Helen T.

Product Lead, Merchant Experience

Helen T. journey in fintech was anything but ordinary. “I've been in FinTech for 12 years and am an avid Venmo user, so PayPal has always been a company of interest for me,” she shared. Helen joined PayPal remotely in June 2020, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2019, while still in business school, she reached out to a VP whose background she admired, “by finding her on LinkedIn!” she said. After rescheduling their call nine times, Helen interviewed and secured a job at PayPal about a year later.

Starting as a Product Manager on the Developer Experience team, Helen quickly adapted to PayPal’s dynamic environment. “It was a great learning experience in terms of understanding how to get things done scrappily within a larger company,” she said. As the team grew, so did her responsibilities. She became a manager and built a team of four PMs. “Transitioning to being a manager was challenging but incredibly rewarding,” she added.

"There are many fantastic senior leader role models who are women and mothers at PayPal."

In addition to growth, collaboration is another PayPal value at the heart of Helen’s work. “My job is very cross-functional. I have eight to 10 meetings a day with different teams. If you can’t be collaborative, you can’t get your work done!” she said. “When you are able to leapfrog by learning from others, that is when the true magic of a tech product happens!”

Now, Helen is part of the Fastlane team, focusing on merchant experiences for PayPal’s new autofill checkout product. “I’m excited to bring what I’ve learned from the developer side to the merchant experience,” she said. One thing she loves about PayPal is the endless opportunities to explore new products and audiences.

Beyond the professional challenges and opportunities at work, as a new mom, Helen values the supportive environment at PayPal, especially in tech’s male-dominated world. “There are many fantastic women and mothers in senior roles here, which was key for me when choosing a company,” she noted. Balancing work and family are crucial to her. “Being upfront with managers and blocking time for family is critical to happiness and productivity,” Helen advised.

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