How Fintech PEX Improved Manager Effectiveness with 15Five

The Core Challenge

PEX, a fintech payment solutions company specializing in expense management, with disbursement and B2B Credit, faced a pivotal moment as it rapidly scaled its headcount. Amy Gaspari, Head of Human Resources, identified that while engagement scores were high, the organization suffered from siloed departments and inconsistent communication. Amy recognized that sustaining excellence required maturing people practices to dissolve functional silos and unify communication as the organization evolved.

The Challenges:

• Siloed Operations: Department heads lacked a unified way to visualize goals and maintain ongoing conversations across the organization.
  
  
• Poor Vendor Support: PEX previously used CultureAmp for performance and surveys, but found the support "very short" and challenging to navigate.
  
  
• Socializing OKRs: Goal setting (OKRs) and performance reviews lived in separate, disconnected spaces, hindering orchestration.
  
  
• No Feedback Rituals: There was no reportable way to ensure managers were actually meeting with their teams to discuss anything beyond task lists.
  
  

The Solution

PEX chose 15Five to consolidate its people pillars, engagement, performance, and OKRs under one umbrella. The decision was driven by the platform's ability to orchestrate communication and the high-energy, consultative support provided by the 15Five team.

Implementation Strategy:

PEX rolled out the platform in a phased approach over the first quarter to ensure adoption:

1. Performance & 1-on-1s: Launched simultaneously to establish a baseline for continuous feedback.
   
   
2. Engagement Surveys: Introduced as an annual benchmark to gather rich data on cultural health.
   
   
3. Manager Coaching: Implemented 15Five’s professional coaching to support "new managers" who were tenured in product but new to people leadership.
   
   

The "A-Ha!" Moments

For Amy, the breakthrough came from the visibility into manager-employee connections. By monitoring 1-on-1 documentation, she could diagnose cultural "dips" in real-time. Instead of being punitive, she used this data to prompt managers to connect more frequently.

Another major "A-Ha" was the seamless integration of coaching. Because 15Five was already an approved, trusted vendor, Amy could introduce coaching to managers without triggering skepticism or change fatigue.

For managers at PEX, the value of 15Five became most apparent when their teams scaled to three or more direct reports. Amy observed that at this size, managers shifted from seeing 1-on-1s as an "extra task" to viewing them as a vital survival tool.

After implementing 15five, performance reviews became easier and more meaningful. Because feedback and progress were documented throughout the year, managers didn’t waste time chasing down notes. They walked into reviews prepared and focused on growth.

"I’ve had an overwhelmingly positive experience, both with the product and the team. It’s a company that cares, and that’s a differentiator. Our customers know we care about what we do, and we feel that same partnership with 15Five."

— Amy Gaspari, Head of Human Resources, PEX

The Results

Manager Effectiveness & Accountability

• Visibility into Connections: Amy can now pinpoint exactly where communication is breaking down by seeing which teams are and aren't doing 1-on-1s.
  
  
• Targeted Development: Upward reviews and engagement data are used to identify opportunity areas, allowing HR to provide data-backed coaching rather than anecdotal feedback.
  
  

Culture & Engagement

• Sustained High Engagement: PEX consistently maintains engagement scores of 82-83% or higher, which Amy proudly notes is "unusual for a small software development company".
  
  
• Employee Sentiment: Staff felt the company was "taking care of them" by providing modern, visible tools for their development.

Operational Efficiency

• Ease of Use: Performance cycles are now easier to complete for a busy, high-growth team, thanks to automated reminders that keep the executive team on track.
  
  
• Resource Optimization: Amy streamlined HR efforts without vetting new vendors or requesting additional budget by leveraging 15Five's coaching services.
  
  

Looking Ahead

PEX plans to deepen its use of 15Five’s Manager Effectiveness Dashboard to better understand the "why" behind its data. Amy is also interested in future AI-augmented integrations that connect PEX's operational tools, like Monday.com, directly into 15Five performance reviews to create a single source of truth for productivity and growth.

Learn how 15Five can transform your performance review process.