Making Payments Happen: Enny van de Velden

From an attic room in the Netherlands in 1958, CCV began its 60-plus-year success story. Started by the company’s CCO Enny van de Velden’s parents, the family-owned business made a name for itself specialising in financial systems support.

Today, CCV is still in that space, but it looks much different than it did back then. That’s because the way people pay for things is changing rapidly, thanks to the ever-evolving demands of the modern world. Offline, online and any payment method one can think of – the company does it all.

It’s the specialist in omnichannel, customer engagement and self-service, unmanned payment terminals. And it’s been leading the market for decades. For a family-owned business, that’s impressive. Typically, the longer a family-owned business stays in operation, the harder it can be to remain forward thinking.

But CCV is anything but typical. It’s entrepreneurial. And Enny says that is its superpower. "I’m not saying it’s the same for all family businesses, but ours is quite entrepreneurial driven and open-minded when looking at opportunities. We’re not doing the same thing that everybody else is doing."

Untraditionally and authentically, CCV proves that point by valuing diversity and female leadership. "I think female leadership and, specifically, leadership comprised of both male and female figures like my parents, is important for any organisation," Enny says.

"Especially at this moment in time, we need to have a balance between efficiency, rationalisation and being really results-driven, while also having that more feminine trait of connection. I truly believe that having a balanced cooperation between male and female leaders would help this world in the right way."

I think building business relationships is a lot like building relationships in a family.

Even more, Enny believes a diverse workforce is just as vital to a business’s long-term success, saying, "Organisations should use the diversity that is seen in society and implement it. We should use our boards as a platform of humanity, composed of different competencies and faces to build a better world. There have been many studies that emphasise just how diversity and inclusion can make companies more profitable."

The inclusive culture she helped construct at CCV has been invaluable throughout the years, even acting as the glue holding the company together through a number of acquisitions. "Here, there’s a feeling of connectedness. You’re not here to compete with one another. It’s more that together we are connected, and we want to get the best result," Enny points out.

"At CCV, employee satisfaction is very important. Customer satisfaction is very important. And innovation is also very important.

"At CCV we are continuously working to expand the role that payment technology can play in commerce and economy. Today, our biggest effort goes towards connecting all interactions that a consumer has with a merchant. Whether it’s online or through the many types of physical points of sale. These insights make it possible for merchants to deeply understand the customer journey," Enny shares.

"This creates a seamless purchasing experience with convenience, faster service and value for the customer. "This type of applied innovation – connecting new technology and our payment expertise – is at the core of what we do." Of course, even with all of its technological know-how, Enny knows the company can’t do everything on its own. That’s where its strategic partnerships come into play.

"For instance, new generations of payment terminals can carry many new functions," she explains. "Merchants and partners now have many possibilities to explore new, creative business and marketing solutions. They build these solutions and have them activated within the dedicated secure app store. We can then roll them out to their entire CCV terminal fleet."

Beyond innovation, solid partnerships are also key to CCV’s future. When Enny stepped in almost a decade ago, she knew she wanted to steer the ship towards a more international approach. And the way she sees to do this is by enlisting the help of partners already on the ground.

"We could found a new company in the US, China or Saudi Arabia, but we’d rather do this with partners who are already there on the ground, have the knowledge and expertise of these countries, and know the customers," she reveals.

"Together, we can create a win–win situation. It’s about having the right insights into what the market needs." And it’s also about infusing that personal touch in every relationship. "I think building business relationships is a lot like building relationships in a family," she notes.

"I really like meeting the one who’s in charge of the company and finding out who they are in a business sense as well as in a personal sense. It’s the caring component of our relationships. And it’s crucial to building effective partnerships. You have to be authentic and truly invested with the person on the other side of the table."

Those values have been especially helpful during the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic. "With the current situation being what it is, work is always visible in our private lives – every moment there are emails to answer and calls to attend to," Enny says.

"But what we’ve been able to do is make the switch where work doesn’t interfere with our private lives. Instead, we’re integrating our private lives into our working environments." Pre-pandemic, most CCV employees worked from the office, but that changed from 15 March 2020. Now, roughly 80% of employees work remotely. This flexibility, open-mindedness and trust are here to stay.

"We are updating our HR policy to fit the needs and expectations of the modern workspace as the new standard of moving forward." And it’s one that’s paid off in a number of ways.

"We have found that the efficiency in our organisation has become higher, and the increased productivity of working from home is helping our organisation. Many employees are satisfied with the new way of working and the freedom to choose where to work. Of course, most would prefer to have the option of working from the office once in a while. I trust that this will be possible again after the pandemic subsides," Enny predicts.

But now, they’re making the most of the situation. And the majority of CCVers see its benefits – they are free to enjoy lunch with their families, walk their dogs in the morning or go for a jog in the afternoon. They have that freedom, and Enny says it’s made all the difference.

"Finding that new balance between our private and work lives is really helping. It’s been a really positive effect of COVID-19. If I’ve learned anything, it’s to never underestimate how important it is to have happy employees."

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