Kumar Parakala

Kumar Parakala is a global thought leader, senior executive, and board director with over 25 years of experience building global technology and professional services firms. A digital transformation pioneer since the early 2000s, he has advised Fortune 500 companies and governments across 30 countries on technology innovation, growth strategies, risk, and governance.

As a distinguished global business leader and entrepreneur, Kumar has launched and scaled technology and consulting enterprises worldwide, transforming them from inception to multibillion-dollar successes. His advisory experience spans Fortune 500 CEOs, board directors, prime ministers, premiers, academics, and military officials on business growth, national security, digital transformation, artificial intelligence, and technology governance.

Kumar currently serves as the CEO for Tabhi in North America. He recently exited GHD Digital, a global business he founded in 2019 and grew to 700 professionals across nine countries, valued at over $400M with 45% 5-year CAGR. Under his leadership, GHD Digital was rated #1 in the $200B AEC industry, winning more than 250 industry awards. Previously, he founded Technova in 2015 (later acquired by GHD) and spent 15 years at KPMG since 2000, where he co-founded the $3B technology advisory practice and served as global consulting partner, COO, and regional managing partner.

A USA Today best-selling author of two leadership books, Kumar has advised boards, CEOs, and world leaders at companies including JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Microsoft, Cisco, Dell, HP, Siemens, TCS, Infosys, and Shell. Currently a venture investor serving on multiple boards, Kumar has been featured in Bloomberg, Wall Street Journal, and Forbes. He is also a sought-after keynote speaker and music enthusiast.