Jeanniey Walden is an award-winning, entrepreneurial Chief Innovation and Marketing Officer who uses innovation to transform the way how companies work to accelerate growth and brand impact. Currently, she is the CIMO of DailyPay, the industry-leading financial technology platform disrupting the financial system. Jeanniey is also the host of the SteppingUp podcast aimed to inspire the next generation of women in business.
Jeanniey’s Awards and Recognitions
Jeanniey has led global Marketing and Growth teams for Fortune 1000 companies, including Mercer, Ogilvy, Barnes & Noble, and JCPenney, as well as industry-transforming start-ups, including Zinio, RebelMouse, and Ringblingz. A recognized “Woman in Business” and an entrepreneur, she has authored multiple books and launched five companies, including the Email Experience Council.
She is a highly sought-after public speaker and frequently shares her keen business insight on nationally syndicated and significant market television and radio shows. Most recently, Jeanniey was named Transformational CMO of the Year by the CMO Club, a “Top 25 Women Leaders in Financial Technology” from The Financial Technology Report, a “Woman of the Year” in the 17th annual Stevie Awards for Women in Business, and one of the 10 prominent women role models in FinTech from around the world from Global FinTech.
A behind-the-scenes look at Jeanniey’s success
Initially, Jeanniey planned to become a teacher because she wanted to work toward finding creative ways to inspire children. She attended the University of Pittsburgh, where Jeanniey received her bachelor’s degree in psychology and her master’s in education. Upon graduation, there weren’t any teaching jobs available. Because of this, Jeanniey had to expose herself to other opportunities and ultimately ended up working part-time at JCPenny.
Under JCPenny’s mentorship, she gained new skills and found a new passion for a completely new path ahead of her. While there, Jeanniey was promoted to a marketing role where her job was to find a way to impress and attract potential customers. Jeanniey didn’t realize it then, but this opportunity was just the starting point of her marketing career.
“Looking back at my career, I can confidently say that my boss at JCPenny was the first mentor in my life who helped me shape my career. I’m forever grateful for her support. She encouraged me to take on different roles and helped me step foot into JCPenney’s corporate office. Through this corporate job, I gained foundational business skills and found my love for marketing, which has taken me this far in my career,” says Jeanniey.
“As my career evolved, I grew a real passion for using digital media as a platform to drive positive customer behavior. I soon developed a unique skill set that enabled me to serve several Fortune 1000 companies,” assures Jeanniey.
DailyPay: An Award-Winning Financial Platform for One and All
DailyPay is flipping the financial system by building a financial technology platform that works the minute work starts. The company delivers the industry’s leading on-demand pay solution with modern, insight-driven pay strategies that help America’s top employers to activate their workforce and build stronger relationships with their employees, so they feel more engaged, work harder and stay longer. Forward-thinking employers, including Hilton, Target, Kroger, and McDonald’s, can hire faster and retain employees longer, providing a critical advantage over their competition during uncertain economic times.
DailyPay recently leveraged its award-winning platform to create Friday, a new general purpose reloadable (GPR) prepaid card and app, which unlocks instant no-fee on-demand pay transfers for DailyPay users. With Friday, the DailyPay solution makes financial transparency and control available to millions of Americans. Friday offers a robust solution to assist with cash flow and spending management, particularly for those who are unbanked or underbanked. This can help users improve their credit, build savings, and feel more financially capable and independent by reducing the need to rely on payday loans, pay advances, or personal loans from family and friends. The mission-driven innovation DailyPay created is an essential part of how it improves people’s lives every day.
How DailyPay get great success
DailyPay was founded with a mission to provide financial transparency and access to hardworking American employees. Since joining the company in 2019, Jeanniey quickly realized that the company was on the rise regarding funding and innovations. However, the company’s brand identity was pretty visually comparable to others in the industry — they relied entirely on their products to set them apart, which they did.
“We implemented a new logo, font, color scheme, and visual identifiers that can support our product and overall brand. This was a pivotal moment for DailyPay, and I am proud to have led the company through the rebranding process. Through my many years of experience working with Fortune 1000 companies, I was able to make this a great success,” says Jeanniey.
As DailyPay became the leader in the financial technology space, it was time for a visual recharge. In 2021, Jeanniey took the DailyPay team through an entire rebrand.
“As a marketing team leader, I always look to lead by example and set a positive standard among my team. I am a hands-on leader. I have an open-door policy with my team where I encourage all ideas that better interest the success of our company, says Jeanniey.
Getting DailyPay to where it wants to be in the future
DailyPay is at the forefront of a revolution that is changing pay for good and creating a new financial system that works for everyone – particularly underserved communities.
As they emerge from the global pandemic and face new economic challenges, employers recognize the role they can play in positively supporting their workforce. Diversity, equity, and inclusion are at the forefront of many business leaders’ minds as they strive to create work environments where everyone feels welcome. However, financial equity is an aspect often overlooked. Financial equity and inclusion mean ensuring individuals have equal access to professional opportunities, financial systems, products and services, and wealth.
“Working with companies of all sizes, we are continually improving the financial equity of their employees by offering on-demand pay. For too long, the way money moves have been controlled by a set of invisible rules that make all of our lives harder. In the future, we see a world where all employees have the power of choice over their earned pay to make the right decisions for themselves and their families to live better lives. In two years, on-demand payment will be how most of us are paid,” says Jeanniey.
