ffinity. Empathy. 'Symp-atico.' However you say it, understanding and appreciating others are desirable qualities for anyone to possess. Especially if you own a company, these qualities enable you to relate to those who work for you and to develop solutions that help them do their jobs.

They say you can't really know a business or industry inside out unless you know every aspect of running it. If you want to be a good manager, you have to understand what your staff does. If you want to run a successful business, you have to appreciate what the processes are and how things get done. It's just as important as understanding what your customers' needs are.

That's certainly true at Cynergy Data, where founders John Martillo, President, and Marcello Paladini, CEO, have created a business based on providing Merchant Level Salespeople (MLSs) and ISOs with the tools to create their own successes.

Martillo and Paladini know what they're talking about-they both started out in financial services as sales agents on the street. Their motto these days reflects the company-wide commitment to earn new agent and merchant business-and keep it: "Make your next acquirer your last acquirer."

What sets Cynergy Data apart from other processors and acquirers? First off, a true understanding of how to make MLS' jobs easier and more lucrative. Having 'been there and done that,' Martillo and Paladini decided to do things a lot differently when they formed their company in 1995.

Since then, they've built on their own needs and experiences to design a variety of programs that allow Cynergy agents more opportunities to expand their businesses and achieve financial success.

"I believe that what really made a difference for us is that John and I started the company from the ground up," Paladini said. "We needed the best tools, support and products in order to be successful.

"We didn't find an ISO or acquirer that had all these different tools in hand. There are many ISOs popping up in the market, formed as the result of mergers or by people who knew about the industry and the power of residuals and recurring fees, but who don't really have an understanding of what the sales agent on the street needs. We try to bring to them what we know they need, because we've been there before," he explained.

The two have known each other since 1992, when they worked together in another company's sales division-Paladini in telemarketing, Martillo in direct sales. When they met up again, it was a coincidence that they were both sales agents working for a sub-ISO in financial services. Neither knew much about the payments industry, but both approached it as an exciting, very complex challenge.

What they discovered then has served as the philosophical foundation for Cynergy Data. Despite the tremendous potential for success Martillo and Paladini saw in selling merchant accounts, low levels of customer service, a widespread and pervasive lack of agent training and having to fight for residuals were also part of the package.

When they decided to go out on their own, they had a basic understanding of how to get started, but what really motivated them was the notion of doing things differently. Being adamant about adhering to high standards has been good for business at Cynergy Data. Growing from what started out as two men with an idea, Cynergy is now a full-service acquirer.

According to Martillo, the company processed $700 million worth of transactions in 2003. Projections for 2004 indicate sales will top $45 million and transaction processing will exceed $1.6 billion. Cynergy Data provides a complete line of electronic processing options to retail, MOTO and Internet merchants including credit, debit, gift card and EBT processing, check conversion and guarantee and equipment leasing and sales. The company targets independent sales offices, agents and agent banks of all sizes; it currently processes for more than 200 active offices.

From the beginning, their mission has been to explore new ways to achieve a higher level of service. The big news at Cynergy Data right now is the roll out of its new VimasPro online management tool. With its eye toward simplifying the sales and retention processes, Cynergy gave VimasPro features that enable ISOs/MLSs and merchants, who use an abbreviated version, to access account information in real time for superior management capabilities.

"Going in, we decided to provide programs and services that are important for ISOs today, whether they're inherent in the industry or whether we grab ideas from other industries," Martillo said. "Our bottom line, really, is to provide services that are needed in the industry."

Ed Golodetz of Orlando, Fla.-based EMG The Bankcard Store, a Cynergy ISO, said working with the company has improved the way he does business. "We've been in business for 15 years and have had good relationships with other acquirers. However, the Cynergy group is progressive and aggressive. Their interaction with sales offices and ISOs is excellent."

Sometimes a lot of small touches add up: little things like calling an office to congratulate them on their first sale and helping merchants with statements can go a long way to establishing and maintaining excellent relationships. Cynergy's success is due to a lot of big touches, too. Drawing on their own experiences, Martillo and Paladini's ongoing goal is to be the company that solves problems before they become problems. One major facet in their overall plan is designing programs that streamline systems so that agents save time and make more money.

Through Cynergy Data, for instance, ISOs/MLSs can borrow money against their residuals. "One of the biggest factors for agents is that they typically need ways to finance growth of their business to take it to the next level and bring in more business," Martillo said. Another program lets agents offer free terminals to merchants as incentive to close difficult sales or when merchants aren't able to invest in new equipment. The idea is that merchants need to grow, too-and more transactions mean more processing.

The notion of agents helping their merchants improve their business is very important at Cynergy Data. They take feedback from offices-and merchants-very seriously, according to Mitch Levy, Executive Vice President and Director of Business Development. "We want our ISOs to think of merchants as clients," he said. "You can't just go to merchants and say 'I'm going to lower your rate.' The merchant needs more than that."

Cynergy handles every aspect of its business in-house, including equipment deployment, risk management and around-the-clock, live, bilingual customer service. This gives them more control over the services and enables the company to expand into higher risk areas such as e-commerce.

Cynergy has the ability to process transactions for merchants of all sizes and for large- and small-volume sales offices. For example, the Executive Partner Program accommodates the needs of larger sales offices, giving them an active role in underwriting and loss-prevention decisions. Because of the range of sales offices that process with Cynergy, its compensation structure is definitely not one-size-fits-all; many pricing programs are available, including buy-rates and interchange pass-through for registered ISOs, all based on residual income. Qualified agents receive sign-on bonuses in addition to residuals.

Cynergy Launches "The Next Necessity"

Along with the focus on offering value and integrity to agents and merchants, and extensive training for employees, Cynergy also emphasizes developing solutions based on leading-edge, user-friendly technology, including the VimasPro product.

VimasPro integrates accounting, customer service, deployment and portfolio management into one business management tool, accessed through the Cynergy Data Web site. Agents can calculate residuals; view every batch, transaction detail and status of all chargebacks and retrievals; track deployments; file and track merchant applications and approvals; and design reporting functions based on their specific needs.

VimasPro is the latest example of how Paladini and Martillo approach hurdles. "We used to have four separate systems running at one time and none of them were connected," Martillo said. "It was brutal trying to do the training and customer service we are committed to."

Finding a way to integrate all four systems became their challenge. "We did find some existing products, but they were very pricey," Paladini said. "There was no one system that could meet our needs and still be affordable for our agents."

Cynergy's IT staff devoted three years to developing, testing and improving VimasPro. It's available free of charge to all active Cynergy Data ISOs/MLSs. The company is betting this new tool will become the "next necessity" in payments; when it comes to convenience, they say it ranks right up there with microwave ovens, cell phones and computers.

"Throw away your files, your administrative and accounting software," said Martillo. "You just turn it on and run your business."

According to Golodetz, those claims are accurate. "It's a terrific tool, a fantastic product," he said. "We wouldn't be able to do as good a job without it-it is a necessity. It has cut down on the time we spend on customer service, but has increased the level of service we can give. It provides a good comfort level for the merchants."

Agents who sign with Cynergy can also take comfort in the knowledge that this is one company committed to being around for the long term. In May 2004, Cynergy will open a new corporate office in mid-town Manhattan for its sales, marketing and product development personnel; the rest of the business operations will remain at its College Point, N.Y location.

"We believe in solid growth," Martillo said. "In today's market of mergers and acquisitions, people are afraid of signing contracts. We're not about making a quick buck and running. We want to remain flexible, responsive and creative."