Experience

Lexer

• Australia
• Technology, Information and Internet
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Vice President Marketing

  • Nov 2022 - Present

  Aparna has 22+ years’ experience in the marketing, public relations, and communications fields, with roles spanning Australia, UK, China, and the United States. She specialises in the SaaS, high-tech and online retail industries and has worked closely within the e-commerce industry in the ANZ and APAC regions. Prior to Lexer, Aparna headed up APAC Marketing at Dotdigital, ChannelAdvisor and SLI Systems. Aparna’s extensive PR agency experience includes stints at Weber Shandwick in London, Burson-Marsteller in Shanghai, and Bite Communications in San Francisco. Aparna is a prominent contributor and author for the likes of Inside Retail Australia and Asia, Inside Small Business, Power Retail, Retail Biz, B&T and TechDay. She has judged the Dotdigital Dotties Awards and is a prominent speaker at numerous industry events including, iMedia Online Retail Summit, Online Retailer Sydney, and Retail Global Digital Days. Aparna has been nominated as a Yotpo Amazing Women in e-Commerce Honouree in 2021 and 2022 and received the nomination for Industry Person of the Year at VIP Awards in 2022 and 2023. As Lexer’s Vice President of Marketing, Aparna brings her wealth of experience and marketing prowess to the team. Coupled with her infectious energy and creative spirit, she leads a team of stellar marketers working to foster business growth and raise brand awareness through sophisticated marketing campaigns. Calling Melbourne home for more than 12 years, Aparna enjoys cooking with a good Pinot Noir in hand, and loves traveling the world with her husband and two sons. Show less



Dotdigital

• United Kingdom
• Technology, Information and Internet
• 300 - 400 Employee

• Head of Marketing, APAC

  • Sep 2016 - Nov 2022

  Lead multi-region marketing team for the planning, development, and execution of demand generation campaigns including new lead creation and nurture campaigns via multi-channel field marketing programs, trade shows, advertising, email campaigns and promotions; worked closely with Inside Sales, with dotted line reporting to me. Quadrupled successful corporate demand generation marketing events across APAC region including, dotlive Singapore, Melbourne, and Sydney, Dotdigital’s first Dotties awards in APAC, webinar series, partner events; corporate hospitality (AO Tennis); PowerRetail All Star Bash, Meetups and thought leadership roundtables. Spear-headed presence at key industry across APAC region including, Magento Live Australia, Online Retailer (Auckland, Sydney), iMedia Online Retail and Brand Summits (Auckland, Gold Coast) Retail Leaders Forum, Ecommerce Expo Singapore, Retail Executive Summit Singapore, leading to an increase of inbound leads. Built thought leadership projects with key stakeholders at reseller and referral channel partner agencies and vendors to enhance new and existing client base; manage partner marketing programs to support sales team; Key point of contact for Magento Premier Partnership program in Australia. Worked closely with the customer success, sales, and technology teams to create market-specific promotions to increase lead generation and total contract value. Content lead for thought leaders within region, including event presentations, opinion pieces, blogs, social posts, etc. Led re-branding efforts from dotmailer to Dotdigital in APAC – ensured new brand elements were transitioned across all marketing collateral. Efficiently used Dotdigital marketing automation and Microsoft Dynamics for email-marketing lead generation and prospects/customer/partner interaction. PR lead for the region: Quadrupled thought-leadership coverage in months; day-to-day management of PR agency. Show less



SLI Systems

• New Zealand
• Technology, Information and Internet
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Head of Marketing, APAC / Corporate Communications Manager

  • Sep 2014 - Sep 2016

  Oversaw all marketing activities for APAC region. Responsible for planning, development, and execution of all marketing programs and demand generation campaigns which includes acquiring new leads and nurturing existing contacts via integrated field marketing programs, trade shows, advertising, email campaigns, direct-mailers and promotions PR manager for the region: Manages creation of all PR content, media relations; Manages PR agency to establish relationships with key media and analyst contacts Assisted in re-branding efforts for the new SLI brand in APAC – ensured new brand elements were transitioned across all marketing collateral, both in English and Japanese Spearheads various internal and industry events for APAC region: SLI Connect (Sydney, Tokyo); SLI E-Commerce for Breakfast series (Sydney, Melbourne), Online Retailer (Sydney and Auckland), iMedia Online Retail Conference (Sydney), Retail Asia Expo (Singapore); E-Commerce Show (Tokyo), etc. I was also the global PR and communications manager for SLI Systems. I manage the creation of PR content, including corporate and local press releases, thought leadership articles, customer case studies, etc. I manage both inbound and outbound media relations. I lead local and international PR agencies to establish relationships with key media and analyst contacts in the UK, AU and US. The Corporate Communications Manager plays a pivotal role in delivering SLI System's global external communication objectives. The role focuses on developing and delivering communication programs that strengthen SLI's brand and establish the company as a leading SaaS site search provider. Show less



ChannelAdvisor

• United States
• Software Development
• 500 - 600 Employee

• PR and Marketing Manager, Australia/APAC

  • Jun 2011 - Sep 2014

  Marketing lead for the region: developed and executed demand generation and nurture campaigns, programs to drive online retailer customer acquisition and retention; identified advertising opportunities, worked with outlets to place ads and sponsored emails Created region-specific collateral and email marketing content and worked directly within Marketo and Salesforce to develop email and nurture campaigns and track results Managed company presence at top retail conferences including, Online Retailer, PeSA Internet Conference, iMedia Online Retail Conference, Retail Asia Expo, eTail events, Retail in Asia; runs retailer-focused ChannelAdvisor events – Insite Conference in Sydney, Melbourne and across China PR lead for the region: creation of all PR content, managed media relations, both in-bound and out-bound, established relationships with key media and analyst contacts; managed PR agency Assisted in corporate re-branding efforts; lead the transition of the new ChannelAdvisor brand into Australia and APAC; assisted in the PR communication of ChannelAdvisor’s IPO Managed a team of four, including two email campaign managers (AU and China), an events manager and a content creator Show less



Weber Shandwick

• United States
• Public Relations and Communications Services
• 700 & Above Employee

• Senior Account Manager

  • Apr 2009 - Jun 2009

  Client: Microsoft EMEA Key achievements: Managed all PR activities for EMEA launch of Microsoft Windows 7, including outreach to Pan-EMEA media; successfully placed positive story in the Financial Times Successfully liaised with various subsidiary-level PR Managers to draft and publish monthly PR internal communications newsletter for Middle East and Africa region Effectively handled Western European PR activities around Microsoft's Worldwide Partner Conference and managed all subsidiary-level PR managers to coordinate activities In-charge of Pan-EMEA media outreach for all top-tier news announcements - collaborate with all Pan-EMEA outlets including Reuters, Bloomberg, Financial Times, BBC, IDG, etc. Show less



Bite Communications

• United States
• Public Relations and Communications Services
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Account Manager, Senior Account Manager

  • Jul 2005 - Feb 2009

  Clients: AMD, AOL/Tegic, Cisco, Openwave, Samsung Mobile, Sun Microsystems, Symantec, TradeDoublerKey achievements; Helped develop and launch PR strategy around Cisco's new Emerging Markets division; responsible for network management across LATAM, Middle East, Africa and Eastern Europe; pitched for, acquired and managed additional five-figure/quarter project budgets for Cisco Networkers Event in Cannes and onsite contractor support (won Star of the Quarter for this achievement)Effectively supervised network of EMEA agencies for AOL and acted as conduit for all communications from corporate; PR and AR lead for AOL's Tegic Division at 3GSM 2006 (Mobile World Congress)Effectively liaised with network of PR managers for Sun EMEA and facilitated in the distribution of all communications; PR lead for Sun's presence at 3GSM 2005 (Mobile World Congress), SIBOS, IBC and World Summit on the Information Society Key point of contact for all EMEA-related analyst relations inquiries for SunLaunched Samsung's i300 Smartphone across EMEA - spearheaded eBay charity auction of phones with celebrity playlistsSuccessfully engaged network of EMEA agencies and PR managers for AMD's Commercial Group; responsible for distributing all collateral across region; supported EMEA PR launch of AMD's new 45nm server processor in Berlin - responsible for crafting communication strategy specific to each country, managed all logistics and provided on-site support Account Director for TradeDoubler team - managed agency network budget and Bite account budget; created comprehensive collateral for PR campaigns across EMEA; developed and pitched e-commerce stories to key Pan-EMEA mediaOpenwave AR lead - main contact for all inquiries; shaped and implemented PR strategy around telecom publications in the UK and lead charge for 3GSM 2006 (Mobile World Congress); in-charge of PR/AR budget for the account Show less

• Senior Account Executive, Account Executive, Account Coordinator

  • Aug 2000 - Jul 2005

  Clients included: Oracle, PayPal, Sun Microsystems, VeriSign Inc.Key achievements:Managed all AR activities for VeriSign - successfully handled all reactive and proactive inquiries before internal AR Manager was hired; key press contact for security-related trade and business media in the US; managed APAC launch of Internationalized Domain Names for VeriSign - successfully implemented PR strategy and generated high-quality press collateral; organized and provided onsite-support for media events in Seoul, Tokyo and ShanghaiMeticulously organized Oracle Open World (now Oracle World) for three years - responsibilities included, network coordination and management of all APAC media, event attendance, creation and distribution of briefing materials, onsite support and management of all logistics for attending mediaCreated and implemented media, analyst and broadcast strategies for PayPal, pre- and post-IPO and managed three-city media and analyst tour for PayPal CEO; successfully pitched PayPal against its competitors in the media; formed and applied reactive PR strategy surrounding eBay acquisitionLaunched customer program for Sun Microsystems Network Systems Group - developed relationships with key customers to be sourced as media and analyst references Show less



Walt & Company

• United States
• Public Relations and Communications Services
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Intern

  • May 1999 - Aug 1999

  Clients included: Phoenix Technologies Key achievements: Helped pitch and secure Phoenix Technologies account and developed PR tactics for the team; assisted in developing all base-line PR activities including editorial calendar collation, creation of media lists, participating in media audit; building coverage reports and monthly review presentations Clients included: Phoenix Technologies Key achievements: Helped pitch and secure Phoenix Technologies account and developed PR tactics for the team; assisted in developing all base-line PR activities including editorial calendar collation, creation of media lists, participating in media audit; building coverage reports and monthly review presentations



BURSON-MARSTELLER, Shanghai

• Intern

  • May 1998 - Aug 1998

  Clients included: adidas, Ansett Australia, Ford Visteon, General Electric Key achievements: Assisted in the organization for a launch media event for Ansett Australia's maiden flight to Shanghai - provided onsite support, created collateral, including press releases and flyers and negotiated with government agencies to obtain appropriate approval for various aspects of launch Successfully organized adidas-sponsored 1998 FIFA World Cup party - worked with agencies and PR managers across APAC to secure media attendance at the event; provided onsite support Generated daily media coverage report for General Electric's APAC business for distribution to key stakeholders across region Show less