When I first met with Matt Mytenka, the Vice President of Sales for Worldpay’s International and US Direct Business I admit, I wasn’t sure how to define his title. However, as we spoke, he not only demystified his role in the payments industry but helped me understand how Worldpay helps small business owners, like me grow their businesses.
What is Worldpay?
Worldpay provides payment processing solutions allowing businesses of all sizes to make, take and manage 
payments – globally, online and in store.
Can you describe your role and responsibilities at Worldpay?
My role has many facets, but if I were to summarize what I do, I am an enabler. My aim is always to empower my teams to do their best for our company, colleagues and our customers.
I manage our main contact center sales teams in Gateshead and this team predominantly answers phone calls from potential clients to help them find the most suitable payments solutions and ultimately help their business thrive. Our primary goal is to connect our customers to the right products and get them live as quickly as possible so they have the ability to serve their customers in the way they want to purchase. I also manage our digital sales channel which is a major focus and growth area for us as with many of the small business’ we support
Additionally, I have end to end responsibility for our existing customer base and I support our US Direct Merchants as well. We currently have a small foothold within North America as a direct to market activity, but this is an area we want to develop.
Can you describe your work background and experience prior to Worldpay?
I’ve worked in other industries, but I’ve spent a lot of my time in the telecom industry, working for Vodafone then for Carphone Warehouse, as they merged with Dixon’s.
How do you manage your work/life balance?
The key to making it all work is time management and the partnership I have with my wife. We discuss what is workable with the time we have, as I spend 3 days a week away from home in the Northeast. But I can only maintain this schedule with the support and backing of my wonderful wife Paula.
How has the competition changed the payments landscape?
Honestly, the growth of companies like Stripe, iZettle, PayPal and others have brought a lot of innovation to the payments space. I think it forces us to improve and constantly expand. We’re really good at our ability to scale and we have some wonderful strategic partners.
We’ve had to play a bit of catch up in recent years, but our products have improved drastically as we drive to make the lives of small business owners easier to do what do they best, grow and run their business.
How does Worldpay facilitate international payments?
If you travel abroad, you’re subject to different rates on your cellphone. The same applies to card payments, however Worldpay can offer more payment opportunities in more countries than any other business. Our global partnerships allow us to negotiate bigger and better on behalf of our customers.
Cross-border payments are currency transactions between people or businesses from neighboring nations or different countries around the world. We make it easy and offer the smoothest payment experience possible – in any market.
Behind the scenes our leaders have advised different governments and governing bodies on how to improve payment systems, because we don’t just act in self-interest. We know when competition improves, markets improve and that is good for everyone.
Why do you love the SME sector?
We operate from small businesses, to large multi-chain businesses, processing up to GBP 50 million card payments annually. I love this sector because we help businesses grow and I personally don’t think there’s another segment that’s as important.
How do you address customer feedback?
We are always keen on taking feedback from customers whether it is a survey, focus group or directly from customers.
Connectivity across the UK, for example, is expected especially in urban areas, but that isn’t always the case. We work hard with our partners to build technology to ensure our products are first class and flexible using Bluetooth, ethernet or other ways of connecting. It’s also important for us to advocate for higher broadband speeds provided by the government across the UK.
What is the key to managing existing customer relationships?
Existing customer management has been close to my heart for a long time, even though I do spend a lot of time in new business. I’ve also managed existing business for several years in other roles, and there’s probably three keys to our success:
- We communicate well with each other internally and have forged a relationship built on honesty and openness. We trust the feedback we give to each other is always to improve our customer experience. I believe our service and operations colleagues who interface with our clients everyday are the backbone of our relationship.
- We have phenomenal analysts. They help us identify patterns, customer pain points and behaviors that allow us to make changes to support the ever-changing needs of all our customers.We are more than just a utility to our existing customers; we are a community and an ongoing resource our clients can rely on. Ultimately, we want our customers to grow their business through our partnership.
What does the future look like for your customers in 2025?
Looking to the future, we are developing new products, and I am particularly excited about our new dashboard which enables customers to ‘self-serve’ more efficiently.
For me, the future is not only about our technology, but it’s about better understanding the customer journey, onboarding more seamlessly, and becoming a resource so our clients can thrive. We are continuously evolving to build long-term relationships and grow with our clients.
Any final thoughts?
We believe in our clients, and we know business owners want to diversify their income portfolios, so we offer a referral programme called the Introducer Programme. You can earn rewards from referring a business to us. As you grow, we all grow.
Ultimately, it’s our people that differentiate us as a business and that’s why we continuously strive to better our products, services and build a community to help our clients thrive.
Find out more here – https://www.worldpay.com/en-gb
Interview by Feature Editors Fiona Scott