From unpaid intern to executive leadership
Parna Sarkar-Basu came to this country with two suit cases to join her husband who was a student at MIT. She had no job and no one wanted to take a chance on a young, unknown entity – despite her solid background in advertising and knowledge of American history and culture.
With perseverance and determination, she eventually joined the tech industry and had the privilege of working at global companies, with brilliant entrepreneurs and business leaders. Soon, Parna earned a seat at the table.
Finding her niche
Parna’s passion is humanizing technology brands and elevating companies to new heights. She enjoys being part of a team that’s driving business transformation, re-positioning the company or preparing to raise funds. Parna enjoys partnering with executives who are change agents within companies and effectively utilizing a tried-and-true strategy to support their business goals.
Reverence to entrepreneurship
Throughout her career, Parna was constantly in awe of entrepreneurs for putting everything on the line to build a business around an idea. Finally, she took the plunge and started Brand and Buzz Consulting to help small and mid-sized companies pivot seamlessly, identify new markets and position startups for successful fundraising and acquisition. Think of us as ‘the McKinsey for small businesses’, Parna says when describing the consulting firm. “We help companies become market leaders – without a multi-million dollar marketing budget.”
Advocating for women in tech and future innovators
An advocate of gender inclusivity, Parna guides under represented entrepreneurs on scaling their businesses and designs initiatives to build and boost their digital presence. She serves as a mentor at MassRobotics, Innovation Studio and Prepare 4 VC accelerator programs. Parna has designed STEM programs for schools and companies to help nurture and empower future innovators.
Sharing Insights
Parna contributes to the innovation economy and frequently speaks and hosts executive sessions on a variety of topics, including tech trends, business pivots, tech for good, building market credibility and more. Here are snapshots of Parna sharing the stage with entrepreneurs, industry experts and start up judges.
