Mohsin Muzaffar

executive at Payoneer

Compiled from 1 recorded interview. Every statement below is drawn from the passage cited beside it.

Mohsin Muzaffar is a senior director and country head at Payoneer Pakistan. Muzaffar was born and raised in Gujranwala. His family was originally from Lahore, moved to Gujranwala under his grandfather, and returned to Lahore in his own time.

Early life and background

Muzaffar was born and raised in Gujranwala. His family was originally from Lahore, moved to Gujranwala under his grandfather, and returned to Lahore in his own time. He completed his college education in Gujranwala before moving to Lahore for university. He first used a computer in around seventh or eighth grade, on one of his maternal uncle's computers. [1]

Education

Muzaffar had a pre-engineering background, not a pre-medical one. He studied at Punjab University. His studies were in computer science, and he says he learned machine learning, assembly language and Java. He says he was neither the top nor the worst student in his class. [1]

Freelancing on oDesk

A friend told Muzaffar that he did freelancing, on what was then oDesk. Muzaffar created a profile on oDesk and began applying for projects. He had to convince his father-in-law and mother-in-law about what he did for a living. One afternoon he woke up to an email saying he had been hired on a project. [1]

His first project paid $1.50 per hour and was for an Australian client. He describes a project as pure web research for a client who was a seller, and he had a contract with a client for 40 hours of work per week. He studied online content on YouTube to learn the work and found it was not complicated. He taught himself PHP and Facebook application development, largely from YouTube. His freelancing journey lasted about three years. [1]

Muzaffar made an hour-long video on Vimeo explaining how to join oDesk, and oDesk's management saw the video. He said that about 3% of Pakistani oDesk registrants earned $5 or more at the time. He says a programme was run at Punjab University by himself and others, and that it went very successfully. He proposed training students in three months in place of the projects assigned in the seventh and eighth semesters, which he called useless. [1]

Payoneer

Muzaffar worked for about three years as country manager at a company. He then moved to Payoneer. He started as head of business development and then became country manager. His role also includes managing verticals in some other countries. [1]

Muzaffar says Payoneer began as a prepaid card company. He says its vision is to be a platform, not a product, covering all use cases, and that it covers four payment use cases that no other company covers all four of. He says Payoneer is in business payments. He says his organisation added Google, YouTube, Amazon, Upwork and eBay to its network, and that payments from Amazon and from eBay arrive through Payoneer. [1]

He describes a flow in which a link is sent and the payer can pay by credit card, debit card, e-check or bank transfer. He says a Payoneer account is free to open and provides accounts in USD, GBP and Euro, plus 10 more currencies. He says his organisation's print-on-demand vertical in Vietnam is very strong. [1]

Views on freelancing and Pakistan

Muzaffar describes Pakistan as a country of talented people with largely untapped opportunities. He says the industry's growth has been 100% each year over the past four to six years, and that growth may slow somewhat in the coming period. He says Pakistan's IT exports are 10 billion dollars, of which freelancers bring in 1 billion. He says he has absolute clarity that freelancers themselves played their own role in the growth in freelancing volume. [1]

He says freelancing is only the first step in a longer career. He says current freelancing training still teaches WordPress and graphic design, which he expects to become irrelevant. He argues Pakistani talent should move into product design and development, not only services. He says people who do not upskill will fall behind quickly, and argues that investing 10 to 20 hours of one's own time can bring a far higher return. He says marketplace freelancing such as Fiverr and Upwork will become irrelevant within one to two years. [1]

Muzaffar says Pakistan had a COVID-era chance to double or quadruple its IT exports. He says the biggest priority is to move his country toward inclusivity and education. He says he holds two visions: a tunnel vision for daily tasks and a big picture for five years ahead. He says people can build value through integrations of existing products, not only new products, and that no job is a small job and people must think and act. [1]

Timeline

2009
Returned to Pakistan after about ten years of working in the UAE[1]

Appearances

DateTitleWhere
2022-11-09 Pakistan's freelancers built this industry themselves Thought Behind Things

Frequently asked questions

What does Mohsin Muzaffar do?

Mohsin Muzaffar works at Payoneer, where he started as head of business development and then became country manager. His role also includes managing verticals in some other countries.[1]

Where did Mohsin Muzaffar study?

Mohsin Muzaffar studied at Punjab University. His studies were in computer science. He completed his college education in Gujranwala before moving to Lahore for university.[1]

Where is Mohsin Muzaffar from?

Mohsin Muzaffar was born and raised in Gujranwala. His family was originally from Lahore, moved to Gujranwala under his grandfather, and returned to Lahore in his own time.[1]

When did Mohsin Muzaffar return to Pakistan?

Mohsin Muzaffar returned to Pakistan at the end of 2009. He had spent about ten years working in the UAE. He says he had to come back because he was the only son of his parents.[1]

What is Mohsin Muzaffar's view on freelancing marketplaces?

Mohsin Muzaffar says marketplace freelancing such as Fiverr and Upwork will become irrelevant within one to two years. He also says freelancing is only the first step in a longer career.[1]

References

  1. Pakistan's freelancers built this industry themselves . Thought Behind Things , 2022-11-09.
Show the source passages (64 statements)
  1. He was born and raised in Gujranwala. So, I am born and brought up Gujranwala mein aur meri jo college education thi
  2. He completed his college education in Gujranwala before moving to Lahore for university. meri jo college education thi, woh Gujranwala tak rahi aur us ke baad phir Lahore shift huye university ke liye
  3. His family was originally from Lahore, moved to Gujranwala under his grandfather, and returned to Lahore in his own time. Family agar hum do generations peeche jayein toh Lahore ki thi, lekin phir dada ke time mein Gujranwala shift ho gaye aur phir mere time mein dobara Lahore shift ho gaye.
  4. He first used a computer in around seventh or eighth grade, on one of his maternal uncle's computers. I think the first time I touched the keyboard, it was when I was in, if I remember correctly, I think saatvi, aathvi class mein tha main. Achha. And that wasn't my computer, that was one of my mamu's computer
  5. He had a pre-engineering background, not a pre-medical one. kyunke pre-medical maine FSC nahi ki thi, meri pre-engineering thi.
  6. He studied at Punjab University. From Punjab University.
  7. He studied computer science and says he learned machine learning, assembly language and Java. Computer science ka main graduate tha aur machine learning, assembly language, Java, sab seekha tha
  8. He says he was neither the top nor the worst student in his class. So, I wasn't the top student, but I wasn't the worst student.
  9. He says he was okay at programming but could not find a job. I was okay in programming, lekin job nahi mil rahi thi mujhe.
  10. He believes he was the last in his batch to get a job. I think hamare jo batch tha us mein main tha jis ko sab se aakhir mein job mili.
  11. He says he was not good at job interviews at the time. Thoda sa woh jo interview ka process hota hai na us mein shayad main acha nahi tha.
  12. He says he later learned that a job interview is closer to a contract than a test. Aur down the lines phir seekha ke interview jo hai woh basically interview nahi hota, it's sort of a contract.
  13. He started his working life at a call center. So, I started then from a call center.
  14. He later moved into operations at Mobilink, about a year and a half after Mobilink started a service. phir Mobilink ne start kiya toh saal dedh saal baad phir main YMax ke operations mein chala gaya.
  15. He moved on from that role because the service did not work out. Wahan pe kuch kaam kiya lekin woh kyunke chal nahi saka toh phir then ultimately I had to move on.
  16. He spent about ten years working in the UAE. So, I went to UAE. Achha. Wahan par I spent about 10 years or so.
  17. He says his business and work in the UAE did not succeed. Wahan par kaam dhanda kiya. Baat nahi bani.
  18. He returned to Pakistan at the end of 2009. So, I think 2009 ke end mein phir main wapas Pakistan aa gaya.
  19. He says he had to come back because he was the only son of his parents. I was the only son my parents had so I had to come back
  20. After returning, he had interviews at one or two places in Pakistan and did not get a job. ek do jagah interviews bhi huye lekin wohi purana problem tha. Alhamdulillah kahin job nahi mili.
  21. A friend told him that he did freelancing, on what was then oDesk. Toh raat us ne bataya yaar main freelancing karta hoon. Odesk hota tha tab.
  22. He created a profile on oDesk and began applying for projects. Odesk pe banayi apni profile banayi aur kuch projects pe apply karna shuru kar diya.
  23. He had to convince his father-in-law and mother-in-law about what he did for a living. I had to convince my father-in-law and mother-in-law ke main karta kya hoon.
  24. He woke up one afternoon to an email saying he had been hired on a project. dopahar ko utha hoon main aur maine dekha ke ek email aayi hui hai ke you have been hired on this project
  25. His first project paid $1.50 per hour and was for an Australian client. mujhe woh jo pehla project bhi mila, that was $1.5 per hour. Achha. Right. Aur woh Australian client tha
  26. He describes a project as pure web research for a client who was a seller. it was a pure web research, he was a seller
  27. He had a contract with a client for 40 hours of work per week. So, mera is ke saath 40 hours per week ka jo hai woh contract tha.
  28. He studied online content on YouTube to learn the work and found it was not complicated. So, went on YouTube, woh bhi ruk ruk ke chalta tha aur woh kuch content study kiya, samajh aaya koi itni koi rocket science nahi hai
  29. He taught himself PHP and Facebook application development, largely from YouTube. phir PHP development ki taraf aa gaya, phir is ki Facebook ki applications hoti thin, us ko YouTube se khud se seekha
  30. His freelancing journey lasted about three years. aur yeh journey raha mera taqreeban 3 saal.
  31. He made an hour-long video on Vimeo explaining how to join oDesk. Vimeo pe kuch I think ek ghante ki video bana di ki is tarah se aap oDesk pe jayein
  32. oDesk's management saw the video. So us waqt oDesk ki jo management hai unhone woh video dekhi.
  33. He said that about 3% of Pakistani oDesk registrants earned $5 or more at the time. Pakistan se jitne log oDesk pe register kar rahe the usme se takreeban 3% the jo $5 ya usse upar banate the.
  34. He says a programme was run at Punjab University by himself and others, and that it went very successfully. Punjab University mein woh humne run kiya bada successfully.
  35. He proposed training students in three months in place of the projects assigned in the seventh and eighth semesters, which he called useless. Unse kaha aathvein, saatvein, aathvein semester mein jo aap useless qisam ke projects karwate hain woh karwana band karein. Mere paas aapke liye ek proposition hai, hum aapke bachon ko train karenge. 3 mahine mein train karenge.
  36. He worked for about three years as country manager at a company. Uske saath maine kaam kiya takreeban 3 saal as their country manager.
  37. He then moved to Payoneer, about four and a quarter years before this interview. phir uske baad maine shift kiya Payoneer mein takreeban aaj se sawa chaar saal pehle.
  38. He started as head of business development and then became country manager. start maine kiya tha as their head of business development and then country manager.
  39. His role also includes managing verticals in some other countries. lekin uske saath saath kuch aur countries ke jo verticals hain uski management bhi is part of my role.
  40. He says his organisation's print-on-demand vertical in Vietnam is very strong. Vietnam hai jahan par hamara jo print on demand ka vertical hai woh bahut tagda hai.
  41. He describes Pakistan as a country of talented people with largely untapped opportunities. Pakistan ek talented logon ka khazana hai aur isme itni badi untapped opportunities hain ki hum abhi to we are not even scratching the surface ji.
  42. He says growth may slow somewhat in the coming period. ab aane wale din mein hum thodi growth ko shayad depreciate hote dekhenge.
  43. He says the industry's growth has been 100% each year over the past four to six years. ki industry mein jo growth hai woh 100% har saal badh raha hai. Yeh pichle jo 4 se 6 saal ka arsa hai
  44. He says Pakistan's IT exports are 10 billion dollars, of which freelancers bring in 1 billion. Yani IT export 10 billion dollar ki hain. So us 10 billion mein se 1 billion freelancer la rahe hain.
  45. He says he has absolute clarity that freelancers themselves played their own role in the growth in freelancing volume. I have absolute clarity ki freelancing mein jitna bhi usme volume bada hai usme freelancers ka apna kirdar hai.
  46. He says freelancing is only the first step in a longer career. Freelancing is just the first step aapki overall journey mein.
  47. He says current freelancing training still teaches WordPress and graphic design, which he expects to become irrelevant. Abhi jo trainings ho rahi hain, uh usmein wohi WordPress, wohi graphic designing wohi chal rahi hai. Again, theek hai, agle 6-8 mahine survive kar jayegi, lekin woh bilkul irrelevant ho jayega.
  48. He argues Pakistani talent should move into product design and development, not only services. Agar hum apne logon ko product design aur development ki taraf leke ja sakein aur woh kisi bhi side pe ho sakti hai, it doesn't have to be a high end product.
  49. He says people who do not upskill will fall behind quickly. Agar upskilling nahi karenge to aap bahut jald bahut peeche reh jayenge.
  50. He argues that investing 10 to 20 hours of one's own time can bring a far higher return. agar main is pe 10 se 20 ghante apne invest karta hoon aur uska jo return hai that is far higher
  51. He says marketplace freelancing such as Fiverr and Upwork will become irrelevant within one to two years. Freelancing jo platform freelancer hai, marketplace ki freelancing hai, Fiverr, Upwork, ek, dedh, do saal mein irrelevant ho jayegi.
  52. He says Payoneer's vision is to be a platform, not a product, covering all use cases. Ab end of the day our vision is ke Payoneer is not a product, it's a platform uh jo saare use cases ko cater kar sake.
  53. He says Payoneer began as a prepaid card company. jab Payoneer ne start kiya tha, it was merely a prepaid card company
  54. He says his organisation added Google, YouTube, Amazon, Upwork and eBay to its network. Google se le ke YouTube se lekar aur Amazon and Upworks and eBay, in sab ko humne apne network mein add kiya
  55. He says Payoneer covers four payment use cases and that no other company covers all four. Payoneer in char use cases ko fulfill karta hai. Baki koi company in char use cases ko fulfill nahi karti.
  56. He says payments from Amazon and from eBay arrive through Payoneer. So Amazon ki payment to aati Payoneer se hai. Right. eBay ki payment to aati Payoneer se hai
  57. He describes a flow in which a link is sent and the payer can pay by credit card, debit card, e-check or bank transfer. ek link jata hai, wo link pe click karenge, credit, debit card, e-check ya bank transfer se wo aapko pay kar sakte hain
  58. He says a Payoneer account is free to open and provides accounts in USD, GBP and Euro, plus 10 more currencies. aapne Payoneer pe account banaya jo ke bilkul free of cost aap bana lete hain, aapko USD account mil jayega, GBP, Euro, there are 10 more currencies jinke accounts aapko mil jayenge.
  59. He says Payoneer is in business payments. Us fee us play mein Payoneer nahi hai, Payoneer business uh payments ke andar hai.
  60. He says Pakistan had a COVID-era chance to double or quadruple its IT exports. Jab covid aaya tha to Pakistan ke paas ek golden period tha apni IT export ko double ya quadraple karne ka.
  61. He says he holds two visions: a tunnel vision for daily tasks and a big picture for five years ahead. Ek aapka hota hai tunnel vision aur ek aapka jo aapka big picture hoti hai, 5 saal mein dekhte hain.
  62. He says the biggest priority is to move his country toward inclusivity and education. direction upar se aani hai jisme hamari sabse badi jo cheez hai wo humne apne country ko inclusivity ki taraf le ke jana hai, education ki taraf le ke jana hai.
  63. He says people can build value through integrations of existing products, not only new products. sometimes you you don't even have to create products, you have to create integration of the products.
  64. He says no job is a small job, and that people must think and act. koi dhanda chota dhanda nahi hai, you have to think and you have to do.