Customer satisfaction is an integral part of any business. Modern-day companies need to facilitate continuous and productive interaction between employees and customers along with the products, solutions, and services.
Today, more than ever, organizations need professionals who are great with people, effective team players, and always oriented towards a customer’s success. Having such people on board enables companies to promote years of business relationships with their customers.
In our search for such people-oriented professionals who have proven themselves time and time again in the customer success portfolio, we came across Wafeeqa Wahid, a Product Specialist, Customer Happiness, and Digital Marketing professional.
Wafeeqa is a smart professional who is known for her ability to seamlessly connect with people, each time leaving a long-lasting impression on them. She is currently staying in Germany and has worked for Southeast Asia’s leading fintech platform (Fave), providing a smart payment app for the smart generation of consumers.
Wafeeqa was part of Fave’s customer success team when it acquired Groupon and helped customers migrate their daily deal business. She was also part of the FavePay smart payments app that has processed 20+ million transactions over the past four years and is accepted at 15,000+ locations across Southeast Asia today!
We had an opportunity to interact with Wafeeqa in an interview, where she discussed her career path, specialties, aspirations, and being a super mom to twins.
The following are the highlights from the interview:
Please introduce yourself as a leader, and tell us what leadership qualities you would like the world to know you for.
As a leader, I believe I am empathetic and make sure each one of my team members knows I am there for them, both professionally and personally. I do my best to ensure the environment we work in stays positive and that the mental, as well as physical health of my people comes first.
Tell us about your outstanding skills in the product management space (fintech), customer service, consultancy, and other industries in which you have expertise.
I am a hard worker and a dedicated employee. These skills have helped me grow no matter which industry I worked for or which role I worked in. I may not know everything, but I do my best to learn it either on my own or seek advice from seniors to give my best shot at each task assigned to me. My daily motivation before work is to be better than I was the day before, and after work is to ensure I have learned something new at the end of each day! Hence, I have been blessed to have various feathers in my professional hat.
Being a Stay-at-Home Mom (currently), how do you envision growing in the industry when you are back, and in which industry are you aspiring to emerge?
As I look around at the opportunities and am slowly transitioning back into the professional world, I am pleasantly surprised at how diversity and inclusion are giving a chance to all equally. And hence, I strongly believe that as long as I am honing my current skills and keeping up to date with the latest trends, the break I took to focus on my kids will be nothing but an asset for me.
I would love to grow in the health (mental/ physical) industry as I believe in the fast-paced world, we all need to give importance to just pausing, smelling the flowers, relaxing, and moving ahead, and I would love to contribute to that.
Initiating your career as a Data Analyst at (MaGIC) Malaysian Global Innovation & Creativity Centre, what were the challenges you faced, and enlist us the professional hacks that helped you become the grand success that you are today?
The first step into the professional world is always a challenge, and so is mine. But having amazing mentors is what made this journey smooth and memorable. Every task was a challenge, which made each day unpredictable and exciting, which gave me the zest to do what needed to be done and more.
Share your experience of Fave, and what were the learnings that made you ramp up your growth curve?
My experience at Fave is what made me the confident, self-motivated, and strong person that I am today. I had the best female leads and mentors who instilled their complete faith in me, which made me believe you are never too new to have and voice your opinions.
As Fave was constantly expanding in not just different sectors but also countries and cities, I was growing as well, since the people there were my family, who saw me as a timid newcomer, growing to a Quality Assurance Manager (responsible for the KPIs and quality of a 20-member team) and a mother of twins, eventually moving to a different continent (while still working for Fave). Hence, there was as much professional growth as a personal one.
Please share your thoughts on the future of social media provided with the development of Metaverse, which is grabbing the global spotlight.
The development of Metaverse will completely transform storytelling; hence, people will be able to sell and experience services in a different, more realistic way.
Please share your opinion about the marketing and advertising industry for the budding entrepreneur.
The world has become very small now, especially post-Corona times. You could be sitting on a beach on a remote Asian island, promoting a product you believe to someone in New York. Budding entrepreneurs have to grab that golden opportunity and put themselves out there, keeping all their hesitations aside.
Please share any inspiring stories or other topics that you want the world to hear from you (poems, articles, experiences, adventures, lessons-to-mothers, etc.).
Being a mother does not make you any less professionally credible. In fact, it adds to your strengths since now you are a role model to someone who looks up to you and for whom you are in the world, especially in the initial years. My life after becoming a mother of twins has changed drastically, but for the best; as now for every adventure (be it hiking, road tripping, or getting lost in new cities) and challenge, I have two new constant cheerleaders with me. Moms-kids do not slow you down; they boost you!
Testimonials from Colleagues
(1) Angeline Choong, Regional Lead, Customer Happiness
Company: Fave Asia (Malaysia)
Testimonial: Wafeeqa has been a great colleague and friend. Her professionalism, eagerness to learn and sense of humour definitely contributed to the increase of the team’s morale. It is truly an honour to be able to work alongside such a great individual!
(2) Name: Hanan, Mompreneur (United States of America)
Testimonial: I’ve known Wafeeqa since childhood and she was always the sweetest person in the classroom. Her soft smile was always kind to the one who needed it. Her sense of humor is what anyone who is not her friend is missing out in life. Talking to her is non-stop laughter. Calm in stressful times always with the right words at the right time.
What she was known in school and what she is known for now in our friend circle is her empathy and a way with words that’s uplifting and supportive. An amazing mom to twins, that’s super hero work right there. Grateful to know her and call her my friend.
(3) Name: Trishala Halaengady, Senior Manager – Digital Marketing
Company- Tata Motors (India)
Testimonial: Wafeeqa has always been a true explorer, always on a constant search to redefine herself across different roles and aspects of her life. Right from the myriad of activities she participated in during school and college, to the various professional roles she undertook as a teacher, analyst, Customer Service Consultant and now a Stay At home mom.
She has always given every experience the best version of herself. She has also always been the strongest pillar in all her friend circles, with a never ending supply of the most comforting words or encouragement and the wittiest of comebacks.
And in the 10+ years of our friendship, I’ve seen her grow from a care-free soul to being a kick-ass Mom now. She is a Wonder Woman and even though her cape has been through the ringer multiple times she continues to keep flying up.
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