Episode 6 | Zach Hemmant-Low on FinTech Hyper-Growth.

Leading Through Hyper-Growth in the Age of AI

The latest episode of the Finance Podcast welcomes Zach Hemmant-Low, Chief Sales Officer at Rossum, for a conversation exploring leadership, company culture, AI adoption and the realities of scaling a high-growth technology business. Hosted by Aaron McMillan, Senior Editor at Procurement Magazine and Supply Chain Digital, this episode was recorded live at Coupa Inspire in London and offers valuable lessons for finance, technology and business leaders navigating rapid change.

From Entrepreneurial Ambition to Global Technology Leadership

Zach's career began long before his role at Rossum. Driven by a competitive mindset and inspired by entrepreneurial parents, he launched multiple businesses from a young age, including a successful e-commerce venture and a marketing technology business. Those early experiences shaped his commercial instincts and fuelled his passion for helping organisations grow.

Today, as Chief Sales Officer at Rossum, Zach oversees global revenue operations, customer success, partnerships and growth strategy. His journey demonstrates how entrepreneurial thinking, resilience and a willingness to learn can create opportunities across the technology sector.

Building Culture as a Competitive Advantage

As organisations scale, maintaining a strong culture becomes increasingly important. Zach explains how his leadership philosophy centres on leading by example and creating an environment where teams succeed together.

Rather than focusing solely on individual performance, he emphasises the importance of shared goals, collaboration and celebrating progress at every stage of the journey. For Zach, one of the greatest rewards of leadership is helping team members achieve personal and professional milestones, whether that's career progression, buying a home or reaching long-term ambitions.

This people-first approach has helped Rossum maintain a strong culture throughout periods of rapid expansion and transformation.

The Growing Role of AI in Finance Operations

Artificial intelligence continues to reshape finance functions worldwide, and Rossum sits at the centre of that evolution. As an intelligent document processing platform, Rossum uses AI to automate the extraction, validation and processing of critical financial documents, helping organisations improve efficiency, accuracy and decision-making.

Zach discusses how attitudes towards AI have shifted dramatically in recent years. Conversations have moved away from questioning whether organisations should use AI and towards understanding how businesses can deploy it effectively while maintaining trust, transparency and measurable outcomes.

For finance leaders, the challenge is no longer technology adoption itself, but ensuring AI initiatives align with broader business objectives and deliver tangible value.

Trust, Transparency and Successful AI Adoption

One of the key themes throughout the discussion is trust. While AI offers significant opportunities for automation and operational improvement, organisations must have confidence in the outputs being generated.

Zach highlights the importance of selecting use cases where AI can produce meaningful results while ensuring stakeholders understand how technology fits into wider business processes. Success depends not only on the AI itself, but also on the people, systems and workflows that surround it.

By focusing on outcomes, visibility and measurable business impact, organisations can build confidence in AI-driven transformation programmes.

A New Chapter Following Rossum's Acquisition by Coupa

The conversation also explores Rossum's recent acquisition by Coupa and what the move means for customers, partners and the wider finance technology landscape.

Having worked closely with Coupa for several years, Rossum now has the opportunity to bring its AI-powered capabilities to a significantly larger global customer base. Zach shares his excitement about the next phase of growth, describing the acquisition as a new chapter that will unlock greater innovation, stronger customer outcomes and expanded market opportunities.

Looking Ahead

Reflecting on his career, Zach offers a simple but powerful piece of advice: don't get caught up chasing perfection. Focus on progress, stay adaptable and concentrate on the initiatives that move the business forward.

As finance functions continue to evolve, leaders who embrace innovation, invest in culture and remain focused on long-term value creation will be best positioned to thrive in an increasingly dynamic business environment.

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