Podcast

A Founder's Life:

Balancing Entrepreneurship, Family, Health, & Fun​

Podcast

A Founder's Life:

Balancing Entrepreneurship, Family, Health, & Fun​

Language opens doors in negotiation - Kate Liburdi - S6 - E17

What happens when a project burns through a million dollars and still doesn’t work?

In this episode, Kate Liburdi, Co-Founder and CEO of Conversifi, shares one of the most valuable lessons of her career how a failed software project became the foundation for everything she learned about leadership, innovation, and entrepreneurship.

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Guest Info

Kate Liburdi is the Co-Founder and CEO of  ConversifiAttachment.tiff, an education technology company transforming language learning by connecting students with native speakers through live video conversations that build real-world communication skills and cultural understanding. Today, Conversifi serves more than 100 universities and continues to expand its language offerings, including American Sign Language (ASL).

Kate began her career as a language educator, teaching French and English as a Second Language before transitioning into the corporate world, where she spent more than a decade leading technology, software development, and innovation initiatives for a Fortune 50 company. Her experience launching complex enterprise projects laid the foundation for her entrepreneurial journey.

Throughout her career, Kate has built and led major business initiatives from concept through implementation, with a proven track record in project strategy, product development, partnership management, and cross-functional leadership. She is known for turning ambitious ideas into scalable solutions while navigating the challenges of large, matrixed organizations and bringing together diverse teams to execute successfully.

Kate also brings extensive international business experience, having developed partnerships and collaborated with organizations across the United States, China, Europe, India, Russia, and South Korea. Her passion for languages and cross-cultural communication continues to shape both her leadership style and the mission of Conversifi.

Today, Kate is focused on helping learners move beyond memorization and into meaningful conversation, while building technology that creates authentic human connections across cultures. Her leadership philosophy centers on focus, continuous learning, and the belief that the best innovations come from listening, collaborating, and simplifying complex problems.

About this Episode

What happens when a project burns through a million dollars and still doesn’t work?

In this episode, Kate Liburdi, Co-Founder and CEO of Conversifi, shares one of the most valuable lessons of her career how a failed software project became the foundation for everything she learned about leadership, innovation, and entrepreneurship.

Highlights

  • Early Career: Started selling payment solutions door-to-door at 19.
  • Big Insight: Helped software companies unlock hidden revenue in payments.
  • Turning Point: Launched Tilled after seeing repeated industry gaps.
  • Major Challenge: Navigating COVID while starting a business and raising a family.
  • Business Success: Built a PayFac-as-a-Service platform redefining embedded payments.
  • Core Philosophy: Choose problems you’re willing to solve for the next decade.

Resources

 👤 Connect with Today’s Guest – Kate Liburdi

Website: https://conversifi.com

Platform: https://app.conversifi.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kateliburdi/

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