2020 ETA Industry Affairs Committees’ Impact on the Payments Industry

By Sarah Brown-Campello, Manager of Industry Affairs, ETA

What They Are, How They Work, and Why You Should Join!

Despite a generally challenging and busy year, ETA Industry Affairs Committees were hard at work impacting the industry by sharing their knowledge with the payments ecosystem.

Now is your chance to participate in 2021. If you are unsure about what the committees do and why they are an important resource for the industry and your career, here are some of the main reasons you should join an ETA Committee.  Sign up now!

What are They?

ETA hosts eight committees, chaired by industry leaders and subject matter experts, formed based on industry themes and areas that are important to ETA member companies (2020 Industry Affairs committees, mandates, and chairs listed below). Committees have been formed based on industry themes and areas that are important to ETA Member Companies. Each of these committees are supported by two to eight working groups that explore subtopics in more depth and allow members to develop webinars, whitepapers, guidelines, or blogs to educate the industry.

Why Should I Join?

Committee chairs and participants are invested in the development of the payments ecosystem. In an ever-evolving industry like payments, staying up-to-date is critical. Committee and working group meetings provide a shared space amongst industry colleagues to learn from each other, collectively generate knowledge, discuss best practices, exchange thoughts on the latest trends, and network. Content produced by ETA Committee members help to democratize knowledge within the industry, oftentimes filling a void or gap that exists.

This sentiment is summarized by Vice Chair of the Risk Fraud and Security Committee Jim Bibles (Aperia Solutions): “During 2020, the risk landscape shifted dramatically and our committee was able to share information about the new challenges and provide insight on how to others are navigating the new landscape.  In 2021, we will be facing similar challenges, and I can’t think of a better way to prepare then participating in this committee.”

Participation in a committee also provides resources to those outside our field (merchants, regulators, lawmakers, etc.) and is a great example of industry cooperation.

In the words of the Mobile Payments Committee co-chair, Christine Lopez (FIS), “Choosing a committee that deals with a subject matter one is experienced in and passionate about will give one the chance to showcase his or her talents to others within the industry.  Being a committee subject matter expert is a great way of paying it forward, by giving back to the industry.”

How Do They Work?

Most ETA Committees meet monthly. Each committee meeting is led differently according to its charter, chairs, size, agenda items for the month, and deliverables the committee sets for itself. For example, co-chairs Deana Rich (Infinicept Payment Facilitator Solutions) and Caroline Hometh (RPY Innovations) of the Payment Facilitator Committee have instituted Roundtable SME discussions on a number of topics this year which, in Deana’s words, “has made this committee more interactive, enjoyable and educational.” (See PCI Roundtable Discussion Takeaways here.)

Subject matter discussions are often lively as committee members come from different companies and expertise areas- there is always something to learn – from PCI & Security to social media & marketplace to pivoting during Covid to the latest tech – there is something for everyone and space for you to bring your interests and perspective to the table.

As Jennifer Reichenbacher (PaySafe), co-chair of the Retail Technology Committee, points out, “I love the breadth of topics that come out of the Retail Tech Committee. We have representatives from small companies to the largest of large- and I really appreciate the mix of perspectives that we get, which allows us to bring more valuable content to our core audience which are SMBs and the people who support them.”

2020 Notable Highlights

2020 was industrious for our committees as we collectively learned how to respond to the pandemic and an ever-changing payments landscape. Meeting only online, ETA Committees quickly pivoted in response to the emerging pandemic and needs of the industry and those merchants and consumers it supports.

The CPP Credentialing Committee helped to create and finalize a new and updated CPP exam. You can learn more about becoming an ETA Certified Payments Professional (CPP) here.

The Retail Technology Committee pivoted to create resources for merchants. They recently published tips for a successful holiday season and have an upcoming webinar on how businesses not only survived but thrived during the pandemic (register here).

Aside from the organized SME Roundtable Discussions, the Payment Facilitator Committee is about to publish the next version of the Payment Facilitator Guidelines.

Committees also create basic, digestible information like the Payments Sales and Strategy Committee did with a 101 on Interchange Optimization and with this interview with industry leaders on the effects of Covid on the sales channel.

The Mobile Payments Committee has started work updating a payments glossary to include more mobile terms and is about to publish 101 guides to PAR (payment account reference) and SRC (secure remote commerce).

Risk, Fraud and Security Committee meetings are marked by active and lively discussions around PCI, risk considerations in light of Covid, and security threats. This year, the Committee published the 4^th version of ETA’s Underwriting Guidelines and hosted a webinar outlining the new changes and what they mean for us (recording here).

The Technology Committee has created a survey on how the payments industry’s tech needs have changed in light of Covid. The survey is still open!

The above is only a small representation of the work produced and contributions of our committees. Furthermore, many of our chairs and committee members have reported connections and camaraderie with fellow committee members, a welcome respite and networking-fill in while we aren’t attending in-person events!

Lastly, as Kevin Shamoun (Fortis Payments), chair of the Technology Committee points out, 2021 Committees are, “looking forward to bringing further education to the membership about hot topics in our industry driven by the ever changing payment & tech landscape!

Who Chairs the Committees?

ETA Committees are strong thanks to the leadership of their chairs. Chairs are subject matter experts in their field and dedicated to the mission of their committees and creating engaging environments for payments professionals to engage, network and learn. ETA would like to thank and acknowledge the following committee chairs for their service leading our Industry Affairs committees:

CPP Credentialing Committee
Mandate: To create and promote payment education and an educational standard within the industry.

• Georgia Stavrakis, Wells Fargo; Chair

Large Processor Council (by invitation)
Mandate: The Large Processor Committee serves as the “voice of the processor community” and focuses on maximizing the value, efficiency, and security that the payments industry delivers to its customers through the development and communication of recommendations to help navigate emerging technologies, standards, and regulations.

• Victoria Strayer, Global Payments; Chair

Mobile Payments Committee
Mandate: To promote the adoption and use of mobile payments, identify ways to expand its use by developing content and thought leadership to educate merchants and consumers, and to network with mobile payments ecosystem players.

• Lauren Copland, Apple Pay; Chair
• Christine Lopez, FIS; Vice Chair

Payment Facilitator Committee
Mandate: To support and grow the payment facilitator channel by convening payment facilitator ecosystem players to discuss and create thought leadership items on industry rule changes, risk & compliance, and opportunities for the field.

• Caroline Hometh, RPY Innovations; Co-Chair
• Deana Rich, Infinicept Payment Facilitator Solutions; Co-Chair

Payment Sales and Strategy Committee
Mandate: To create a space for industry salespeople to discuss effective business practices, identify challenges, and exchange on recent developments and innovations that affect the payment sales channel.

• Ajit Prasad, TSYS Payment Solutions; Chair
• Tony Shap, GloballyPaid; Co-Chair

Retail Technology Committee
Mandate: To promote the convergence of traditional POS and integrated commerce and identify the relevant technology and businesses related to advance connected commerce.

• Russell Palay, Nuvei; Co-Chair
• Jennifer Reichenbacher, Paysafe; Co-Chair

Risk Fraud and Security Committee
Mandate: To develop thought leadership and field recommendations, educate, and remain current in issues revolving around risk monitoring, fraud prevention, data security, and compliance issues in the payments industry.

• Sam Pfanstiel, Control Scan; Chair
• Jim Bibles, Aperia Solutions; Vice-Chair

Technology Committee
Mandate: To identify current and emerging payments technologies, promote innovation, and develop thought leadership around these issues for dissemination to the ETA membership and payments ecosystem.

• Kevin Shamoun, Fortis Payments; Chair

The window to sign up for a 2021 ETA Committee is open until December 11. Sign up now and don’t miss the great year ahead! Should you have any questions, do not hesitate to reach out! As Sam Pfanstiel, Chair of the Risk Fraud and Security Committee notes, “The opportunity to give back to our beloved industry is invaluable. The numerous benefits of participation, sharing, learning, and collaborating to produce blogs, white papers, webinars is without equal, and well worth the time investment for anyone working in Payments”. We hope to see you next year!

You can reach me at [email protected].