Jenela Gunasekaran

“I worked with Jenela at Paydock, where she was the Chief Product Officer. During that time, Jenela constantly impressed me with her leadership capabilities and her absolute dedication to the company and her team. As my direct manager, Jenela coached and nurtured me and my colleagues, personally helping me adjust from coming from very big companies to a small but rapidly growing Fintech, and the kind of mindset change that entails. She never shied away from tackling big issues head-on, and brought entirely new thinking to the company. Her team-building skills are second-to-none, and her lasting legacy at Paydock will be a rock-solid senior management team in the Product division, who have absorbed her drive, knowledge and tenacity. It was a real pleasure working for Jenela, and I hope our paths will cross again soon.”

“Jenela has been my Manager at PayMe since 2018. The two years since she arrived have been an absolute pleasure. Jenela is a bright and passionate leader who has directed our team with enthusiasm and drive. Since her arrival, our team has become a happy high performing unit contributing significantly to the success of PayMe. Jenela always puts the team first and that has been reflected in our ability to build great products. Jenela is a strategic thinker with the ability to shape a product strategy even in the face of considerable change. The environment in Hong Kong, HSBC and PayMe has been turbulent since her arrival but she has been unwavering in her focus on delivering the best outcome for our customers. Despite many challenges, we have delivered against timelines and exceeded expectations, both internally and externally, whilst always having the product vision clear in our minds. Our product strategy has always been transparent and clear, empowering the team to make effective decisions that align with our purpose. Jenela has excellent stakeholder management skills. I have observed her work with very senior individuals both in and outside of HSBC. PayMe, and specifically the online product, is a key focus for the bank's senior leadership team given its importance to their digital strategy. She has dealt with the scrutiny and focus expertly, sheltering the team from any noise allowing them to focus on delivering exceptional products. She is an effective communicator, knowing when and how to communicate with different audiences. She communicates well across the entire organisation including technology, design, risk, marketing, sales, delivery etc. Jenela has also managed many of our strategic external partnership relationships with professionalism and personality. Importantly, Jenela is a decisive action taker. She is comfortable making quick considered decisions which has proved an invaluable asset, particularly when working within a large bank filled with people scared of making decisions. As a point of escalation, I have always found her ability to take a stance and provide clear direction exceptionally helpful. She leaves little room for ambiguity and I always feel more informed and confident after our discussions. Importantly, Jenela is passionate about doing things right and speaks up when necessary to advocate excellence. She leads by example and the team feed off her pursuit of excellence. On a personal level, Jenela has been a coach/mentor to me from the moment she arrived at PayMe. Jenela supported and actively encouraged my development and self-improvement. I have felt empowered to better myself and inspired to learn and grow. Jenela provides succinct, timely and constructive feedback that helped me improve week on week. Jenela gave me space to grow and fed me with confidence to excel and I will forever be grateful for the positive influence she has had on my career. ”