Misha Kaur

Welcome, I'm

Misha Kaur

From industrial and engineering to consumer, beauty, and technology — I've built my career across sectors, always at the intersection of strategy, people, and impact. I believe the best businesses create value for everyone: the business, the customer, and the people who make it all happen.

Explore My Story
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A Path Less Linear

Every industry I've worked in added a new lens. Every pivot was a step toward purpose — not a destination, but a deepening.

The Beginning — India

Engineering & Finding My Voice

Born and raised in India, I started with a degree in Electrical Engineering. But something didn't click — I knew I was meant for something that connected people, not circuits. I pivoted to an MBA in Organizational Development & Change Management and spent three years helping organizations navigate transformation.

The Leap — Moving to the U.S.

Chasing Something More

Craving growth and new horizons, I moved across the world to pursue a Masters in International Business at the University of South Carolina. It was bold, uncertain, and exactly what I needed. Los Angeles came next — I dove into digital marketing and discovered the magic that happens at the intersection of customer, marketing, and business.

Going Deeper — Purdue & Beyond

Data Meets Strategy

Hungry to sharpen my analytical edge, I earned a Masters in Marketing Analytics from Purdue University. Then Minnesota called — I joined Emerson Electric as a Strategic Planner, initially focused on process improvement for Global Sales before expanding to drive strategy across all of North America.

Beauty & Retail

The Deepest Lessons

Curiosity pulled me into the beauty and retail industry. As Strategy Manager for Retail Operations at Ulta Beauty, I gained a deep understanding of consumer centricity — not just for the customer walking through the door, but for the associates serving them too. This chapter crystallized my core belief: the best strategies are right by all three stakeholders — the business, the customers, and the employees. That's the lens I carry forward.

What's Next — AI & Beyond

Curiosity Meets Technology

I'm driven by a question: how can AI solve real business problems? Not the hype, but the practical, messy, meaningful kind. As a starter, I designed this very website — combining my learning in front-end design principles with AI tools. That blend of strategic thinking and hands-on curiosity is what I want to bring to whatever comes next.

Industries I've Worked Across

Industrial & Engineering

Global sales strategy & process improvement at Emerson Electric

Consumer & Digital

Digital marketing & customer experience at the intersection of data and growth

Beauty & Retail

Retail operations strategy, consumer centricity, and building plans that serve business, customers, and associates

Technology & AI

Driven by curiosity to explore how AI can solve real business problems — and already building with it

Where I've Grown

Professional

Strategy & Growth Lead

Fermat Solutions

Shaping the go-to-market strategy and driving growth for an AI automation startup — from market research and segmentation to marketing that converts.

September 2025 — Present · Twin Cities, MN

Strategy Manager, Retail Operations

Ulta Beauty

Deepened my understanding of consumer centricity, retail operations, and what it means to build strategy that serves the business, the customer, and the associates equally.

June 2021 — April 2026 · Bolingbrook, IL

Strategic Marketing Analytics Consultant (Freelance)

Insight's Edge

Sharpening my consumer-research instincts on the kind of national-brand questions that don't have textbook answers.

September 2024 — April 2025 · Chicago, IL

Strategic Planning Manager (Global Sales → North America)

Emerson Automation Solutions

Where I learned that operations, done well, is one of the most under-appreciated sources of value in any business.

May 2018 — May 2020 · Twin Cities, MN

Digital Marketing

Los Angeles, CA

My first taste of customer × marketing × business — the pattern that has shaped every role since.

Los Angeles, CA

Project Manager — Process Improvement & HR

Multiple Companies, India

Where I learned that transformation is a human problem first — long before it's a process problem.

May 2012 — July 2015 · India

Education

M.S. Marketing Analytics

Purdue University

Sharpened analytical skills at the intersection of data science and marketing strategy.

M.S. International Business

University of South Carolina

Broadened global perspective on business strategy, trade, and cross-cultural management.

MBA — Org Development & Change Mgmt

India

Specialized in organizational development and change management — understanding the human side of business.

B.E. Electrical Engineering

India

Where it all began — a technical foundation that taught analytical thinking, even if the field wasn't the right fit.

Strategic Planning Operations Excellence Change Management Marketing Analytics Process Improvement Consumer Insights Digital Marketing Cross-functional Influence AI & Technology Industrial & Engineering Beauty & Retail

Thoughts & Reflections

A space for sharing what I'm learning — about business, technology, operations, and life.

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What Fills My Cup

The things that ground me, energize me, and remind me what matters most.

Family

My husband JD, our son Avir, my parents, and my sister — they are my everything. Whether it's cooking a nutritious meal or simply being present, I feel most accomplished when I'm serving the people I love.

Dance & Fitness

Yoga, CrossFit, Pilates, running — anything that challenges my muscles. And dance? "My soul knows how to do it, my body needs to learn." Movement is how I feel most alive.

India: My Roots & Culture

India is where my story begins — it shaped my values, my warmth, and my way of seeing the world. No matter how far I go, my roots ground me and my culture lives in everything I do.

Travel

From India to South Carolina to LA to Minnesota — every place I've called home has shaped who I am. I carry the richness of every chapter with me, and I'm always curious about the next one.