Mark O’Connell is the outgoing president and chief executive officer (CEO) of Interac. As he prepares to turn over the reins to his successor, I spoke to him for my Leadership In The Digital Enterprise podcast. He offered some great insights and reflections on Interac as an organization, as well as his unique leadership style.
Interac’s influence on Canadians cannot be overstated. In 1984, five banks decided to link their separate ATM networks, resulting in Canada’s first electronic payment nexus. Since then, Interac has been a leader in the banking industry, pioneering the popularity of debit cards in the 1990s, smartphone and e-commerce banking and its well-known e-transfer system. In April 2022, the company hit a massive milestone: over one billion Interac e-transfers were made in a 12-month period.
The story of how Mark helped guide that organization from its early days to this phenomenal growth is fascinating and gives some great insights into leading an organization. Dealing with a number of sophisticated and powerful stakeholders, working constantly in the public spotlight and innovating in an enterprise where security concerns are more than critical – there’s a lot we can learn from Mark’s journey and I’m thrilled that he spent the time with us.
So, in an executive decision of my own, I decided to let listeners to Hashtag Trending, the Weekend Edition have a sneak preview of this fascinating interview.