To say Karuna Rawal has won a lot of awards is an understatement, and she brings to our conversation today a well-rounded view of why Adweek named her the 2021 Trailblazer Working Mom of the Year. I am always curious what it takes as a woman to artfully achieve leadership while simultaneously raising kids. If you think motherhood will hold you back, guess again. In 2019, Karuna was recognized as one of Forbes CMO NEXT 2019 50 Game-changing Marketing leaders who are re-defining the CMO role. In 2015 she won 14 Lions at Cannes Festival including the coveted Titanium Lion, an inaugural Glass Lion for promoting gender equality and an Emmy for Outstanding Television as the lead strategist on the wildly successful P&G Always #LikeAGirl campaign. Currently, she is the Chief Marketing Officer for Nature’s Fynd, a food-tech startup where she is commercializing a new-to-the-world sustainable alternative protein that can help feed the world.
Originally born in New Deli, India where her dad worked for the Indian government, Karuna moved to Egypt as a young girl, and then lived all over the world which is how she learned to adapt. Her grandfather had a house near a famous beach in India called Elliot Beach that she would walk to, and was tickled to read that Kamala Harris also had walked on that same beach near her own grandfather’s house!
When Karuna became a brand manager for the first time, she got pregnant and there were not many women successful at juggling both career and parenthood. Still, she raised her kids through her entire ascent in business and leadership. While she credits her success to adaptability, pivoting, and supportive bosses, she emphasizes building a really strong team, both at home and at work. Balancing priorities has also been key to her ability to expand in her career. She has learned, don’t look back at a day but at the month. Everything may not be perfect, but looking back, she strove to evaluate without carrying any guilt. We don’t have time as women to be in guilt!
When I asked her what is the next glass ceiling women have to break, she said, women of color are not in enough leadership positions or in business. How do you bring more diverse voices to the table? She even ponders why shouldn’t the whole Supreme court be women.
All of the women who are contemplating staying working at home after liking the work life balance in Covid, Karuna worked from home for many many years in her career. There is a way to make this model work, and moms are incredibly efficient.
Award-Winning CMO & trailblazing mom Karuna Rawal’s many keys to success.