Introducing The Entrepreneur Behind The Cover Of The Latest Issue Of MoneyCentral Magazine: Indira Setia Putri

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When vision meets expertise, transformation follows. That’s the story of Rafieri Tech, the company co-founded in 2025 by Indira Setia Putri and her husband, both seasoned technology professionals with more than two decades of experience in the Information Technology industry. Together, they are rewriting the way hospitality businesses approach digital transformation, bringing to the sector a blend of technical mastery, entrepreneurial drive, and a genuine commitment to improving the guest journey.

Indira and her husband have lived and breathed technology their entire careers. From senior leadership positions to hands-on entrepreneurship, their experience covers IT sales, account management, business development, software development with a focus on RPA and AI, and expertise in networks, cloud infrastructure, managed services, security, and telecommunications. Beyond the corporate sphere, their entrepreneurial spirit has seen them create and manage ventures in hospitality and e-commerce for over 20 years, with additional exposure in the events and entertainment sector. This unique background helped them identify a critical gap in the accommodation industry: the need for seamless, integrated digital solutions that elevate efficiency while keeping the guest at the heart of the experience.

That vision is what gave birth to Rafieri Tech. Even the company’s name tells a story. “Rafi” means high, elevated, to lift, while “Eri” means blessing — together reflecting the company’s mission to uplift the guest experience through technology while providing meaningful value for hospitality operators. Headquartered in both Australia and Indonesia, Rafieri Tech has developed a proprietary platform spanning mobile apps, web, and software, specifically tailored for hotels, resorts, and hospitality providers. This end-to-end solution transforms operations, streamlines booking workflows, and redefines the guest journey from check-in to check-out. Beyond software, Rafieri Tech also collaborates with hospitality providers to deliver tailored cybersecurity advisory services and strategic system integration.

Operating with agile principles, Rafieri Tech delivers flexible, results-driven solutions for properties of all sizes, from boutique hotels to multi-property resorts. The company adapts to the needs of businesses, regardless of transaction volume, offering meaningful support for operators striving to enhance their guest experience and digital capabilities. Their mission is clear: to transform the guest journey through smart, intuitive, and sustainable technology.

Behind this innovation is Indira herself, a leader whose career spans more than 20 years in senior IT leadership and strategic sales, alongside 18 years of entrepreneurship. Her strengths lie in building partnerships rooted in collaboration and trust, creating opportunities, and guiding organisations through complex challenges with a steady hand. She has worked across industries as diverse as hospitality, manufacturing, wholesale, fintech, legal, IT, retail, and non-profits, supporting SMEs and corporate enterprises alike. A coach and mentor, she thrives on helping teams and individuals unlock their potential and achieve success.

Away from the boardroom, Indira is deeply passionate about women’s empowerment, gender equality, family welfare, and mental health awareness. She balances her professional achievements with her role as a mother to a 14-year-old son, while also pursuing her interests in fitness, martial arts, running, basketball, and culinary exploration.

MoneyCentral Magazine recently sat down with Indira to discuss her latest venture, exploring how Rafieri Tech is pioneering a new era for the hospitality sector, and here’s what went down:

Rafieri Tech was founded with a clear mission to elevate the guest journey in hospitality. What inspired you and your husband to take the leap from established corporate careers into launching this venture?

We’ve always shared a passion for exploring hotels and resorts with our family. Over time, we noticed a clear gap in the guest experience, particularly around check-in, in-house amenity bookings, and the lack of a seamless, integrated system that brings everything together in one place.

Personally, building a global company has always been a goal. Since I was 19, I’ve built over 20 years of experience as a professional while running my own businesses in parallel. With a career spanning corporate, SME, scaleup, and startup environments, covering sales and leadership in IT, entertainment, and business, I felt ready to channel that knowledge into creating something of our own. Since becoming an entrepreneur in 2011, I’ve been driven by the idea of solving real-world problems, and Rafieri Tech is the result of combining our professional expertise with our shared love for hospitality.

With over two decades in IT and entrepreneurship, you’ve worked across multiple industries. What unique challenges and opportunities have you found in applying advanced technology like AI and RPA to the hospitality sector?

One of the biggest challenges in applying AI and RPA to hospitality lies in shifting human perception. Too often, these technologies are seen as a threat to jobs rather than as enablers that enhance productivity and streamline business processes. In reality, human contribution remains irreplaceable, especially in hospitality, where trust and relationships are at the heart of the guest experience. For example, in sales, people still buy from people, and many deals are still closed over a casual lunch or dinner.

On the flip side, in areas with high volumes of repetitive transactions, RPA can deliver significant efficiencies, but it still requires human oversight from architects and developers. The real opportunity comes when hospitality businesses view advanced technology as a strategic ally, solving operational challenges while allowing their teams to focus on what they do best: creating memorable guest experiences.

CHECKiN+ is your flagship solution for smart check-in, in-house booking, and guest engagement. How did you design it to be both intuitive for guests and operationally efficient for hotels?

We designed CHECKiN+ with a dual focus: enhancing the guest journey while streamlining operations for hospitality businesses. From the guest’s perspective, the app eliminates common pain points such as long check-in queues and complicated booking processes by offering a simple, intuitive interface to manage check-in, in-house bookings, and engagement all in one place. For operators, CHECKiN+ integrates seamlessly with existing systems, reducing manual work, minimising printing costs, and supporting sustainability practices. The result is a solution that drives operational efficiency, boosts staff productivity, and elevates the overall guest experience.

The hospitality industry has been slower to adopt integrated digital transformation compared to other sectors. Why do you think that is, and how is Rafieri Tech addressing this gap?

The hospitality industry has been slower to adopt integrated digital transformation because many businesses still rely on legacy systems, manual processes, and a strong culture of face-to-face service. For hotels, resorts, cafés, and even events, there’s often hesitation to disrupt the “human touch” that defines guest experience. Cost constraints and fragmented systems across booking, payments, and guest engagement also add to the challenge.

At Rafieri Tech, we bridge this gap by focusing on solving real operational pain points. For example, through CHECKiN+, we help hotels reduce long check-in queues, enable restaurants and cafés to streamline table or event bookings, and support retailers or pop-up stores in managing customer engagement without paper forms. By integrating digital solutions that are intuitive, scalable, and environmentally sustainable, we show hospitality businesses that transformation is not about replacing people; it’s about empowering staff, improving efficiency, and creating memorable guest experiences.

Sustainability is a key part of your mission, including advocating for paperless practices. How do you balance environmental responsibility with the operational needs of hospitality businesses?

We see sustainability and operational efficiency as going hand in hand. Many hospitality businesses still rely on paper forms, manual check-ins, or printed menus that not only create extra costs but also slow down processes. By shifting these tasks into digital workflows, we reduce paper waste while giving both guests and staff a seamless, consistent end-to-end experience. All data is securely stored in a single repository, making it easier and faster to access while ensuring compliance and accuracy.

For hotels, this means digital check-ins and e-confirmations; for restaurants and cafés, it’s online menus and bookings; and for events, it’s digital registration and ticketing. These practices not only help protect the environment but also improve productivity and guest satisfaction, proving that sustainability can strengthen, rather than compromise, hospitality operations.

Rafieri Tech operates in both Australia and Indonesia. How do you adapt your solutions to cater to different market dynamics, guest expectations, and cultural nuances?

At Rafieri Tech, we believe technology should never be one-size-fits-all. Operating in both Australia and Indonesia means understanding not just business requirements, but also cultural expectations and guest behaviours. In Australia, hospitality operators prioritise efficiency, compliance, and seamless integrations that improve scalability. In Indonesia, guest expectations lean toward personalised service, mobile-first convenience, and cultural warmth.

We adapt by tailoring our solutions to each market’s unique dynamics, whether that’s enabling paperless operations and advanced automation in Australia or creating user-friendly, multilingual platforms that enhance guest experiences in Indonesia. We also collaborate closely with hospitality businesses as part of our solution, ensuring that what we deliver is not only innovative but also practical and aligned with their operational goals. Additionally, we offer a cybersecurity advisory service to help businesses protect customer data and enhance their digital resilience. By combining global best practices with local insights, we ensure our technology feels intuitive, relevant, and impactful in every environment we serve.

Partnerships and collaboration appear to be central to your business philosophy. Could you share an example of a strategic partnership that significantly advanced Rafieri Tech’s mission?

Partnerships and collaboration are at the heart of how we operate at Rafieri Tech. As a newly launched company in July 2025, we’ve been fortunate to present our solutions to hospitality businesses and engage with influential leaders in the industry. These conversations have been invaluable in helping us understand real challenges, such as manual data handling, the need for seamless system integration, and the demand for paperless practices.

This year, we’re excited to support a few hospitality businesses with their upcoming events. These partnerships give us the opportunity to not only apply our technology in practical ways but also to work hand-in-hand with operators to solve challenges that free them to focus on what truly matters: delivering exceptional customer experiences. For us, each collaboration is more than a project; it’s a chance to advance our mission of making hospitality smarter, more sustainable, and people-focused.

You have a strong background in leadership and mentorship. How do you empower your own team to innovate and remain agile in such a fast-moving technology space?

I’m fortunate to have a strong team that not only understands our objectives, vision, and mission but also fits seamlessly into our company culture. I believe in empowering them with the independence to take ownership, the space to collaborate creatively, and the confidence to innovate within clear goals and deadlines. Open communication is especially important across cross-functional business units, ensuring everyone stays aligned and moving in the same direction. Agility is key in the fast-moving tech space, so I encourage my team to embrace change, adapt quickly, and learn continuously. At the same time, they know they have my full support, whether it’s to provide guidance, remove roadblocks, or expedite decisions, so they can focus on delivering impactful solutions with speed and confidence.

Outside of your professional achievements, you’re a passionate advocate for women’s empowerment and mental health awareness. How do you integrate these values into your business and leadership style?

As an advocate for women’s empowerment and mental health awareness, I believe there’s a direct connection between personal well-being and professional performance; they cannot be treated separately. At Rafieri Tech, we integrate this philosophy into our culture through flexible working hours and a work-from-home policy, giving our team the freedom to balance professional responsibilities with family or personal needs. I place trust in my team to manage their time effectively, while also encouraging open communication whenever challenges arise so that we can focus on solutions rather than setbacks.

Beyond daily operations, we also organise wellness events and team gatherings to raise awareness, strengthen connections, and create space for open dialogue. For me, leadership isn’t just about driving results; it’s about fostering an environment where people feel supported, valued, and empowered to thrive both personally and professionally.

Looking ahead, what’s your vision for Rafieri Tech in the next five years, and how do you see technology further transforming the guest experience in hospitality?

My vision for the next five years is to guide my team to work collaboratively, delivering results that make a real impact. Our solutions continue to help businesses overcome their challenges while building a sustainable and profitable company that remains agile and responsive to market demands, moving in step with technological advancements. In hospitality, technology will continue to transform the guest journey, from digital check-in to check-out, through a single application that integrates smart keys, AI, RFID, or even biometrics. Yet, human involvement remains essential: understanding businesses in depth, overseeing the process, and leading meaningful transformation. The future is indeed bright.