A Rising Star finalist for the 18th Annual Women in Technology Leadership Awards, when Priyanka was five, she stepped on her first stage and gave an impromptu speech about an aeroplane. This excitement never left her as she went to become a distinguished speaker. Although she had followed the cultural expectation of getting a Masters to become an engineer and technologist, Priyanka knew she wanted to make a bigger impact. She wanted a seat at the table to help others, so she got her MBA. Priyanka Komala enjoys using technology to drive businesses strategically. Her focus is on leadership to make an impact and inspire trust. At the US National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, she is responsible for creating and delivering the web strategy and future technological direction for a $30M division. She attributes her project management and leadership skills to her stint as an Intern at IBM where she earned the reputation of a star Intern.
She tries new things weekly like yoga, dancing, and writing. Ask her sometime about how she survives hiking trips. Priyanka enjoys sharing insights on happiness, personal growth, entrepreneurship, women’s issues, and the potential of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math). Priyanka has been featured on InPower, Toastmasters International Magazine, and HelloGiggles and has been invited to speak at Women in Technology, Girls in Technology, INROADS, YuvaShakthi, DreamScholars, Women of the World festival to name a few. Priyanka enjoys sharing her wisdom and mentoring youth, minorities and women.
Priyanka graduated from Anna University with a degree in Engineering and ranked top 5 among 15,000 students in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. She holds a Master’s degree in Computer Science from American University and an M.B.A from the Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan.