Hey everyone, welcome back to Top5 brought to you by DefinedTalent. We are a results driven service working with clients to connect them with quality talent, as well as working to make an impact within the recruiting industry. We talk straight about today's professional world with real world professionals, experts in recruitment, job seekers and business owners alike. Have a question for us send it in a you might spur our next
conversation. I'm Tara Thurber, Co-founder and Director of Talent Partnerships here at DefinedTalent. And joining me today is Mariquit Corcoran, one of the leading women in FinTech. Welcome, Mariquit. How are you today?
I'm great. Thanks so much for having me.
Absolutely. I'm so excited to have you join us to share your Top5 Ways to Succeed in Any Job. So in doing some research, I've seen in a survey from the National Association for Business Economists, that 58% are saying a recession is forecasted for 2023. With us being in the thick of 2023 now, I can't believe it's coming to the end of it., how or does this affect your view on investing in startups and growing business ventures?
I think we can all agree it's been a tough one - two years, the market has changed. But this really shouldn't be a surprise for anyone. The excess of 2021 wasn't sustainable. And hopefully the smartest companies and leaders prepared for that. I remember looking at investment deals where you had to make a decision over a weekend or else you weren't even gonna have a chance to get in on it. That
isn't normal. And I knew that at the time that what we were seeing in the market wasn't going to be what was going to be the near future. So hopefully, whether you're a founder or leader of a company, you're prepared for that. And as an investor, like everyone else, I'm more cautious about where I invest, especially when it comes to startups, because inherently,
they're riskier investments. But my views have always been the same - invest in companies that have a path to sustainable revenue, a solid product, market fit, and most importantly, strong leadership, especially important in these tough times.
I love that. And then as an investor, can you describe the spark you look for in either startup businesses, or business leaders? And just to kind of piggyback on that, when was the last time you saw the spark?
Sure, as a spark I'm looking for, I think when I find a leader who is genuinely willing to listen and act on feedback. I get a lot of pitches presented to me, and sometimes it sounds like a scripted rehearsal. And they're not even listening or looking for any feedback, they're just ready to get their script and
move on. I get very excited when I see a leader talk to me about an idea or a company that they have, and actually pause to listen to what I have to say, and whether they agree with it or not seeing that they're listening, and they're recognizing what I'm trying to give to them. Right? I do have expertise in this space as most people they're probably presenting to so use an opportunity to listen to them, whether you agree with it or
not. And for products, I get super excited, actually, when I hear about a product and or service. And the first thing I think about is why didn't I think of that, or, gosh, I wish that existed back in XYZ time.
Right.
So that's, that's when I sort of get excited about that. And those those types of things, I think are really important as you're an investor trying to make a decision on what to do next. That said, I get more excited when I find a leader I want to invest in because with a startup, whatever product or service, they start with more than often that's not what they end up with.
Right!
As much as you can get excited with what's presented to you know that it's going to change 10, 20 times before our final product is out there if they get to that point. But if I find a leader who I think hey, this is someone he or she I want to work with for an extended period of time, that's when I sort of get that spark. And last time, I felt that, to be honest, probably the highlight was when I used to lead the Barclays Accelerator
powered by TechStars. That was a program which I helped lead for several years. And gosh, there were so many instances where a founder was either you know, straight out of school presenting an idea or someone had been in the industry for 30 years and I want to come back and change something. There are so many instances that I got that spark and actually you probably look up that portfolio every company that made it into that program was one that you know sparked when they presented to me.
Right. I love to that you go through the the listening aspect because people do have these ideas and they want to kind of explode them out there. But they don't take a step back to listen to the feedback to listen to the criticism to the positives and the negatives of feedback. And so I love that you value that. I find that that's really important too.
I mean, I'll just plug it out there, I've often been asked how do you sell to big businesses or big companies or big banks?And it's the same advice when you're presenting your company. They already know what your company offers, because you wouldn't be having that meeting to begin with.
Right! (laughs)
The ones who are actually successful in a sale or getting a contract in place are the ones who actually listen to the people they're pitching to. And if you pick up on an issue or a problem or concern that they have, and then you either address it on the spot, or come back to them and say, Hey, I listened to you, I know, this is what you want to get done. Here's how my product can do that. That's how you sign
a deal and sign a contract. It's not going to be the cookie cutter pitch that you get over and over that may get you the meeting, but that's not going to get you the deal.
Yep, I can definitely understand and see that all the way through. So how do you encourage new business ventures or business people to either seek out their dream or keep going when maybe they're in a rut? Or maybe they get negative feedback. What What are your thoughts?
So I am super pragmatic, anyone who knows me will attest to that. And my view is, if there's a founder with an idea, or a product that I think has real promise, you just got to remind them that an overnight success takes 7 to 10 years. Someone I heard someone say that once. And that's in my head all the time. Because when you hear about these amazing companies with these incredible exits, or deals, they weren't invented yesterday, they've been around
for a very long time. So I think it's pushing through and taking those rejections and continuing to move forward. Those are all really key things to tell people that you're probably going to fail 5, 10, 15, 20 times before you get that next step kind of, you know, resolved or through.
And I tell them, like, especially if I believe in what they're doing and their leadership, then I will give them the support, advice, open my network to them and really encourage them to to move forward or help kind of think through, hey, here's some ideas on what you should be doing next, and sort of really be there for them and support them.
But to be perfectly frank, on the flip side, if I see a founder struggling, or I see a company struggling, and I don't think there's big promise, I will also be very honest with them, whether they want to hear it or not, and say, Listen, maybe you want to take that exit today, because that may not be available to you six months from now, people don't want to hear that. But the good leaders listen, and I think you have to be realistic, in great times, you don't have to worry about
that. But in tougher times, you really have to be conscious of that. And I think that's a really, that's why I say I invest in the founder and leader because they have to be able to make those decisions, and look out, you know, for the company and themselves and not think about what could have been or what they ideally want. Because you're not always going to get that.
Yeah, you know, I've always been one to failure is opportunity. And if somebody can accept that or being in a rut, there's always going to be a way to learn from it or, and to be better than what you were just at. So it's almost acknowledging, accepting and finding the positivity and the opportunity even in a rut or in a negative space, right?
1,000%, and I've had those threats of myself in my career.
Yeah! (laughs)
I mean, of course, we will talk about all the highlights, you know, we put all the highlights in our BIOS and awards and recognition. But there have been some really tough lows, and you have to sort of self reflect and be aware and figure out okay, well, what am I going to do? Is it gonna break me?
Right. Yep.
Are they gonna make me stronger? And I remember one point in my career when I was just ready to give up, right? I was just like, this is done. And I'm just this is, it's too much, I can't do it anymore. And I had a good friend who I used to call my life coach. And he looked over at me and said, Don't let this break you. This is a blip in your career.
Right (laughs).
I'm like, You know what, you're right. And at the time, it was probably just like this awful moment in your career. And you're you know, you're kind of second guessing everything you've done, but like it was totally a blip. Right? Because six months after that, I wasn't even thinking about that moment.
Right (laughs).
And so you just have to get through it. And whether it's your career or your company, you got to keep moving forward.
I love that so much. It's definitely true. So to dive into a little bit with FinTech, why did you choose a career in FinTech? I would love for you to share your story.
It kind of chose me. I, to be honest, you know, 1520 years ago, I'm not even sure I would have known how to define a FinTech or maybe back then everybody just defined that as a payments company, right>? Now it's such a broad definition. But what had happened was I started my career in Wall Street and was an analyst at Goldman Sachs went through their analyst program, and held a variety of different
roles. And one day I got a phone call from their private equity arm and they told me that they were looking to create a new revenue generating business. And would I like to join them and doing that and I thought, wow, wait, well, one of those are one of those phone calls you don't get every day. Ultimately, fast forward I did join and we spent the next year developing what became Marcus by Goldman Sachs, which was the first consumer for a for Goldman And that was really where I just jumped in.
And I started learning about all these innovative new technology solutions. And I really did end up meeting with some potential vendors, for example, that truly weren't like the traditional startup that was just newly created, as well as more established startups. And I realized FinTech was this game-changing category of companies. And I started really appreciating how much individual's finances or awareness of their finances could really impact not just those individuals, but the
industry. I'm like, the whole, like, No, we're really just like the whole economy of the whole world. And it really stemmed from oftentimes an individual understanding how money works, how they should save money, what they should do with their finances, how they should think about it, whether it's for themselves or their businesses, and I got really passionate
about about the space. And ultimately, when, you know, it's been a couple of years at Marcus and I was trying to think about what we had already launched, like what was next I had this opportunity from Barclays, who recruited me to run their Accelerator Program, run their FinTech partnerships, eventually lead several investment pools of funding capital, and then create new programs to support and work
with fintechs. And I really just immersed myself in this space and realized 1) it wasn't just one, one lane of category, FinTech can impact you in so many different angles. Some of them aren't even financial services related, right? It's really broad, you can go into health care, you can go into gaming tech, there's just so much out there. And I got really excited about the solutions I was seeing that I could see impacting my day to day life. So a fun story I always think
about. When I got married almost two decades ago, I remember receiving a stack of physical checks. And my husband and I had a destination wedding. And we were gonna go to Hawaii right after our wedding. I carried these physical checks with me through through Hawaii and put them in like my hotel space through island hopping for two weeks, hoping I wouldn't lose one and they wouldn't get wet. And think about how crazy that is now!
(laughs)
With the solutions are out there. That wasn't that long ago.
Right! Wow.
And to think about, like, that's such a minor thing, but that inconvenience doesn't even exist today.
Yeah.
So to think about how something that simple could be impacted, versus you know, how FinTech can so be broadly, you know, applied now, right? You think about, you go online, there's embedded finance and so many different opportunities out there, you can sort of buy anything online and take out a loan or, you know, do it in multiple payments and do
it all in one stop shopping. Or, you know, even on the flip side, you could be a gig worker, and you can have their FinTech applications that help manage your funds so that they're coming in in regular increments are helping you manage it. Like there's just so many different applications. And I guess without choosing FinTech, I kind of fell into it. And it just became something that I was just immersed in and passionate about. And I just see the
applicability everywhere. So it's hard not to be invested in it and hard not to be immersed in it and wanting to support it. And we're just beginning. There's so much to do.
Right. So much to do. And I feel like it's exploding fast, though. And it's growing fast, too.
It totally is. There was that massive growth, of course, over the last probably five, seven years. Yeah, I'm trying to think about the last year or two.
Right.
But prior to that there was just this exponential growth.
Yeah.
But there's still so much out there and probably a shift and what types of companies and solutions are going to be created and grow. And yeah, I'm talking about physical checks. I can imagine what we'll be talking about in 10 years of what's created out there.
Yeah, it's exciting. It's really exciting. So as you know, one of the leading women in FinTech, I know that you do a lot of talks, you do a lot of interviews. I mean, that's how I came to meet you was watching you speak at a TechUnited event. When you're speaking, talking, interviewing, reading your bio, what is one thing that you wish you would have said? Is there anything is there one thing that is missing or that you would want to send out to the universe?
So actually, two things popped into mind. So I'm gonna answer it in two ways. Probably personally about me. Yes, you can read my bio, I read about the accomplishments and I'm very proud of them and trust me and worked really hard to achieve each and every one of them.
Yeah.
But I think what doesn't come across some times, whether it's me or anyone's bio is like who they are as a person and who they are as an investor or colleague. And for me, I think really is what you see is what you get. I genuinely try to be a good person. I sincerely try to help any company I work with. I don't pretend to know everything about
everything. I like to say I know a little bit about everything but I know an expert and pretty much anything so everybody has a phone call or text message.
Right.
I think that makes you valuable to be able to recognize that and then sort of build that network. And I do believe like, you know, for me, you get what you give. And that's something I do think that I live by. And that's probably not something that I'll ever come across in a speech or big interview. And the other thing, I think the flipside I just wanted to answer to that was, when you do all these talks, I will say it's good and bad to be labeled as a woman in a male
dominated industry. So good, because people are listening and I love that I have the voice. And I have the ability to get my message out there. And hopefully, you know, strike a chord with, you know, with people, I love it, when I get like a CEO of a big company come up to me after talking to me like, Oh, my gosh, I had no idea about XYZ. Now, thanks for
communicating that. That's awesome. But I do think that we have to be careful that if there's, for example, a woman in a male dominated industry, that the questions don't all become about, So what's it's like being a woman in that industry or talk to me about diversity? And again, I think it's a double edged sword. I love the platform, and ability to voice that, but you also don't want to be labeled as Okay, well, you know, we have this woman speaker she'll talk about, she'll talk
about that. And I do think there's, there's a bit of a balance you want to get there. And look, I'll talk about gender equity all day. But I hope people are listening to more
Yeah. than just that, because I want to be looked at as Mariquit Corcoran an accomplished hardworking leader who has made change and impacted XYZ colleagues, companies, founders, etc. Not America Corker, and she's a woman and she's all about diversity. And you know, she brings diversity into the industry. Yeah. So while true, I want that to be secondary, not the primary. I love that. I just got goosebumps. So thank
you. As a trailblazer, why do you think it's so difficult for women to break into, or break through in the tech industry?
I really think inherently, it's because it's not easy. And it's easier to give up.
Yeah.
I think about all these other careers, I could have chosen, or many women can choose where they don't have to fight so hard for equal opportunity equal pay, not being the only woman in the room.
Yeah.
And it's easier to take that path and be you can be just as successful, make just as much money, and collect as many titles as you can versus working in tech. So I think that's, that's a tough one. So I think you really have to recognize progress is slow. It's not going to be overnight. I certainly can't fix anything myself. But I can make incremental changes. And if I can help a few founders or a few women with their careers, I've done my part and hopefully
others do the same. And you know, maybe some have done that for me as well. But I really think that's why it's hard any male dominated industry, it's always going to be hard for women, because your voice may be the minority. But you also recognize there's a magnifying glass on what you say, Because you are the minority, so there's that added pressure. And I think
that makes it really hard. And early in my career, I used to be really scared to speak up because I felt like what I was gonna say was gonna be scrutinized 10 times more than the 10 men sitting around me because I was the only woman in the room.
Yup.
And I think what was important was flipping that and then thinking, Wait, what I'm going to say to women in the room, then more people are going to listen and hopefully be impacted by what I say. So it's just looking at the two different perspectives.
I love that and you know, I work and talk to a lot of women that are trying to break into the tech industry or are in the tech industry and are struggling to find their voice or to use their voice. So one thing I like too, that I hear from you is just keep pushing, keep pushing forward, breaking those boundaries, and allow yourself to be uncomfortable, but feel that uncomfortableness and just keep, just keep going. I feel a struggle when I talk to a lot of women and it's, they do
feel that way. And I also feel that it's good to let them know that they're not alone. I think that's a really strong point, too is women now work, they're coming together in numbers within the tech industry and they're trying to lift each other up. And I think that that's really important too.
Find your people find your network, it doesn't have to be 50 strong but if you have two or three people you can talk to that can make all the difference especially when you're having a bad day which we all have.
Yeah.
Find the right people to call or talk to and if you can, like also have them not be in your immediate circle. I'm at work, because an outside perspective is so valuable when it comes to making big decisions, or even sometimes even the littlest decisions just need someone else to to give a different perspective.
I love that. So within the industry, what are some changes you'd want to see? I think let's kind of just target into do you have a favorite quote or mantra that you use?
Yes, well, this is probably not specific to the industry. But I saw it in a sign once at some like random location in London, and I never forgot it. I'm pretty sure took a picture with it. And it basically said, work hard, play hard and be kind to others. And I think that sign or that message can be in a kindergarten classroom.
Yeah.
And it can be in the office of a Fortune 500 CEO. Right?
Absolutley.
Those are words to live by. And I think about that all the time.
Absolutely. I really love that a lot. In regards to technology, what are some updates you're excited about that are happening nowadays?
Gosh, it's probably the hot topic of the of the year. But all the other things happening in AI.
Yeah.
It's just beginning. And artificial intelligence isn't anything new. To be honest, I found like five years ago was such a buzzword.
Mmm hmm.
Every other pitch I heard use the word artificial intelligence, whether they were truly using it or not, or understood it or not.
Right.
But I do think with things like ChatGPT, and all these other innovations coming along, it's just beginning. And there's a lot of opportunity there to impact every industry, not just financial services, right? It can impact everything, healthcare, consumer, etc. And I think that's really exciting. As long as people get it right, and seeing us in the appropriate way. I really think it's
limitless. I remember, I think I had read I think the the founder of ChatGPT said something like, look, calculators changed the way math had to be taught, right? Things like ChatGPT are going to change the way essays are written or tests are given. And I think that's great. I actually think innovation and change is good, as long as to smartly and correctly. And we're in a generation to where children are tech savvy. I, to be honest, like I thought it was
so exciting. I was going to show my 13 year old how ChatGPT worked when she was studying for something. And she looked at me, she said, Mom, I've been using this for months.
(laughs loudly)
I thought oh, okay - yeah, I mean, it was the biggest, the biggest sort of people that are going to impact technology and innovation are probably between the ages of like 10 and 16 years old right now.
Yeah.
That was really humbling, by the way, because I thought I was gonna be like, Look at this exciting thing I'm going to show you and it was just like, Yeah, okay, I've been using it for months. What are you gonna show me?
Been there, done that, thank you! (laughs)
Exactly. (laughs)
When I talked to my daughter about it as well. And it's, it's something for me, I think a lot of people look at AI in so many different ways. And you're right, it needs to be used properly, because I think that's going to force the next generation and the next generation to grow and think further and further outside of the box in order for I mean, all different industries to really
change. And change is good. I feel like so many people get very worried about change, or start to get really nervous, but what I'm seeing out there is all of the changes is good, are good, because it's just gonna help everything. I say grow, I feel like I keep going back to the grow and innovate and step outside of the box step outside of the those comfort zones in order to continue to keep pushing forward.
I absolutely agree. And I think what's exciting about AI is when you look back maybe even 20 years ago the words AI were linked to robots that take over the world.
(laughs)
Or it was such like a scary mystery sort of sci fi type of thing. But I think there's a lot more education, right? It's not really that out there, right? It's something that can exist and so
No. many things that we use every day, and I'm sure most of us who turn on a computer every day encounter some sort of AI without even knowing it and breaking it down and I think educating people about what it actually is what it means makes it a little less scary. And it's not about these fancy robotic movies that again, I think about all those movies that came out 20 plus years ago that's always what they were so became a scary
thing. Whereas now it's Hey, AI is using you know, an online chat bot that allows me to resolve an issue without going through 20 steps or prompts on a phone. Right?
That's great!
Right?! It's an added tool for us. It's an added tool for us to utilize. Amazing. Mariquit, I could be on this for hours with you. Please, I would love for you to share with our audience, your Top5 Ways to Succeed in Any Job.
Number one, I think about this anytime I actually recruit or interview an individual, and it's be someone people want to work with.
I love that.
Iit's so simple. You don't have to be the smartest person in the room. Just be someone people want to work with. Because ultimately, that's what's gonna matter the
don't offer your help to someone if you're not sincere about it. And throughout your career, you'll find people like, Oh, do you need help? Or can I can I assist in that and when you actually, maybe once in a while, ask them, they almost seem annoyed with you (laughs).
Yeah (laughs).
Versus the ones who actually are sincere
learn from others mistakes, don't be smug, you could make the same ones yourself. You're not above that. And when you see someone going through a tough time, observe, watch, have some empathy and know that that could be you. So learn from their mistakes. Four: if you're in a position where you have time, contacts and lessons learned to share, please do so. I really do believe I said, although you get what you give. And last, it was in that sign I saw a long time ago, which is be kind. It's such
an easy thing to do. But it's something people don't always remember to do. And the thing is in your career, at least in my career, I think you're you're gonna remember every time somebody was kind to you. And at flipside, you'll remember when people were unkind to you. And I just think again be kind of you get what you give and it all comes back to you. So those are my Top5 Ways to Succeed in Any Job or anything really.
I love it. Thank you so much for sharing your time with us today. I really look forward to continuing conversations with you in the future.
I appreciate it. Thank you so much for your time. I really enjoyed speaking with you and yeah, let's let's get out there and get the right messages out.
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