How this exec turned a dying product into an app with 135 million users

Think back to when you were a young kid in school.

Chances are, all you had was a cash allowance from your parents. Cash was the only way you could pay for expenses like food and transportation.

When you got older, you got a debit or credit card, and eventually paying by cash fell to the wayside. At some point, you might have even set up your smartphone as a personal payment channel, using apps and other services to tap and pay for all the things you used to have to fork out cash for as a kid.

Photo credit: ake1150 / 123RF

The fintech industry, just like you, has grown up. And along the way, it has made dramatic improvements in the ways people pay, invest, and remit money.

That last bit is where DANA Indonesia comes in, providing payment solutions for both merchants and consumers. As the industry grows, fintech companies have to keep up with the rapid pace of innovation. We spoke with Rangga Wiseno, chief of product at DANA, to find out what great product development means to him and what he’ll be sharing at Tech in Asia’s Product Development Conference this year.

The following responses have been edited for clarity and brevity.

What does great product development mean to you? What got you interested in it?

Rangga: I love solving problems, and being a product developer means I can be flexible and solve various problems involving customers as well as the business and the tech side. Being in these different domains has helped me see the bigger picture and solve things better by looking through different lenses when needed.

To me, building a great product means that you’re able to solve a user’s needs while at the same time generating a sustainable business out of those particular needs. Of course, you’ve got to make sure that you’re doing it with the right technology too.

What’s the best product-related career advice you’ve ever received?

Rangga: Be aware of your biases and have the discipline to think the opposite if needed.

One bias that’s especially important to note is survivorship bias – it means we only learn from surviving data and forget to check non-surviving evidence.

For example, if we want to learn about ecommerce strategy, we shouldn’t only look to Jack Ma’s success because it’s an example of surviving data. There might be hundreds of factors behind it and even if you follow them, the results might be different.

Building a great product means that you’re able to solve a user’s needs while at the same time generating a sustainable business out of those particular needs

On the other hand, looking at why an ecommerce venture failed – in this case, it’s non-surviving evidence – will give you one to three very specific reasons. And when those factors occur to you, fixing them immediately will have a direct impact.

What’s the biggest and most memorable impact you’ve made on a product?

What are you going to talk about at PDC and why is it important?