Malene Christiansen

Malene Christiansen knew little about the payment industry let alone the company itself, when she joined Nets as a student assistant. She wanted to work for a large, international organisation with impact. Two years on, Malene has graduated and works full time as a Business Analyst in the Corporate Strategy department and she’s excited to work in an industry that has its momentum right now.

What made you choose Nets?

For a long time, I had been interested in joining a large, international organisation. I didn’t know much about Nets before I applied for the position as student assistant, but I soon realised how exciting the Fintech industry is and the impact of Nets on our everyday lives. Working at Nets at this particular point in time is extremely interesting as digital payments are hot right now. I also liked how it was stressed that employees are encouraged to think across business areas and borders and are truly able to take part in developing new products and ideas.

As a student, flexibility due to exam periods was important, and I immediately sensed I would have that at Nets. I also found the company’s student network interesting. It organises events for all student assistants such as presentations followed by a TGI Friday bar or other social activities. It’s a good way to get to know people in the organisation and to expand your network.

What was it like being a student assistant at Nets?

As a business analyst in Corporate Strategy (Finance and Risk Management), my main tasks were within market intelligence and strategy support, preparing competitor analyses, exploring consumer trends and investigating market tendencies for market intelligence while my strategy support tasks included preparing presentations and doing research on market trends. I also performed supporting tasks for the business units, which often included data collection and the gathering of market intelligence on the markets in which Nets operates. The most exciting experience was taking a driving role in conducting our Nordic Millennial Survey where we gathered insights on close to 5,600 millennials – the largest study of this segment to be ever done in the Nordics.​

What made you accept the permanent position?

Nets is an interesting organisation going through a lot of change which is exciting to witness and be a part of. I have seen for myself how you are able to grow and develop your skills in the organisation, with the possibility to rotate to other parts of the business to learn new things.
Everyone in my team made me feel like a fully-fledged team member even though I was a student assistant working two days a week. I was given a lot of responsibility and exciting tasks and felt respected. So I really liked the work environment and was chuffed to be given the chance to continue working in the team. Lastly, the position matches my degree perfectly, especially its focus on innovation and strategy.

What’s it like being an employee on the permanent staff at Nets?

I was really happy when I was offered a full-time position at Nets right after I graduated from Copenhagen Business School (CBS). I’m still a business analyst at Corporate Strategy, and I have obviously gained more responsibility. I continue to work on digital trends and fintechs, and now have responsibility for our market intelligence, incorporating all our market insights in decision-making.
I am in charge of all communication with our suppliers as I have gained more insight into our business and the payment industry. Today, I also share insights on the competitive landscape to colleagues in the business units. To promote the use of market intelligence portal widely, I have also created our unit’s internal website and arranged various communication towards our internal stakeholders about recent trends and events.

What do you like about working at Nets?

It’s nice to be able to put the theories I learned as a student to practice and see how it creates value for the business. It’s a good feeling when you realise projects - for example, when our research on fintech companies lead to partnerships.
Moreover, I like to work in a corporate function that has a bird’s eye view of the entire organisation – it’s exciting to be part of setting the future direction for Nets. I get to engage with the various business segments while at the same time being able to go into data and reporting in depth. Lastly, I have wonderful, outgoing colleagues - it’s great that we complement each other workwise and have a good laugh during lunch.

How do you picture your future at Nets?

I definitely picture myself working at Nets in the future! I am intrigued about the industry, and working at Nets really does put you at the heart of this rapidly evolving fintech industry. I cannot wait to see how the future looks like for payments and being a part of a company that develops these future payment methods is extremely interesting. Working for a large organisation also means there are plenty of opportunities for developing a career here, whether within my current team or exploring other parts of the business. Only time will tell.