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Robert Reeg: How IT Masters Global Credit Card Business

This is from the June 6th update at EnterpriseLeadership.

Robert Reeg
Interim President of Global Technology and Operations
MasterCard Worldwide

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Each year, MasterCard processes more than a trillion dollars' worth of credit card transactions between its 25,000,000 acceptance locations in 210 countries worldwide. Net revenues for 2007 were $4.1 billion, a 22-percent increase versus the same period in 2006. Information technology drives MasterCard's three card business services: franchiser of acceptance locations that are guaranteed through MasterCard's network; processor of all payment transactions through the network and the final settlement of dollars with the financial institutions; and consultant offering a data warehouse of intelligence to help customers, such as merchants and banks, to make the best use of payments.

Robert Reeg, interim president of global technology and operations at MasterCard Worldwide, says that he doesn't worry about aligning IT with the business. He says, "We're one and the same. IT and the business are completely connected." In fact, Reeg leverages IT talent around the world to build and to manage MasterCard's massive network. He has even created the role of the business technologist as a way to develop future IT leaders.

In this podcast, Reeg talks about how his organization has adapted to the current economy to maintain its position in the marketplace, what processes, best practices, and new technologies are in place to manage a global organization, what role outsourcing plays in the IT operations, and how leveraging diversity can improve the innovation process.