Tom Voaden, VP Commercial at BR-DGE, Scaling a Fintech Startup

Tom Voaden, VP Commercial at Bridge (formerly Visa), discusses leading sales and partnerships at a high-growth fintech. Listen and watch the full episode on Spotify & You Tube Key Topics: • The reality of 4x team growth - balancing startup speed with process • Building enterprise partnerships vs. traditional networking • Maintaining culture through rapid hiring • AI in payments - opportunities and risks Notable Quotes: "Culture isn't ping pong tables - it's letting your junior engineer challenge the CEO's assumptions." "We had to play chess with our growth. Each hire, each customer changed our trajectory." Background: Bridge helps enterprises modernize payments infrastructure. Under Tom's leadership, they've shifted from broad market approach to focused enterprise partnerships. Tech Focus: Bridge cautiously explores AI for payment optimization while prioritizing transaction accuracy and security. Leadership Lessons: Success came from empowering all levels to shape company direction, not top-down decisions. Links: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomvoaden/ http://www.br-dge.to/ 00:00 Introduction and Guest Welcome 00:39 Tom Voden's Background and Role at Bridge 01:10 Challenges and Growth at Bridge 03:06 Maintaining Company Culture 10:17 Balancing Growth and Sustainability 13:20 Customer Focus and Market Strategy 21:59 Visa Experience and Industry Insights 29:59 Commercial Strategy and Partnerships at Bridge 40:30 AI in Payments and Future Prospects 43:10 Conclusion and Farewell