Women: The Change Makers in Visa Consulting & Analytics

The Visa Consulting & Analytics (VCA) team provides data-driven expert analysis and advisory services to issuers, acquirers, merchants, fintechs and other partners to stay current on payment trends and consumer behaviors. VCA uses in-house economic intelligence and proprietary analytical models to provide unique insights and actionable recommendations that drive measurable impact for clients.

In collaboration with themuse, an innovative career platform, we are spotlighting the remarkable women of VCA. These women, who come from diverse backgrounds and experiences and have made significant contributions to the consulting field through their work at VCA. Here, we aim to share their inspiring stories, their perspectives on the evolving consulting landscape, and their advice for aspiring consultants. 

Meet Victoria Klochkova

What attracted you to work at Visa? How did you know it would be a good fit?

I was drawn to Visa because of its reputation as a purpose-driven industry leader where I could make an impact on a global scale. Transitioning from traditional management consulting, I saw Visa as an opportunity to build more specialized expertise and drive my growth within the company. I knew Visa would be a good fit because of its emphasis on working closely with clients towards achieving shared goals. It’s great to see the results of my work on the client’s side, while also seeing how it impacts our own business.

What are you responsible for in your current role?

I head one of the service lines at Visa Consulting and Analytics, and I focus on supporting commercial issuers and money movement topics. Both areas are key strategic directions and high-growth opportunities for Visa in the coming years. My team collaborates closely with our CMS products and business development teams to provide the best support to our partners and achieve our strategic aspirations together. We also spearhead market-wide initiatives to support overall growth. I identify the right opportunities by engaging with our clients and leveraging Visa’s unique market-wide lenses to see where further opportunities for our partners might lie. Once opportunities are recognized, we work internally on delivering the project—whether it is a strategy, data science engagement, or an implementation initiative.

What are you working on right now that excites or inspires you?

Recently, I’ve initiated a project in South Africa to assist a top issuer shape their payment strategy, contributing to the democratization of payments and financial inclusion in the continent. As part of the team, we’re designing the future bank’s payments agenda during this pivotal transformation. I feel like my role at Visa extends beyond consulting—I can truly feel how our work significantly influences the payments landscape, impacting consumer lives and unlocking business opportunities. I appreciated the opportunity to take a few months out of my regular focus area and explore a completely new region through one of Visa’s development programs.

What do you value most about Visa’s or your team’s culture? What sets it apart from other places you’ve worked?

“One Visa” approach, which means that whenever we engage with our clients, we present as one team bringing expertise from all functional areas. While this brings the best combination of knowledge to our clients, it has also helped me meet and collaborate with people from unique backgrounds, learn from their experience, and expand my knowledge.

What’s one thing you would want a candidate to know about what it’s like to work at Visa?

Being a consultant here, I feel like I am much more than an advisor to my clients, rather I can drive end-to-end change by working closely on every aspect of their business. It's been a very enriching experience. But what I love most about Visa is that our culture and values are not confined solely to us but extends to our clients as well. A memorable instance was in the Middle East region, where our transformative program led to the client—a bank—hiring women for the first time, reflecting our influence beyond business!

Tell us about an innovation at Visa that was especially exciting and why. How does Visa help employees innovate?

I joined Visa right before Covid and it has been the most exciting journey ever since. I initially started in Digital Practice and moved on later to start a new service line from scratch, that I've been growing for the past year and a half. Throughout this time, I have worked in almost every country in the Middle East and have recently embarked on a rotation program in Africa. I could not wish for a better diversity and breadth of experience, and am excited to see where my Visa journey will take me next!