the company,” Hoornstra recalls.

Headquartered in Amsterdam, with a further office in Barcelona, PaymentGenes is an international professional services firm which helps clients navigate the payments landscape with consulting, training, and executive search services. The consulting wing of the company advises on strategic matters, on topics including vendor selection, tenders and partnerships, and project execution.

Initially Hoornstra came aboard as an associate as part of the firm’s network – but when the opportunity to lead the firm’s Merchant Services practice presented itself, she felt it was “a perfect fit and the right next step” for her own personal development. “Looking back, I couldn’t be more delighted about the decision to join on a permanent basis.”

Hoornstra notes that she has enjoyed the opportunity to “truly build and shape a new practice in the business” – which speaks to her “entrepreneurial mindset” – something emphasised further by the firm’s boutique nature as a firm.

“The lines at PaymentGenes are short and if you have a great idea you have the opportunity to drive it forward and move fast,” she explains. “So, at PaymentGenes, I get to be creative every day. I truly collaborate with every part of our business ecosystem, and can help to drive new use cases or implementation of technologies, which is super exciting.”

Variety and speciality

Having previously worked at a multinational advisory firm, Hoornstra first-hand experiences the differences in work environment. One of the things she is enjoying most is how working in a smaller firm allows for a deep-dive into her areas of interest.

“You really get to specialise in a certain area and are recognised by the market for that. But there are also plenty of opportunities for new experiences, too. The exposure to industry leaders makes it very attractive and educational, and no day is the same!”

According to Hoornstra, as payments are “literally everywhere” in business, it means that there are chances to work with a wide variety of clients and projects. In her time with PaymentGenes, she has already delivered a 360 assessment of the omnichannel payment capability of a global top-25 retailer, worked on the EU market entry for an overseas fintech, developed a cost strategy for a global sports organisation, and supported multiple parties in vendor selection processes.

Adding to this diversity, she says she also enjoys the fact that PaymentGenes typically works within a broader ecosystem of multiple players. In this dynamic playing field, Hoornstra gets to be creative and help ensure successful collaboration.

Looking ahead

Even though she has been in the payments domain for some time now, there is little danger of Hoornstra tiring of it yet. As well as the diverse clients she is able to work with, she notes that the industry is moving fast, which makes it an exciting place for practitioners.

“Payments is a rapidly evolving and digitising landscape,” she goes on. “And we see payments playing an increasingly important role in the customer journey, integrating it in the loyalty strategy and business model.”

There’s plenty to keep her busy when it comes to staying abreast of those changes, too. PaymentGenes encourages its staff to attend industry events, as well as read the latest thought leadership – which is helping Hoornstra to further hone her skills for the future.

She concludes, “Luckily we are in a position where we speak to a lot of players in the ecosystem through the vendor selections we perform. As a boutique consulting firm we actively engage in thought leadership which means staying in touch with & interviewing relevant parties on a consistent basis.”