Krystal Thomas

Krystal Thomas is a Lecturer at the Paul Merage School of Business, University of California, Irvine. She holds a BSBA from UC Berkeley's Haas School of Business and an MFA from the Peter Stark Producing Program at USC School of Cinematic Arts.

Her research and professional interests lie in Branded Entertainment, Marketing, and Communication. With a career spanning strategy, digital marketing, and content development, she has led global digital marketing agencies for KardstadtQuelle and Omnicom, serving major brands such as Kaiser Permanente, Kellogg’s, BMW, and AT&T. She is recognized as a pioneer in uniting content, brands, and media through strategic marketing partnerships with over 500 professional athletes.

Krystal is the founder of Negratude LLC, a purpose-driven content development and branded entertainment company. Her work has been featured at prestigious festivals including Sundance, New York Television Festival, and Newport Beach Film Festival. She has produced for major networks such as Disney, WB, BET, Showtime, and PBS.

Her notable honors include being twice recognized as “One to Watch” by the Producers Guild of America and being named to the “Roots 100” list of influential media leaders.

She began her career at Accenture in strategy and transitioned into marketing, holding agency roles at Magnet Interactive and IBM before launching and leading two global digital marketing agencies. She also led marketing for Assante US, overseeing all American brand and advertising initiatives.

Krystal Thomas contributes to the academic mission of the Merage School by bringing real-world expertise in marketing innovation, digital strategy, and branded content creation.