Karen’s favorite mantra is “Trust the Process.” Karen is a dynamic, award winning, nationally recognized marketing branding executive and entrepreneur. She has an illustrious career working on impactful and meaningful branding campaigns and projects with business, corporate and government entities that touch the lives of millions. An executive, entrepreneur, authentic leader, brand builder, innovator, women’s leadership advocate and authenticity guru, Karen Maria Alston is a nationally recognized award winning proven expert. She is affectionately known as The Advertising Diva or for her hashtag #beingkarenalston. Karen has a boutique branding and marketing agency founded in 2002 (www.alstonmarketing.com).

Her firm has launched several successful and award winning marketing campaigns in the Washington DC metro area. In 2015, Karen added to her entrepreneurial journey and founded the innovative women’s professional development educational platform, The Spectrum Circle (www.thespectrumcircle.com).

Sought after for her marketing, entrepreneurial and political knowledge Karen is a frequent TV and media contributor and has been featured on several outlets including The Today Show, MSNBC, Al Jazeera, Fox News, BOLD TV, TV One (News One Now with Roland Martin), and numerous other podcasts and radio interviews. Karen has received dozens of awards for her accomplishments in leadership, marketing, entrepreneurship, branding, and wellness.

Karen Maria Alston received a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Finance from Howard University, an Executive Education Certificate in Branding and Design from Harvard University, an Executive Education Certificate in Non-Profit Management from Kellogg School of Business at Northwestern University, and has completed two leadership programs at Harvard Business School. In 2017, an Executive Education Certificate from Harvard Business School for completion of the Women’s Leadership Forum. In 2018, an Executive Education Certificate from Harvard Business
School in Authentic Leadership.