CMO Spotlight | Lauren Weinberg - Square
The CMO Spotlight is a chance to get an inside look into the minds and journeys of high-performing marketing leaders.
Setup Founder & CEO, Joe Koufman, virtually sat down with Lauren Weinberg, the Chief Marketing Officer at Square, to discuss how she gained the confidence to advocate for herself in her career, how Michael Jordan inspires her, and more.
WATCH + READ THE RECAP BELOW
(SCROLL TO THE END FOR THE FULL INTERVIEW)
Q1 | Is there any advice you would like to share?
Weinberg encourages other marketers to trust their intuition and be confident enough to ask for new opportunities, two things she wished she did earlier in her career. She also encourages marketers to move beyond doubt. Advocating for herself led to huge growth opportunities that prepared her for leadership positions throughout her career.
Q2 | What is your superpower?
Weinberg’s superpower is her belief in herself.
She prides herself on her conviction and ability to “always look for another way around” whenever she faces inevitable roadblocks.
Q3 | What values do you look for in team members?
Weinberg values individuals who are “curious, courageous, and not afraid to challenge the status quo.” Someone who has a problem-solving lens, especially in this constantly evolving marketing landscape, is what makes up a useful team member. She also looks for “builders” in her Square candidate recruits.
“[I appreciate] people who can come into a situation that maybe isn't perfect, but are excited about the idea of how they can build towards something that's really great.” She appreciates a person who has an eye for solving challenges in creative and innovative ways.
Q4 | Tell us about an impactful campaign
2020, at the start of the Covid-19 Pandemic, was a challenging time for Weinberg since she was helping Square navigate major decisions. Square had to be flexible and innovative because no one could predict their next steps. The only thing the team knew was that they needed to take action. So Square scrapped their initial plans and, instead, gave back to their community by refunding SaaS Fees for two months.
“We didn't know if it was going to feel like enough, but I think it felt amazing for a lot of our customers. We didn't want to just say we're in this with them. We actually wanted to show that we were in this with them. I think that message to our customers during that time is something that really changed the relationship that they had with us as a brand, and I'm still really proud of that and how we handled it.”
Q5 | Is there someone who inspires you?
Michael Jordan inspires Weinberg. Her son has a poster in his room of Jordan with the quote, "Some people want it to happen, some wish it would happen, others make it happen."
The philosophy that hard work really can pay off if you’re intentional really resonates with her.
For more marketing leadership advice and a view into the mindset of marketing executives in various industries, be sure to watch the full interview with Lauren Weinberg, and keep an eye out for more thought leadership from our CMO Spotlights.