Senior vice president, head of faster payments and payments innovation
With payments technology advancing at breakneck speed, U.S. Bank executives felt it was important to create a collaborative environment in which the bank's technology teams could work closely with clients.
Anuradha Somani joined U.S. Bank at just the right time, coming on board two years ago and putting her attention immediately into developing the first innovation studio for the bank's Global Treasury Management business.
Clients quickly embraced what Somani, now the senior vice president and head of faster payments and payments innovation at U.S. Bank, had built. The experience gave her a firsthand look at how payments solutions are developed and launched.
The lab participants worked on the gamut of banking and payments products — new solutions for digital checks, a flexible payroll system for gig economy workers and a contactless payments platform for sports franchises.
"I had built consensus on cross-functional teams working with clients in a co-located environment to solve their real pain-points," said Somani, an honoree in PaymentsSource's Most Influential Women in Payments NEXT, citing those who have made an impact early in their careers. "Things were going well when the pandemic hit."
With business travel halted, co-location was impossible and "customer patience ran thin while their demands intensified," Somani said. "I had to quickly pivot both our 'what' and 'how' — and the 'what' was adjusted to meet dramatic shifts in clients' business models and processes."
In re-thinking the "how," Somani and her team came up with new ways and tools to make virtual sessions engaging and productive — all while ensuring there was no loss of pace in U.S. Bank's ability to execute, she noted.
Anu has cemented our position as a leader and innovator in the faster payments and payment innovation space by leading the launch of several market firsts … We could not have accomplished this without Anu.
"A year in, I am proud to say we launched 17 prototypes and two new products and have 100% client satisfaction," Somani added.
The thought of staying in the payments industry and continuing to be a part of its modernization is foremost in her mind.
"This marriage of payments and innovation is an ideal space for me," Somani said. "I'd love to lead a payments-centric firm in the future, solving customer needs using creativity, ingenuity and originality."
Somani can attribute much of her success to her mentor, Sayantan Charkraborty, head of product management at U.S. Bank.
"One of my earliest memories is him talking about us being 'a business of numbers, but facts and figures seldom inspire people. Stories do!'" she explained. "I've seen him in many meetings and been awed by his ability to turn an ardent naysayer into a believer."
Ultimately, Somani said she learned that stories inspire and engage, while allowing workers to "forget ranks and laugh with each other."
"Stories remind us how we can overcome obstacles, and stories make a leader authentic, human and one whom people want to trust," she noted.
Regardless of the challenges of the past year, Somani sees 2020 as the year in which "women superheroes became the norm instead of the exception."
She points to examples of fictional characters like Wonder Woman, as well as real ones like the nation's first female Vice President Kamala Harris, Jane Fraser of Citigroup as the CEO at a top-tier Wall Street bank, and Gitanjali Rao, a 15-year-old girl on the cover of Time magazine for her skills as a scientist/inventor.
"Being authentic, and allowing others to be so, has been a bedrock for who I am as a woman, leader and co-worker," Somani said. "And recalling some of the most impactful and inspiring moments of the last year, I can undoubtedly say that my pursuit of authenticity has only intensified during this time."
Somani has been especially proud of how leaders at U.S. Bank responded to the call for diversity and the need for change in light of the high-profile instances of racial injustice across the country.
When U.S. Bank CEO Andy Cecere expressed the need for change via an e-mail to all employees, it was not just words.
"He created a chief diversity officer role, reporting to him, and we are already actively seeing increasing diversity on our board, vendors and leadership," she said.
"The logical next step is already visibly underway in identifying and showcasing upcoming ... talent from diverse backgrounds to create inspiring role models who may look different, but who share the same passion and commitment as our senior management team."
Nominating executive:
Richard Erario, executive vice president, head of global treasury management
What he says:
"Anu's extraordinary career in finance and payments has spanned three continents — U.S., Asia and Europe — over the last 15 years with a focus on delivering innovations in payments that solve key client business challenges. She has had the privilege of enjoying 'a career of firsts' — launching Singapore's first cash-back credit card, Korea's first premium shopping service and spearheading the build out of the first new payments infrastructure in the U.S. in 40 years. Anu is a faster payments industry expert and a well-respected thought leader focused on bold business transformation who encourages her team to challenge the status quo and take calculated risks."
