Karan Cushman | CEO, Executive Brand Strategist
As a brand and marketing strategist with deep expertise in the health sciences, Karan partners with c-level executives to build meaningful brand, product and fundraising experiences that increase revenue and brand value. Her agency, Cushman Creative, uses the power of user experience (UX) design thinking and bold communication strategies to bring health tech, biotech, life science, pharmaceutical and healthcare brands and products to life for the world to see why they matter.
Karan has over three decades of experience supporting a range of nonprofit and for-profit brands brands such as Lonza, The Jackson Laboratory, the Make-A-Wish Foundation, Vertex, Genzyme, MDI Biological Laboratory, Burke Neurological Institute, Trapelo Health and NeoGenomics Laboratories. She leverages this deep expertise and insight to bring brand positioning, customer experience (CX), marketing and fundraising initiatives to life in new and innovative ways with industry-savvy creative and UX design rooted in business strategy.
Her award-winning work has been recognized globally by BioIT World, The Rx Club, Graphis, DotComm, Healthcare Marketing, Hermes, AVA Digital and MarComm Awards, to name a few. As a cancer survivor, Karan has a personal interest in precision oncology and is the co-founder, executive producer and host of The Precision Medicine Podcast – a media platform that began in 2018 is now listened to in over 120 countries. She has participated in the Dempsey Challenge as a first-time duathlete where she and her team, the Midcoast McDreamy’s, were recognized as top 20 fundraisers.
Karan’s specialties include business development, brand creation, campaign/donor strategy, conceptual and creative development, content marketing programs, podcasting, omni-channel promotion and cross-functional team leadership. She often acts as an embedded consultant in executive roles and leads marketing and communication teams for oncology clients. With her CX leadership approach, Cushman Creative consistently serves as the agency of record for its clients, fostering enduring partnerships that extend beyond a decade.
Karan is a graduate of Rochester Institute of Technology earning degrees in design and photography. She is an IBM-certified design thinking coach and facilitator. She has completed the Harvard Medical School HMX Pro Program in Genetics, Cancer Genomics and Precision Oncology. Over her career, Karan has served in long-term board positions for the Maine Lobster Marketing Collaborative, AIGA Maine and the Make-A-Wish Foundation. She is also active in the Makerspace movement.
