Leela Srinivasan T’06, CMO of Checkout.com
Leela Srinivasan is the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) at the digital payments platform, Checkout.com, where she has the privilege of leading a talented team responsible for all things marketing – from communications through digital marketing to brand, demand and product marketing.
Prior to this, she led marketing at Momentive, the maker of SurveyMonkey, for three and a half years that included an IPO; the rollout of their mission, vision and values; and a full corporate rebrand. Her first CMO role was at recruiting software company Lever, from series A through series C. She also previously spent time as Vice President of Marketing at OpenTable. She says her first ‘real’ marketing role was at LinkedIn, where she spent four and a half years in the Talent Solutions business. LinkedIn hosted 500 people when she arrived and 6,500 people when she left.
Before business school, she worked in sales – first as an individual contributor then as a sales manager leading a team of sales reps. And post-business school, after a failed summer internship in financial services, she spent three years in management consulting at Bain and Company. She finally found her calling in marketing, but had explored other things along the way. In addition to her role at Checkout.com, she serves on the Board of Directors at Upwork, the world’s work marketplace.
Read on for how the Tuck MBA changed Leela’s life and how the Tuck mission still resonates with her.
What does your current business do and what is your impact on the world?
Leela Srinivasan: Checkout.com is an end-to-end payments platform headquartered in London with offices on five continents. Our mission is to enable businesses and their communities to thrive in the digital economy. The world of payments has undergone transformation in the last 20 years and continues to evolve at a rapid pace. When you stop and think about all the variables that merchants have to deal with when they sell online – different rules and regulations, currencies, payment methods and even consumer preferences in every country – it’s a lot to navigate. We’re proud to support thousands of businesses on that journey, and our clients range from iconic retail/ ecommerce companies like Sony and FarFetch through innovative fintechs like Zilch and Grab, to crypto/ web3 pioneers like Binance and crypto.com.
Why was Tuck the right business school for you?
LS: Tuck is an incredibly special place and it just felt right from the start. I knew that if I was going to invest two years of my life in a full-time MBA program, I should make the most of it. I was really drawn to Tuck’s location (the Upper Valley in New Hampshire truly is gorgeous), the strength of the curriculum, and the very real emphasis on collaboration and teamwork, which is so fundamental to success in life and at work. The people I met were kind, smart, and down to earth, and they brought diverse perspectives. Today, Tuck prides itself on developing ‘wise, decisive leaders who better the world through business’ and I felt that wisdom around me: every one of my classmates had made the deliberate, thoughtful decision to be at Tuck specifically. The program challenged me in all the right ways, while introducing me to the wonderful people that make up the Tuck community – not just my classmates, but their partners and families, and more broadly the global network of Tuck alumni whose passion for Tuck is infectious and whom I feel are always there for you. Choosing Tuck was a big decision, and easily one of the best decisions I’ve made in my life.
What about the Tuck MBA impacted your life and career the most?
LS: Going to Tuck changed my life. Most obviously, it opened doors that would have been otherwise closed to me, thanks to the caliber of employers with ties to Tuck. While I felt lucky to land a spot at Bain in San Francisco, I had no idea then that a consulting career out west would pave the way for a tech marketing career in Silicon Valley and beyond.
In addition, you may think the point of an advanced degree is to finish up your learning, but for me it was the opposite. In the process of getting an MBA, I essentially recommitted to lifelong learning, to staying curious, and without a doubt that mindset has helped me build a more rewarding career. (It’s even helped me choose employers at times – Momentive’s mission is to power the curious so they can shape what’s next.)
These days, being a newcomer in the payments space is a humbling experience – there’s so much to learn! But that was one of the attractions for me: to apply my marketing, strategy and team-building experiences to help Checkout.com continue its growth trajectory, while having the opportunity to keep learning and growing myself in the constantly-evolving digital economy.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
LS: If you can afford to spend two years immersing yourself in an MBA program — do it. You’ll be grateful for making that investment of time in yourself and your career.
