This Marketing VP is making the Semiconductor industry cool again

Paroma Sen joined Astera Labs as VP of Corporate Marketing in January 2024—just two months before the company's $2B IPO. Here's how she built a marketing organization from scratch during one of the most intense periods in a company's lifecycle, and what she learned about making "boring" industries cool again.

We discuss:
1. The "Tiramisu Strategy" for building marketing infrastructure in layers (and why alignment holds it all together)
2. How to manage 7 different audiences simultaneously without diluting your message
3. Why being the "new person" during crisis can be your biggest advantage
4. The moment industry people said Astera was "showing up bigger than your brand"
5. How creative AI usage cuts through B2B content clutter (data centers with Christmas lights?)
6. Why she deliberately chooses stretch roles over "perfect fit" positions every time
7. The cross-continental marketing reality: What works in India vs Silicon Valley
8. How Astera became the first semiconductor company to embrace ABM methodology

Where to find Paroma Sen:
• LinkedIn:   / paromasen  

Where to find Jaydip:
• LinkedIn:   / jaydip-sikdar  
• YouTube:    / @jaydipsikdar  

In this episode, we cover:
00:00 Introduction
02:55 The Evolution of Semiconductor Marketing
05:48 Building a Marketing Team from Scratch
08:54 The Tiramisu Strategy for Organizational Growth
11:50 Positioning in the AI Infrastructure Landscape
15:10 Cross-Cultural Marketing Insights
18:12 Lessons from the D2C Experience
27:17 Navigating B2B and Consumer Marketing Dynamics
28:15 Roles and Responsibilities in Marketing
29:32 Differentiating Go-to-Market Strategies
30:56 Understanding Audience Engagement
32:40 Communicating Across Diverse Audiences
36:38 The Evolution of Product Marketing
39:44 The Importance of Positioning in Marketing
41:10 AI's Impact on Marketing Strategies
44:11 Implementing Account-Based Marketing (ABM)
46:22 The Role of Diversity in Marketing Teams
48:53 Advice for Aspiring Marketers
50:32 The Shift in Content Marketing Strategies

My biggest takeaways:
The "Tiramisu Strategy" for building marketing from scratch:
Infrastructure first (people, process, technology), then strategy (what to do/not do), then execution—all held together by alignment across leadership

The 30-60-90 day framework for new leaders:
Listen and absorb (first 30), reflect your point of view and gather feedback (next 30), then decide and communicate the plan (final 30)

The 7-audience framework for complex B2B messaging:
Map all stakeholders (customers, partners, investors, press, analysts, current employees, future employees), but tailor content strategically; not every message serves all seven

Why stretch assignments beat perfect-fit roles:
Deliberately choosing challenges over comfort zones builds diverse experience that becomes exponentially valuable in senior leadership positions

Making technical industries accessible through creative positioning:
Use metaphors and unexpected creative elements rather than drowning audiences in technical specifications—meet people where they are, not where you think they should be

Referenced:
• Astera Labs: https://www.asteralabs.com/
• SAP: https://www.sap.com/
• National Semiconductor: https://www.ti.com/
• Dolby Labs: https://www.dolby.com/
• NDTV Ethnic: https://www.ndtvethnic.com/
• OCP Summit: https://www.opencompute.org/
• The Marketing Couch:    / @jaydipsikdar  
• UC Berkeley Haas: https://haas.berkeley.edu/
• Seth Godin's Marketing Blog: https://seths.blog/

Production and marketing by Unstoppable Studio.
For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email [email protected].

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