Aparna didn’t start her career in business. She started in medicine.

As a physician, she saw something that would shape the rest of her work: even when the stakes are clear and the consequences are real, people don’t always change. That realization led her beyond clinical care and into a deeper question: What actually helps people shift behavior and sustain it over time?

That question carried her beyond clinical medicine and into the overlapping worlds of executive coaching, development, and organizational change. Today, she works with leaders and organizations at precisely that gap, between intention and action, between insight and impact. Her approach draws on the rigor of medicine, the depth of behavioral science, and hard-won experience watching leaders navigate transitions that demand not just new strategies, but new ways of being.

Before joining Strategy Muse, Aparna’s work over two decades spans industries including healthcare, life sciences, technology, and financial services, frequently in global and cross-cultural contexts. Known for her empathy and ability to meet people where they are, she helps break through the patterns that hold individuals and organizations back.

At Strategy Muse, Aparna partners with executive teams to align around new vision and direction, helping leaders move from understanding change to actually leading it. Most recently, she supported a global retailer in rallying its leaders behind a new CEO and driving transformation across the organization.

She is a member of the Forbes Executive Coaches Council and a sought-after keynote speaker, known for her ability to connect deeply with audiences and challenge them to lead in ways that last.

Aparna is an aspiring musician and DJ, and spends weekends in competitive board game battles with her family—two places where her fascination with human behavior is always on full display.

Education

• University of Birmingham (UK), MBA

• Tamil Nadu Dr. MGR Medical University (India), MD

Certifications

• Hogan® Practitioner, Hogan Assessments

• Professional Certified Coach, International Coaching Federation

• Everything DiSC® and Five Behaviors® Practitioner, Wiley