Our guest today is Erik Porter, Chief Risk Officer at Wagestream. Wagestream is a technology that gives your employees control over when they get paid, giving them access to pay as they earn it. Not only that, Wagestream includes a number of financial well-being tools including spending and saving tracking, as well as access to personal financial coaching, making it a great solution to promote financial health. Erik himself has had a very illustrious career in finance which has taken him around the world. He has been at the forefront of promoting financial well-being in the UK through a number of charities. After advising Wagestream since founding, Erik was brought on board full-time to lead the risk operations of this ‘little bit radical’ business. He discusses:
- How a student exchange programme to former East Germany opened his eyes to how different many people’s lives were in other parts of the world
- The difficulties he faced on his return with his peers
- How a part-time job at Citi Bank led to a lengthy career in finance
- The aggressive tactics he witnessed in debt collection at the start of his career in the USA
- Being the ‘only guy in the room’ fighting for the customer and the toll it took
- His ‘second act’ as a trustee of a debt charity, working at Citizen’s Advice, and volunteering at food banks
- Wagestream as a tool for financial capability
- Their role helping low income workers through streaming income, savings habits and financial coaching
- His controversial opinion on financial education in schools
- Wagestream’s ‘just in time’ education model
- His definition of Financial well-being from Chris Budd
- What is it about money that is so taboo?
- The need to ‘decolonise’ financial education
Want to appear? Email podcast@standingongiants.com
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