Parminder Jassal

Parminder is serving working learners as the CEO of Social Tech Inc., a public benefit corporation headquartered in Austin, TX.  Parminder founded SocialTech.ai in 2018 and also conducts research as the Founding Director of the Learn and Work Futures Lab (2016) at the Institute for the Future. Parminder’s early perspectives are shaped by experiences at Fortune 50 companies such as at Ford Motor Company, Atlantic Richfield Oil Company, and Lucent Technologies along with co-founding start-ups like Technology Solutions and Consulting, Bombay House Restaurant, and East Indian Trading Cafe.  Parminder strives to apply foresight to promote positive culture shifts and improve inequities.

In 2012, Dr. Jassal was named Founding CEO of ACT Foundation where she oversaw the organization’s unique role as an operating foundation, strategic investor, and incubation partner in support of the New Learning Economy and Rise of Working Learners (published). Dr. Jassal previously served as a program officer supporting postsecondary success for low-income young adults at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and in Economic Development leading workforce innovation at Greater Louisville Inc.

From being born in London to completing high school in India to graduating as a product of public higher education in the United States, Parminder’s life reflects the world economy.  Parminder fluently speaks three languages and has worked and serves on boards across the globe.  Her post-secondary experiences began with an A.S. from Southwestern Community College in Creston, Iowa.  While transitioning from the for-profit to the philanthropic sector, Parminder earned her Doctorate in Higher Education with a focus on Technology and Economics from the University of Louisville.