Category: Regulators

Mumbai: Since inception, when the world zigged, Scarecrow has been known to zag. In a time when everyone is looking to consolidate, we continue to expand our horizons with new talents, and local and global clients with unconventional needs.

What started as a traditional creative agency over the last 13 years has continued to transform, keeping in sync with the ever-changing market and consumer behaviour. The agency has expanded the horizon, delved deeper into the craft, explored audio as a niche medium, done unconventional research for seasonal ad campaigns and more.

Now with an ambition to soar high by diving deeper, Scarecrow is poised to expand its offering for creative and business strategy. This includes focusing on brand building and product launches integrated with effective go-to-market strategies. Additionally, Scarecrow will enhance its digital offerings, covering areas such as performance marketing, UX/UI design, consumer segmentation, customer experience design, market research, and creating new IPs (Intellectual Properties).

To further accelerate its expansion, the agency is thrilled to have Khan spearheading the agency’s creative strategy and planning initiatives as she joins us as an innovation consultant. Her deep understanding of the advertising industry and extensive international experience bring invaluable expertise to the table.

Khan, an erstwhile creative native with a multiverse experience in mainline, digital, and planning, boasts an impressive track record of over 17 years. During this time, she has worked in countries like UAE, Kuwait, Australia, and India, with agencies such as Ogilvy, DraftFCB, Havas, and Dentsu Webchutney as EVP-strategy & B2B business head. Somewhere midway within her journey, she transitioned from mainline advertising to digital advertising, moving from creative to strategy. While doing this, she worked for brands like Red Bull, Flipkart, Vodafone, Airtel, Shoppers Stop, Baxter, Teach for India, and many Unilever brands.

Aligned with Scarecrow’s vision of nurturing the next generation of creative professionals, Khan has also been an adjunct professor at Xavier’s College and Miami Ad School in Mumbai. Currently, she imparts her knowledge in Interactive Conceptualisation, Digital Marketing, UX/UI, Consumer Behavior, and Creative Strategy at MICA, Ahmedabad.

Adept at breaking the glass ceiling, Khan stated, “I am delighted to spearhead Scarecrow’s mission of expansion. The agency’s innate understanding of human insights, culture, and technology serves as the perfect bedrock for the next step of innovation-led growth. The pre-existing organic juxtaposition of creative and strategy will help the company leapfrog into charted and uncharted horizons.”

Scarecrow M&C Saatchi founder director Manish Bhatt stated, “As Scarecrow seeks out new frontiers, we are always eager to onboard individuals who contribute to our eclectic mix. Samera Khan’s glocal and cross-functional experience make her a valuable asset to our team. We consider her a crucial resource for cross-media strategy, branding, new business development, and exploring new avenues for Scarecrow M&C Saatchi. We wish her all the best.”

And as Spock would say to Captain Kirk, “Unlike Noonien, this Khan knows how to navigate in 3D space.”

Mumbai: India Today Group and Hearst Magazines International are pleased to announce the appointment of  Harper’s Bazaar India as editor Rasna  Bhasin.

This is a homecoming for  Rasna,  who earlier worked with the group as digital media head of Harper’s  Bazaar  Bride India and oversaw the transition of the magazine to Brides Today India.

As a lifestyle content creator with over ten years of experience, Rasna is a luxury brand expert. Our new print editor will explore the multifaceted world of fashion,  beauty,  art,  culture,  and beyond, seamlessly adapting to the ever-evolving landscape.

Lifestyle Division’s Group, digital editor Sonal Ved will continue to lead all editorial initiatives for our websites and social media platforms. After launching the much-awaited Harper’s Bazaar India’s website last year, she and her team look forward to drawing stronger synergies with the print editor.

 Hearst Magazines senior vice president of editorial and brand director Kim  St. Clair  Bodden said, “I do not doubt that Rasna’s passion, creative talent, and deep knowledge of fashion in India will inspire and inform the brand’s audience of influential and modern women”.

India Today Group vice chairperson Kalli Purie said, “We are confident that Rasna & Sonal will use their first-hand experience on social media to bring an injection to Harper’s Bazaar that is truly in tune with our audience. I am looking forward to the merging of influencers and legacy brands to create an incomparable experience for our readers. The new HB will have the youthful energy of social and the vigour and trust of legacy”.

Mumbai: Carat India, the media agency from the house of dentsu, has roped in Sanchayeeta Verma as chief executive officer (CEO). She will report to dentsu CEO Media, South Asia Anita Kotwani.  

Verma’s appointment marks a strategic advancement for Carat India as it continues to fortify its presence in the market. She will be based in Bangalore and will be responsible for boosting the agency’s growth trajectory through strategic leadership. Verma will also concentrate on mentoring the agency’s incredibly broad talent pool, encouraging them to explore disruptive innovation-led solutions that lead to tangible client-centric business outcomes.

She will lead new business opportunities, and nurture existing client relationships through operational excellence, becoming a trusted partner for clients. Verma will work in alignment with the network’s global brand proposition, further enhancing the revenue streams in India.

Commenting on Verma’s appointment, Kotwani said, “The network’s focus on strengthening our media businesses aligns with our global ambition. Getting the best people on board is, therefore, very critical. Sanchayeeta’s ethos and the value systems that drive Carat are inextricably linked. Her varied expertise in consumer research, business planning, and client leadership has kept her abreast of the shifting media landscape. She is also dedicated to lifelong learning and staying ahead of the curve, making her an ideal candidate for this position. Carat has increased its scope over the recent year with notable wins such as Tata Neu, Tata Croma, Hero Vida, Times Pro, and others. Sanchayeeta will accelerate expansion and propel the Carat brand to the forefront of the Indian market.”

Verma added, “Dentsu and Carat continue to be the front-runner in addressing critical industry issues such as audience attention, brand EQ and sustainable media. They continuously pioneer and lead in digital and CXM. I am very excited to join the Carat-dentsu family. I look forward to Carat being a fantastic partner to its clients, as well as an ideal place for our employees and the planet at large, by marrying the warmth of ‘creating for people’ with the dynamism of media, content, data, and technology.”

Verma is a senior business leader with a 27-year of experience in the advertising, media & marketing industries. Over the years, she has gained expertise while navigating through streams across media, content, data, and technology. Before joining dentsu, Verma held varied senior management positions at GroupM’s Mindshare & Wavemaker, where she made significant contributions across multiple regions. Her expertise has also been instrumental at companies such as Lintas Media Group, JWT, Kiwi TTK, etc. Throughout her career span, Verma has worked across diverse categories including FMCG, durables, telecom, finance, retail, e-commerce, fashion, and lifestyle, servicing renowned brands like ITC, Titan Company Ltd, Google, Tata Global Beverages, Myntra, Wipro Consumer Care, Nestle, GSK, Motorola, Kellogg’s, Ford, ICICI, Castrol, DTC, Nike, PepsiCo, to name a few.

Mumbai: Pepper Money India, a subsidiary of global consumer finance company, Pepper Group, has announced the appointment of Hardeep Singh as the Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Singh will spearhead the financial strategy and management to accelerate the growth of the firm’s India business.

The leadership appointment follows Pepper Group’s recent commitment to invest USD 150mn in India to introduce personal finance products to a sizable and fast-growing market of young aspirational consumers in Tier 2 and 3 cities.

Singh brings over two decades of rich experience across companies like Clix Capital, GE Capital, Pine Labs, American Express, KPMG and 3SC.

Pepper Money India CEO & founding member Abhishek Kothari said, “We are very excited to have Hardeep join our leadership team. Pepper Money India is gearing to transform consumer finance for Bharat and Hardeep’s rich experience of working with some of the leading payments and lending organizations will help us march towards that mission with confidence.”

Singh commented, “I am very excited to be a part of Pepper Money India. India is leading the revolution in the payment segment, and the affordable consumer credit segment is poised to grow exponentially. I aim to leverage my experience to drive consistent growth and power the team to bring alive the vision of serving the underserved.”

The appointment aligns with Pepper Money India’s commitment to assemble a robust leadership team to navigate the evolving business landscape and drive the company’s growth.

Mumbai: Sumit Awasthi is slated to join NDTV as consulting editor and will be hosting a prime time show on the channel. 

Awasthi quit as VP of news and production and primetime anchor at ABP in 2022.  He comes with 25 years of experience in journalism. He started his career with ZEE News and then moved on to Network 18 and then ABP. He also had a five-year stint with Aajtak.  

He excels in in political reportage, but has also covered cricket and international affairs. 

Mumbai: Lakshmikumaran & Sridharan (L&S), one of India’s leading full-service law firms, has onboarded two new partners, Srabonee Roy and Sushrut Biswal, in their Corporate & M&A practice to be based in Bangalore and Delhi respectively.  

Roy specialises in cross-border M&A, joint ventures, private equity and venture capital transactions and general corporate work. Srabonee has 18 years of experience and has worked with Veritas Legal, Mumbai; Samvad Partners, Mumbai; J Sagar Associates, Mumbai; Desai & Diwanji, Mumbai, and Gagrat & Co., Delhi.  

Biswal is a transactions lawyer with 13 years of experience in private equity and venture capital matters. He also assists clients on cross-border and domestic acquisitions, foreign investments and restructuring. He has previously worked with Khaitan and Co LLP, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, Mumbai, and Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co, New Delhi.

Expressing his views on the new hiring, Corporate and M&A Practice head & principal partner N Mathivanan said, “We are delighted to onboard the new partners and we are certain that they will significantly contribute to the practice. With the world evolving, we are equipping ourselves with the right skill-set to deliver the best to our clients. I wish them a successful term with the firm.”

Executive partner L Badri Narayanan added, “Srabonee and Sushrut’s expertise across sectors makes them an excellent addition to strengthen our corporate team. Their joining reinforces our commitment to support our clients on corporate advisory matters and transactions with sophisticated, responsive and high-quality legal support.”

Mumbai: The Financial Planning Standards Board of India (FPSB India), has announced that Krishan Mishra has been appointed as its chief executive officer, effective 1 August 2023. 

FPSB India is the Indian subsidiary of FPSB Ltd., the global standards-setting body for the financial planning profession and owner of the international CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER (CFP) certification program.

In his new role, Mishra will lead the strategy and operations of FPSB India and champion the advancement of the financial planning profession in India with CFP marks its symbol of excellence in financial planning. 

Mishra brings more than 20 years of experience in the financial services, education and technology sectors, across operations, business and strategy development, marketing and corporate sales. 

He has held a variety of leadership positions including Country Head-International Business (India and South Asia) of Becker Professional Education, Head of North and East India of Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, and Regional Head (East) and Business Head-Channel Business at HCL Infosystems Ltd. Prior to these roles, he spent over a decade in the financial services industry. 

“I am very pleased Krishan Mishra will step into the role as CEO of FPSB India,” said FPSB CEO Dante De Gori, CFP. “Krishan’s experience in the financial services and education sectors, combined with his strategic expertise, will support the growth of the Indian CFP professional community and propel the financial planning profession in India forward.”

“I’m honored to take the helm of FPSB India as its CEO to continue to strengthen the CFP professional community in India. With five years of consecutive growth in the number of CFP professionals, the value of CFP certification remains strong in our country, and I’m committed to supporting practitioners who commit to rigorous standards of competency, ethics and practice to benefit the financial planning profession and members of the public,” said Mishra. “CFP certification is the global symbol of excellence in financial planning, and I look forward to harnessing opportunities with key stakeholders to advance the financial planning profession with these marks of professionalism.”

Mishra is an alumnus of the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT), Delhi and the Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India, Ahmedabad. He is also a Chartered Manager Fellow from the Chartered Management Institute, UK. 

He was recognised in 2019 as one of the Top 100 Leaders in Education for his significant contributions to the field of education at the Global Forum for Education and Learning.