Meet Karen Paluska: A Big Picture Marketing Strategist Who Executes

Editor’s Note: This is the eighth in our We are EM (Monkeys Are People Too) series.

Artful Insights, Proven Impact

Karen Paluska prides herself on thinking about “the big picture” of marketing strategy without sacrificing the critical attention to detail that can make or break a project. Brand strategy and messaging are two of Karen’s particular areas of expertise, but she has a wide range of marketing skills and can always pull out the right tool for the job. With her extensive art background, combined with strong writing skills and an aptitude for project management, she is a one-stop-shop when it comes to executing large projects. Whether it’s a product launch or a website rebrand, if Karen is involved, the strategy will be on point, the deadline will be met, and the deliverable will be a work of art.

A Bay Area Native with a Wealth of High-Tech Experience

Karen grew up in San Mateo and earned a degree in Communication from Stanford before heading off to Budapest, Hungary, to teach English and travel. Once she moved back to the Bay Area, she worked for WebTV Networks where she fell in love with the adrenaline-rush of the startup world. She went on to complete a Master’s degree in Communication, Culture, and Technology from Georgetown, but after two years of living on the East Coast, she was ready to make her way back to the tech world. At the consumer electronics startup Moxi, she helped launch the company at CES and win Best of Show for the product. At Intuit, she created a welcome guide and worked on positioning and messaging of the QuickBooks Payroll family of products. Karen recently spent three years living in Paris before returning to the Bay Area where she’s now consulting for a variety of tech-focused companies.

Getting to the Heart of the Matter

Karen looks at every job through the lens of a designer. What is the personality of the brand in question? How should that personality look and feel, and how can it stand out from the competition? She prides herself on being able to identify the heart of a company’s mission and creating deliverables that establish a strong, consistent brand.

Time Off: Next Stop the Prado

Karen enjoys painting and creative writing in her free time. When visiting museums, she loves modern art but can also spend hours admiring the incredible detail of medieval illuminated manuscripts. These days, Karen’s biggest marketing challenge is convincing her two school-aged children that museums can be fun places to visit – but watch out, kids, Karen is nothing if not persistent.