Appointing PawaPay’s first senior marketing leader to support global growth

We partnered with high-growth B2B payments company, PawaPay, to appoint their first permanent senior marketer. Our search partners delivered a Head of Marketing to support the business as they transitioned from early traction to structured, scalable growth. 

Appointing PawaPay’s first senior marketing leader to support global growth

About PawaPay

Founded in 2020, PawaPay is a high-growth FinTech business enabling companies to process seamless mobile money payments across African markets. 

Having achieved strong early success with limited marketing investment, the business identified a clear opportunity to accelerate growth through a more defined and scalable marketing strategy. 

Challenge: Building a global marketing function from first principles

Working alongside their Fractional CMO, PawaPay sought to appoint a Head of Marketing capable of combining strategic leadership with hands-on execution. 

The role was central to: 

  • Designing and delivering a multi-region marketing strategy 
  • Building the foundations of a scalable demand generation engine 
  • Supporting commercial growth through stronger B2B sales funnel development 
  • Operating effectively within a remote-first, globally distributed organisation

This required a highly versatile leader with both FinTech experience and the ability to operate in a fast-paced, early-stage environment. 

Solution: A retained, international executive search

Jaemien Serrano and Harrison Knowles delivered a structured search process, working in close partnership with PawaPay’s leadership team and Fractional CMO to define the ideal candidate profile and success criteria. 

The process included: 

  • International market mapping across the UK, Europe, and Africa 
  • Targeted engagement of senior FinTech and payments marketing talent 
  • Ongoing refinement of the brief, informed by real-time market feedback 
  • Transparent communication throughout, ensuring alignment on candidate progress and decision-making 

This consultative and insight-led approach ensured access to high-calibre candidates with the right balance of technical expertise, leadership capability, and growth experience. 

Outcome: A foundational marketing leadership hire

PawaPay successfully appointed its first permanent senior marketing leader, a critical milestone in the company’s growth journey. This appointment positions PawaPay to accelerate demand generation and strengthen its market presence across key regions.

Guy Moreve, Fractional CMO
As a fractional CMO working with an early-stage payments start-up, I was tasked with helping the business make a pivotal first marketing hire. It was essential that we found a partner who not only understood the brief, but also the nuances of hiring into a fast-paced, remote-first, scaling environment. From our very first conversation, 3Search gave me complete confidence that they did. We worked with Jaemien and Harrison on a retained, international search, and the process was excellent from start to finish. The team quickly grasped the unique blend of strategic and hands-on skills we needed and ran a rigorous, detailed search that delivered a high-calibre shortlist. Their understanding of the payments and fintech landscape was clear, and their advice throughout was consultative, insightful, and pragmatic. Communication was seamless. I always felt updated and supported, and it genuinely felt like a partnership throughout. Thanks to 3Search’s work, we were able to appoint a fantastic Head of Marketing. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend them.

Candidate Thought Count: 0

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Michael Judkins Customer Experience & Growth Director

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