Mark Samlal grew up as one of the only Indian families in a small Perth township, went on to co-found a payroll company from a secondhand desk in Singapore with his wife Samantha, and eventually listed it on the ASX as PayGroup. In 2022 Deel acquired the business in an all-cash deal worth $120M at a 143% premium to market. In this conversation Mark talks about the racism he faced growing up, the "4 or out the door" sales mentality that shaped his early career, what it actually feels like to run a public company, and why he's stayed on at Deel almost four years after the acquisition. He also opens up about the guilt of building a business while raising three daughters, and the pull he's feeling to reconnect with his roots in Fiji and India.

Timestamps

00:00 – Cold open: race, accountability, and the "4 or out the door" origin story

01:55 – Younger Mark: born in Fiji, his father's journey from teacher to social worker

09:23 – University, meeting Samantha, and the early grind in real estate

15:56 – Into telecom, then payroll software — learning on the job

21:43 – Meeting mentor Phil Cave and turning around Lendlease Employer Services

32:40 – Racism growing up and being "the only brown person in the room"

37:59 – The move to Singapore and building the Sharks Basketball community

43:13 – Running multiple businesses at once and bootstrapping PayAsia with Samantha

51:25 – Skipping VC/PE, and what it's really like leading a public company

1:05:36 – COVID, 3 acquisitions, and the road to the Deel deal

1:09:52 – The Deel acquisition: $120M all-cash, 143% premium

1:13:34 – Culture shock joining Deel, AI's impact on HR/payroll, and why he's stayed

1:27:03 – Raising 3 daughters, fatherhood, and business regrets

1:38:34 – The Pingyao story, undervaluing Asian entrepreneurs, and where he's headed next

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