Karen Maria Alston

Karen Maria Alston is affectionately described as a change maker. She is a cultural and lifestyle expert, dynamic entrepreneur, award winning filmmaker and brand strategist. For decades, Karen has built a career working on impactful branding and marketing campaigns that touch the lives of millions of consumers. An executive, marketer, brand manager, entrepreneur, strategist, storyteller, innovator, women’s advocate and thought leader, Karen Maria Alston is an award-winning proven expert. She is known on social media for her hashtag #beingkarenalston. Karen is a passionate senior executive strategist and founder with over 30 years of experience leading organizational visions from idea to implementation to impact to create sustainable, scalable social impact. She leads by example; her values compel her to work for companies that impact our country and the next generation in powerful ways that can meaningfully sustain and scale over time to create a more just world in which all communities can thrive. The core of Karen’s career has been in executive leadership, marketing, finance and social impact. Leading equity-focused organizations visions from advocacy to adaptation in service of communities in ways that lift, save and change lives. In addition to her professional career, Karen is the CEO and Founder of the executive women’s professional development, gender parity and wellness community, The Spectrum Circle (www.thespectrumcircle.com). Sought after for her marketing, cultural, entrepreneurial and political knowledge, Karen is a frequent TV and media contributor and has been featured on several national news outlets including: The Today Show, MSNBC, Al Jazeera, Fox News, BOLD TV, News One Now with Roland Martin and numerous other podcasts and radio interviews. Karen is an internationally acclaimed public speaker and commentator on a range of topics including strategic management, marketing, branding, authentic leadership, diversity, wellness, mental health, women’s empowerment, gender bias & inclusion and the glass ceiling. Karen has been welcomed and trained at top universities across the United States, honoring her expertise in business, leadership, management, marketing and activism. Karen received a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Finance from Howard University. She holds several prestigious post-graduate executive education certificates including: Branding and Design from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design, Non-Profit Management from Kellogg School of Business at Northwestern University, and two leadership programs at Harvard Business School in Authentic Leadership and Management. Karen is a 2022 graduate of the Goldman Sachs One Million Black Women in Business Program and currently enrolled in the Columbia Business School’s Chief Marketing Officer Program with an anticipated Fall 2023 graduation date. Over Karen’s three-decade career, she has received dozens of prestigious awards for her accomplishments in leadership, marketing, entrepreneurship, branding and wellness from global organizations, institutions and corporations. For two years in a row, she was awarded the Leadership Award by the Women of Prince George’s County for her contributions and leadership in her local community. The following year, she was honored by the Independent Women’s Forum with the Modern Feminist Award for her activism and advocacy.