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This week at MURTEC, Olo’s Director of Product Marketing, Brooke Heinzmann, received a Top Women in Restaurant Technology “Innovator” Award from Hospitality Technology. The award is presented to forward-thinking women who have positively transformed the food-service technology space by creating or deploying emerging technologies that reimagine how things are done while paving the way for future technologies.
Since joining Olo in 2021, Brooke has leveraged her 15 years of product marketing leadership experience at Nielsen and her deep understanding of the power of SaaS to develop and scale Olo’s product releases. In that time, she has launched 80+ major features across our three solution suites: Order, Pay, and Engage.
We sat down with Brooke to learn more about her journey at Olo, why data is now table stakes across industries, key focus areas for growth-minded restaurants, and more.
Congratulations on your Top Women in Restaurant Technology Award! What does it mean to you?
Brooke Heinzmann: I am honored to win this award on behalf of Olo and women in restaurant technology. It energizes me to push that much harder in 2024 to accelerate the future of the restaurant industry.
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You’ve spearheaded some major product launches at Olo. Can you highlight a few?
BH: Shortly after joining Olo, I helped with the full launch (general availability) of Olo Pay. It’s exciting to see restaurants benefit from streamlined payment processes and integrated fraud prevention. And with continuous innovation, including card-present payment processing via POS and kiosk, we’re just getting started.
I also had the opportunity to launch Borderless, our passwordless checkout experience. I’ve loved watching Borderless grow to become the checkout of choice for a variety of restaurants. Guests enjoy an accelerated checkout and brands enjoy more guest sign-ins and visit frequency. It’s a win-win!
OrderReady AI is another standout. Olo is always developing new ways to help restaurants tackle capacity management, which assists with throughput and the guest experience.
Lastly (and most recently), we launched Catering+, our robust catering platform. I’m proud that we can empower restaurants to unlock new revenue streams and maximize efficiency—especially in challenging times.
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Data is a throughline in your career, from working at Nielsen to Olo. Why has leveraging data become table stakes across industries?
BH: Everyone wants to connect and feel seen. Data enables all brands—whether it’s a restaurant or an advertiser—to reach their target audience, tailor the experience to individual preferences, and deepen the relationship. Or, as we like to call it at Olo: hospitality at scale.
What are two areas growth-minded restaurant brands should focus on?
BH: I am particularly excited about the resurgence of catering. This is a high-value channel that, when done right, can be a huge revenue driver for brands. Think about all the guests a brand touches with just one catering order. It’s the best advertising!
In addition, I firmly believe there are so many ways we can use technology to make experiences more human, particularly on-premise and at the drive-thru.
In honor of Women's History Month, name three women leaders who inspire you on a personal or professional level—and why.
BH:
1) Priya Thinagar, EVP of Technology at Olo
Priya has an exceptional gift for taking very complex topics and transforming them into very simple ones. She is a servant leader, always empowering her team to do hard things.
2) Martha Krusemark, my granny
While unfortunately, she’s no longer with us, her advice still runs my life today. She taught me to always trust my instincts and to throw myself in all the way.
3) Lauren Magnas, VP of Product Marketing at Nielsen
Lauren is a breath of fresh air. She has gone through so much personally and professionally. She always comes out on top thanks to her determination. She doesn’t let her circumstances define her outcomes.
To learn more about Team Olo and apply for one of our job openings, visit our careers page.
