Gina Santoro
Fort Mill
Summary
Product Manager | Higher Education Fintech & Digital Transformation Strategic Product Manager and industry authority with over 20 years of expertise in higher education finance and collections technology. Drove 30% year-over-year product growth through strategic roadmapping and cross-functional stakeholder alignment. Expert in managing the full product lifecycle, including the ground-up development of a proprietary agency cloud platform and the rapid, 7-month transition of a national client base from legacy to cloud infrastructure. Recognized Subject Matter Expert (SME) frequently featured in trade articles and as a session speaker at national industry conferences.
Overview
19
19
years of professional experience
Work History
Product Manager – Higher Education Division
GLOBAL PAYMENTS
04.2025 - Current
- Achieved 30% product growth within one year by identifying unmet market needs and optimizing the pre-collection product suite.
- Led the end-to-end development of a comprehensive agency cloud platform. Managed the initial pilot program and oversaw rigorous testing protocols to validate functionality and UX prior to full-scale launch.
- Served as a key lead on the cross-functional team responsible for migrating the entire legacy client base to a cloud-based infrastructure; successfully transitioned all accounts within a compressed 7-month timeline.
- Serve as a primary SME for the product suite, delivering educational sessions at national conferences and contributing insights to trade publications to drive market awareness and institutional trust.
- Facilitate regular strategy sessions with key stakeholders to align product goals with business objectives and drive the roadmap forward.
- Incorporate AI-directed development to 'vibe-code' functional prototypes, validating product hypotheses and UX workflows before formal engineering tickets are issued.
Program Manager – Higher Education Division
GLOBAL PAYMENTS
07.2023 - 04.2025
- Managed the lifecycle of the pre-collection product suite and aided in full-scale product implementations, ensuring seamless integration for university partners.
- Acted as the primary point of escalation for large, complex issues, navigating technical and operational hurdles to ensure service continuity.
- Focused on creating proactive payment experiences that help students stay on track while reducing the need for third-party collections.
Director of Client Services
TODD, BREMER & LAWSON INC.
01.2007 - 01.2023
- Maintained a 98% account retention rate across a portfolio of 400+ clients with $100M+ in annual past-due payments.
- Decreased client onboarding timelines by 80% (from 10 days to 2 days) via the design and implementation of automated information intake features.
- Played a key role in increasing monthly revenue from $500K to $3M through effective upselling and key account management.
- Partnered with Senator John Spratt to earn a 10-year extension for the Federal Perkins Loan program.
Education
Bachelor of Arts - Political Science & Government
University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Skills
- Product Vision
- Commercial Acumen
- Market Intelligence
- Roadmapping
- Stakeholder Management
- Executive Communication
- Team Leadership
- Voice of Customer (VoC)
- Pilot Program Management
- UX Testing & Synthesis
- AI-Directed Prototyping
- Legacy-to-Cloud Migrations
- Jira
- Confluence
- Public Speaking
- Industry Advocacy
- Trade Publication Contributions
Websites
Education And Technical Skills
Bachelor of Arts in Political Science & Government, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Jira, Confluence, AI-Development Prototyping Tools, CRM Systems, 20+ years of unwavering compliance with collections regulations across 50 states.
Thought Leadership And Industry Engagement
- Regularly invited to present at Higher Education and Fintech conferences as an SME on the evolution of student debt recovery.
- Frequently quoted in trade articles and industry publications regarding regulatory compliance and pre-collection innovation.
- Design and lead educational webinars for institutional leaders focused on proactive payment pathways and student success.
Timeline
Product Manager – Higher Education Division
GLOBAL PAYMENTS
04.2025 - Current
Program Manager – Higher Education Division
GLOBAL PAYMENTS
07.2023 - 04.2025
Director of Client Services
TODD, BREMER & LAWSON INC.
01.2007 - 01.2023
Bachelor of Arts - Political Science & Government
University of North Carolina at Charlotte