2025 IFA Roundtable Summit Preview: A NEXGEN Leadership Roundtable Conversation

The International Factoring Association is looking forward to offering the factoring industry’s newest and anticipated in-person gathering, the IFA Roundtable Summit. As a part of the IFA Roundtable Summit, the NEXGEN Leadership Roundtable will feature three moderators that will not only foster idea sharing and collaboration but also share the latest trends, cutting edge analysis, and innovations. Join us for this insightful Q&A with our moderators Robert Center, Sr. Relationship Manager, Quasar Capital, Trishaala Ninan, Director of Marketing, REV Capital, and Wallace Vaughan, Chief Executive Officer, FactorCloud LLC to share their thoughts for NEXGEN leaders.

Can you tell us a bit about your background and your journey in the factoring industry?

Robert: My career in factoring officially began in late 2021, but honestly, I've been around the industry most of my life. I started running to the PO box, posting collections, doing whatever needed to be done to learn the ropes from the ground up. What I loved about starting there was getting to see every single piece of the puzzle before specializing. That early hands-on exposure across different areas shaped my understanding of how this industry really works. Now I'm a Senior Relationship Manager, a full-circle journey built on both lived experience and a genuine appreciation for how this industry changes lives.

Trishaala: I've been in marketing for over a decade now, and what I love most about it is how transferable it is. You get to take this core skillset and apply it across different industries, constantly learning along the way. I joined the factoring industry about four years ago, and what drew me in was the concept itself — helping businesses access the capital they’ve already earned. It’s not a loan — it’s simply faster access to what’s rightfully theirs. That blew my mind.

I’ll be honest, I had never even heard of factoring before I joined the company. But once I understood what it was and saw the kind of impact it could make for businesses that are often overlooked by traditional lenders, I was hooked. I couldn’t believe more people didn’t know about it. That became a bit of a mission for me: to help spread awareness by educating people in a way that’s clear, helpful, and relevant. Because once they understand what it is, they realize how powerful it can be.

Wallace: Most of my background is in operations at large financial institutions, which meant I was often working with SaaS vendors, vetting tools, negotiating contracts, and figuring out how to get the most value from them. When the opportunity came up to combine that experience with tech through FactorCloud, it made a lot of sense.

Factoring caught my attention because it’s such a granular form of credit done at really high volume. That opens the door for serious efficiency gains, which I couldn’t pass up. What keeps me motivated is knowing that every improvement we make directly impacts the bottom line for dozens of companies.

The Roundtable is focused on empowering the next generation of industry leaders — what advice would you give to someone just starting out?

Trishaala: Be humbly curious. You’re not expected to know everything about the industry right away, and truthfully, none of us know everything. But if you stay curious and ask questions, you’ll learn fast. When you’re new, you actually have an advantage because you’re seeing things with fresh eyes. You don’t have built-in assumptions or biases, and that makes it easier to spot gaps, friction points, or opportunities that others might overlook.

Whenever someone new joins my team, I always encourage them to spend time learning how things work before suggesting improvements. Once you have that context, your ideas will carry more weight, and you’ll be able to offer insights that are grounded in real understanding.

How can young professionals start building influence even if they’re not in a formal leadership role yet?

Trishaala: Start by thinking beyond your immediate task. Even if your role is just one part of a larger project, take the time to understand how your piece fits into the bigger picture. Leaders are always looking for people who "get it" — who don’t just do their job but also understand why it matters.

You can also build influence online by sharing what you know. Whether it’s your perspective, a resource you’ve found helpful, or a quick insight from your day-to-day work, putting your thoughts out there builds credibility. You don’t need a title to lead. If you’re thoughtful, consistent, and collaborative, people will naturally start seeing you as someone worth listening to.

What skills or mindsets do you believe are essential for success in today’s commercial finance environment?

Robert: If I had to boil it down to one word: curiosity. That mindset will take you further than any technical skill or job description. In this industry, don't just learn how to complete a task, dig into why it's done that way. What problem does it solve? How does it impact the client? Understand the reasoning behind each step in the process. Then turn that curiosity outward. Get genuinely curious about your clients, their stories, how they landed in their industry, what keeps them up at night, and what success really looks like to them. The more context you have about their world and how they think, the more valuable you become to them. In factoring, relationships drive everything, and curiosity builds better relationships.

What industry trends should NEXGEN professionals be paying closer attention to right now?

Wallace: Integration is the big one. Passing data between systems across the ecosystem is reducing errors, saving time, and speeding up funding while lowering costs.

We’re already seeing automation tools change the game. AI calls for payment status and invoice verification, bots logging into debtor portals to pull updates, integrated payment rails that move money with one click, and collections tools that auto-close invoices when paid. This isn’t hypothetical. It’s happening right now.

The next step is connecting these tools into complete workflows. A lot of companies are solving one problem at a time, but they already have most of what they need to automate the entire purchase process. The key is choosing the right partners so you’re not stuck with disconnected tools that can’t work together.

It’s great to have a tool that audits an invoice, but if you still need to manually move that invoice into your ledger, collections system, and accounting software, you haven’t really solved the problem. We’re getting closer to a point where AI bots are constantly scanning your data for issues before they become problems. That’s exciting for everyone in this space, and even more so for the businesses that depend on factors. Less time on busywork, more time focused on clients.

How can NEXGEN professionals better understand how different roles and functions work together in the factoring process?

Robert: Three key approaches: First, take full advantage of what's already out there, the IFA's Account Executive training, their annual conference, and especially sessions that fall outside your role. You'll be surprised what applies. The goal is building context beyond your silo.

Second, check out Fund Forward on Spotify, it's the IFA NEXGEN's own podcast that takes the time to dive deep into different teams and perspectives inside factoring companies.

Lastly, be proactive inside your own company and lean on their resources. Ask to shadow other departments, review sales packages before they hit underwriting, read through the credit memos, sit with the ops team during a funding cycle. The best learning happens when you see how all the pieces connect. The more visibility you have into how the parts work together, the more equipped you'll be to lead.

How do you think the factoring industry is evolving, and what does that mean for the next generation?

Wallace: I think we’re getting close to a world where a client can send in an invoice at 11:00 PM on a Saturday and have funds hit their phone at 11:01 PM. The tech is already here. What’s missing is the level of trust required to let it run independently at scale.

Right now, it’s pretty easy to automate funding for a solid client with just occasional oversight. But we’re moving toward a point where analytics are strong enough that the system won’t just handle the easy deals. It will catch the risky or fraudulent ones too, often more reliably than a person could.

This is already happening. Over the next 12 to 18 months, I expect tech to take a big leap forward in identifying problems automatically. That doesn’t mean replacing the gut instincts of experienced professionals, but it does mean getting the routine tasks off their plates. That’s where the next generation can really shine by combining solid judgment with powerful tools.

The 2025 IFA Roundtable Summit will take place October 13-15 in Denver, CO. This event will consist of three distinct, concurrent meetings: the Sales Executives Roundtable, the NEXGEN Leadership Roundtable, and the Small Factors Roundtable. Each roundtable operates independently with specialized discussions, while all networking functions will be combined to enhance collaboration and foster broader connections among all attendees.

Come join Robert, Trishaala, Wallace and other NEXGEN factoring professionals where there will be an invaluable opportunity for leaders in the factoring industry to exchange ideas, gain a solid understanding of the entire factoring process, and strengthen their professional networks while building the foundation of our industry’s future.

Click here to register for the NEXGEN Leadership Roundtable Today!