Few people would guess the challenges Ellen Linardi, head of product at Clover, overcame as a child. But those obstacles helped develop the grit she needed to cope with the demands of the pandemic.
Thousands of Clover’s small-business customers relying on physical point-of-sale tools suddenly wanted to add digital and contactless payment options, creating an unprecedented task for Linardi and her team while they were all working remotely.
“We were maniacally focused on helping the coffee shops, pizzerias and bakeries across America to enable online ordering, and in less than three weeks we helped thousands of merchants begin selling to customers online for the first time,” said Linardi, one of PaymentsSource’s Most Influential Women for 2021.
Conquering extreme obstacles is nothing new for Linardi. Growing up in Borneo as a self-described “math and science nerd,” Linardi keenly felt the racial and political tensions on the Indonesian island, and the lack of local opportunities for higher education.
Diagnosed with epilepsy at age 10, Linardi also felt the sting of being treated differently from her peers by people in her small town on the island.
She had long dreamed of working in Silicon Valley, and when Linardi’s family decided she could attend college in the U.S., her dream began to come true. As a foreign student attending Santa Clara University, Linardi finally felt comfortable.
“It didn’t cure my epilepsy, but I was no longer carrying the feeling of being different because of something out of my control," Linardi said. "It allowed me to feel comfortable in my own skin, something I could never put a value on."
Combining studies in computer engineering with math and fine arts perfectly blended her interests in innovation and technology with creativity, Linardi said. It also set her up for a path in software and product design.
First hired by Intuit, Linardi stayed for more than a decade and rose from a software engineer to group product manager before moving to direct product management at Symantec for two years. In 2015 Linardi landed in her present role at Clover, where she leads product innovation, strategy, research and design.
“The pandemic revealed how quickly the payments industry can innovate, but it also showed how many small businesses are getting left behind,” Linardi said.
One of Linardi’s top priorities was creating a turnkey approach for small businesses to add digital payment acceptance to compete with large restaurant chains, without involving a new third party or adding fees. The result is that 20% of Clover restaurants’ transaction volume now comes from online ordering.
Pushing her team to find solutions under time pressure, Linardi drew on leadership skills she’s honed since she first became a manager at age 25, overseeing people who were older and more experienced in life and technology.
“I quickly learned that leadership is less about what I know, and more about how I can motivate others to use their knowledge to be the best they can be.”
Engineering, information security and even payments can be very male-dominated fields, she noted.
“It’s safe to say I’ve spent much of my career as the only female in the room, on the team or in a meeting. And as an immigrant from Indonesia, finding your voice as a female in a different language and culture can be hard.”
Finding great female mentors helped, and Linardi has always been passionate about sharing her experiences with the goal of helping others find their own path to success.
“Don’t ever hold yourself back, or hesitate to contribute your ideas because you look different or may have a different opinion. You’re in that room — that meeting — because you bring value to your team. Allow yourself to be heard, give yourself every chance to succeed, and be open to giving chances to others in your shoes.”
