Parissa Behnia

Product Marketing | Product Development | Business Strategy Development | Brand Marketing | Direct & Database Marketing

Location: Greater Chicago Area
Industry: Marketing and Advertising

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Parissa Behnia's Overview

Current

Idea Chef | Product and Business Marketing Strategist at 678 Partners LLC

Past

Fresh Food Business Development Manager at Gourmet Kitchens
Vice President, Account Director at Rapp Collins Worldwide
Vice President, Sr. Product Marketing Manager Citi Sears Franchise Leveraging at Citigroup

Vice President, Sr. Marketing Manager Payment Product Development at Citigroup
Vice President, Sr. Marketing Manager Private Label Product Management | Direct / Database Marketing at Citigroup
Sr. Marketing Manager, Sears Credit and Financial Products at Citigroup
Sr. Marketing Manager, Card Product Acquisition | Direct / Database Marketing at American Express
Sr. Marketing Manager, Lending On Charge Product Loyalty | Direct / Database Marketing at American Express
Marketing Manager, Lending On Charge Product Acquisition | Direct / Database Marketing at American Express
Assistant Marketing Manager, Lending On Charge Product Acquisition | Direct / Database Marketing at American Express
Asst. Manager, Customer Information Management Lending on Charge | Direct / Database Marketing at American Express

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Education

New York University - Leonard N. Stern School of Business
Northwestern University
Glenbrook North

Recommendations

12 people have recommended Parissa

Connections

370 connections

Websites

My Twylah Page

Parissa, the Idea Chef, helps C Suite executives and Business Owners identify, create and grow lucrative opportunities to further their success.

She helps companies whip up meals in strategy development kitchens that sate customer appetites and make them come back for more be it for product marketing/development, brand development or other strategy needs.

Her irrepressible imagination and strategic marketing mindset are the spices of her business arsenal which can be applied to many industries.

Parissa’s marketing education came first from American Express where she managed many acquisition and loyalty marketing campaigns. She developed her marketing strategy expertise by pairing data and understanding customer wants and needs while (effectively/efficiently) delivering profitable accounts to the franchise.

While at Citi, Parissa developed her strategic marketing expertise further by leading branding, value proposition, product marketing and product development initiatives working with and presenting to senior management. She was also directly instrumental in improving top line and bottom line product portfolio revenue performance while earning accolades for being a great marketer, a great team leader, a great team player and a great collaborator.

Parissa is a founding member of Pasfarda, a foodie, wannabe pastry chef and glued to HGTV, FoodTV, Bravo and Project Runway. Parissa holds a BA in Political Science from Northwestern University and MBA in Marketing from NYU’s Stern School of Business.

Key competencies include:

• Effective Communicator
• Product/Business Development and Strategy
• Innovative Thinking
• “Big Picture” / Strategic Marketing Mindset
• Customer Acquisition Marketing Strategy
• Loyalty Marketing Strategy
• Co-Brand and Private Label Marketing Strategy
• Customer Research
• Customer Segmentation Marketing Strategy
• Devising and Implementing Project Plans
• Budget and Team Management
• Agency / Vendor Management
• Humor

Specialties

Business Development, Networking, Strategic Marketing, Writing, Non Profit Verticals, Private Label Product Marketing, Co Brand Product Marketing, Business Strategy Development, Product Marketing, Product Development, Marketing Strategy, Brand Development, Strategic Planning, Direct Marketing, Database Marketing, Customer Segmentation Strategy, Vendor Management, Customer Acquisition Marketing Strategy, Customer Loyalty Marketing Strategy

Idea Chef | Product and Business Marketing Strategist

678 Partners LLC

March 2010 – Present (2 years 1 month)

678 Partners is a consultancy firm. Our solutions create and improve business development strategies via sales or marketing -- sometimes both. We help identify new channels, create better approaches to existing channels, strengthen the value proposition or brand, among other services. Clients hire us when they want more business, more repeat business from current customers, more leads and a more compelling brand or value proposition.

• Develop strategies to improve market share, increase inbound leads, capture new business and win incremental business from current customers spanning from concept to execution geared towards creating revenues and business value.
• Assess business objectives, competitive set, product set and any other variables to position client for continued future growth.
• Define and refine branding, value proposition and communication strategies in alignment with corporate revenue goals.
• Managing Partner responsible for P&L, Client/Vendor Negotiations, Marketing and Community Outreach.
• Author of Two Cents (http://678Partners.com), a well-received business and marketing strategy blog.
• Speaker, April 2011 ProductCamp Chicago: "How to Win the Hearts and Minds of Decision Makers."
• Moderator, July 2011 Mini ProductCamp Chicago Panel: "I've got a Facebook Page - now what?"
• Discussion Leader, March 2012 #unGeeked Vegas
• 12Most.com contributing author

Fresh Food Business Development Manager

Gourmet Kitchens

Privately Held; 201-500 employees; Food Production industry

February 2009 – December 2009 (11 months)

A fresh food manufacturer with prepared meals, salads and other fresh products sold to retailers nationwide under private label or the Last Minute Gourmet® brand.
• Directed cross functional team consisting of Marketing, Operations Planning, Production and Research & Development to manage major private label fresh food product development and rollout for national supermarket chains and supercenters.
• Responsibilities included facilitating product development / product marketing, devising and managing project timelines, analyzing/forecasting sales data and development of inventory control system across multiple product categories.
• Managed multiple nationwide client site and vendor relationships.
• Supported Business Development lead generation activities.

Vice President, Account Director

Rapp Collins Worldwide

Public Company; 201-500 employees; Marketing and Advertising industry

July 2008 – October 2008 (4 months)

Provided leadership in the execution of client services. Directed product marketing and strategy development initiatives individually and collectively as a team to provide / guide strategic initiatives to grow client business.
• Co-managed design, development and delivery of 3 year marketing strategy for grocery client with first year benefit netting tens of millions of dollars in incremental sales for 2010 FY.
• Co-managed loyalty program product development including marketing strategy, marketing execution and creative.
• Managed Chicago satellite operations (10 person office).

Vice President, Sr. Product Marketing Manager Citi Sears Franchise Leveraging

Citigroup

Public Company; 10,001+ employees; C; Financial Services industry

January 2007 – October 2007 (10 months)

A financial services company with 200 million accounts in more than 100 countries. Acquired Sears Credit in 2003.
• Managed relationship between Sears and Citi clubs/services and insurance products. Acted as conduit for marketing strategy development, product development and product marketing counterparts between Citi and Sears businesses.
• Negotiated cross marketing opportunities for Citi and Sears in multiple product channels: statement, online and mail.
• Consulted with both Citi and Sears contacts in product strategy and product marketing development to maximize opportunities for both parties.

Vice President, Sr. Marketing Manager Payment Product Development

Citigroup

Public Company; 10,001+ employees; C; Financial Services industry

January 2005 – December 2006 (2 years)

A financial services company with 200 million accounts in more than 100 countries. Acquired Sears Credit in 2003.
• Developed Sears multi channel product innovation strategy development including product development, product marketing and delivery strategy. 
• Drove strategy and marketing development for expanding internet channel. 
• Developed strong relationships with Citi product management and development colleagues nationwide.  

Vice President, Sr. Marketing Manager Private Label Product Management | Direct / Database Marketing

Citigroup

Public Company; 10,001+ employees; C; Financial Services industry

November 2003 – December 2004 (1 year 2 months)

A financial services company with 200 million accounts in more than 100 countries. Acquired Sears Credit in 2003.
 • Designed and drove product portfolio strategy development and product marketing representing $8.5MM budget and $14.5B in receivables.  
• Managed teams including Agency, Decision Management, Finance and Risk to execute product development and marketing strategies. • Drove product market research consisting of qualitative research to determine branding, product marketing message and value proposition.  

Sr. Marketing Manager, Sears Credit and Financial Products

Citigroup

Public Company; 10,001+ employees; C; Financial Services industry

April 2001 – November 2003 (2 years 8 months)

A financial services company with 200 million accounts in more than 100 countries. Acquired Sears Credit in 2003.
• Guided executives through strategy development, marketing strategy development, product marketing, product development initiatives and multi channel product delivery that formed the basis of the business plan. 
• Drove meetings including setting milestones and directing discussions to determine goals/strategies.  
• Directed collaboration and presented findings to Sears’ executives.
• Provided thought leadership as card marketing strategist.