MAM

The HR role in a post-pandemic world

Published

6 years ago

May 18, 2020

MUMBAI: As we look forward to a post-Covid2019 world, minus any lockdown restrictions and worries about the virus, how will companies deal with the scenario? Indeed, the world will never be the same again. How will then companies cope in such a changed world? The human resources (HR) personnel will have the cardinal duty of ensuring seamless business operations and employee welfare. Assessing the new requirements of the office as well as employees will be the immediate task.

Indiantelevision.com spoke to media and advertising industry heads to understand how their HR heads are preparing for the post-Covid2019 world.

Townhalls and virtual meet-ups are the common ways to ensure people feel connected to each other. DDB Mudra Group EVP and head-HR Rita Verma and Dentsu Aegis Network head HR business partner – south Asia Sunil Seth say that open and honest communication has been the way to tackle stress.

“Everyone is juggling their own unique personal living situation, so offering people some flexibility in work schedules and encouraging them to take time off, if they feel overwhelmed, has been critical. We’ve offered physical fitness sessions, virtual meditation, tips to manage stress at work and home. The idea is to help people tackle whatever roadblock they may be facing in a given week,” says Verma.

On the other hand, #ARM Worldwide co-founder and COO Abhishek Punia says that Covid2019 has taught the importance of mental health. “Psychologically, people will have fears in their mind and by providing them with a safe and clean environment, with all sanitisation and hygiene measures in place, we can instil confidence in their minds,” he says.

To tackle stress, Logicserve Digital created an online chat room, virtual tea-time session where employees can share stories, dance sessions, pet meetup, meditation sessions and money management sessions.

TheSmallBigIdea co-founder and CEO Harikrishnan Pillai says that there is a tendency to get deeply engrossed with work and forget that we are humans who are used to interacting with many individuals but now confined to the walls of our homes. “We have encouraged managers to keep speaking with the team members, especially ones staying away from the family or the ones who are new to the organisation,” he says.

As green zones have slowly started resuming operations, companies will now have to deal with an increased focus on health and wellness and in some cases, paranoia. Companies agree that checks such as using sanitizers or washing hands frequently, thermal scanners, compulsory wearing of masks, reminders to maintain social distancing will have to be taken. Additionally, pre-sanitisation, as well as frequent cleaning, will need to be incorporated as new measures. Another requirement will be to maintain physical distance between employees when they work as well as in spaces like lounges or cafeterias.

After health measures come flexibility, which most companies will now undertake if they haven’t yet already. The next step is to create batches of employees and divide them into shifts if they are called on the premises.

Seth says that there will be no change in shifts. Verma adds that common work hours have been found to be fruitful. “Not everything is solved through a company policy alone, but largely through office culture and ours is seen in the continued good work our teams are doing,” she says.

Godrej & Boyce Mfg has planned for business scenarios and rosters of employees who are required to come to work and which work could be carried out from home. It is also encouraging the use of personal vehicles.

Logicserve Digital head – HR Anshuman Misra says that they are in no rush to bring the workforce back to the office since flexible policies are already in place. He is considering flexi-working and flexi-timing with a greater focus on results than efforts.

While most companies are encouraging people to travel using their personal vehicles, if possible, The Visual House founder and CEO Deepmala says that carpools will be encouraged only after considering the health and safety of everyone involved. Similarly, TheSmallBigIdea is considering non-peak-hour travel to ensure minimal contact.

AGENCY09 culture manager Archita Arekar says that they are mentally prepared for another six months and the HR team is working on a new policy post-Covid2019 that favours work flexibility and employee safety.

Elderly people have to be extra cautious about the Covid2019 virus. Companies that employ older people need to take extra care. While DAN has a majority of millennials, elderly employees will be advised to continue to work from home until enough measures in the external environment allow them to travel to office with full safety. Same is the case with Logicserve; the company will also be cautious with those who have kids or senior citizens at home or those with health conditions.

The HR department will play a prime role in ensuring the wellbeing of employees in the new era. This will include creating new policies, structures and measures. There will be a nuanced approach to employee health, safety and wellbeing.

Verma says that HR will take a health-first approach with lesser crowds and more virtual engagement. Productivity matrix will also be a key focus. Different functions will be analysed and their ways of working will be looked into. Reskilling, restarting and realignment will be the newer approach, according to her. “But the lens through which we will continue to look at our policies will remain, i.e., empathy; to come out of this as healthy and strong as possible,” she adds.

According to Seth, organisations, where HR practices were strong, will see no difference. However, the HR horizon will require to be widened from the perspective of the psychological and emotional needs of employees. “It will further need a strong configuration in terms of leadership and management. It may also require certain investments to offer in terms of coverage on health, emotional and financial benefits to the employees,” he says.

As a consequence of the pandemic, companies have started focusing on intensive hygiene practices as a daily routine. Misra says, “Once the lockdown is lifted, HR’s role will be even more crucial and important as the personnel have to continually ensure the health safety and wellbeing of all employees while being aligned with the organisational goals.”

On the other hand, Pillai says, “In times like these, our HR department has played a crucial role in keeping the teams connected, formulating policies and helping in smooth operations along with the admin team. HR teams will need to be on top of the game as we might be looking at a workforce that won’t meet every day but still need to be kept motivated.”

HR heads have a lot on their plate right now and going forward, they will have to ensure strong measures that will enable their employees to be at their productive best.

Related Topics:covid2019 DDB Mudra Group Dentsu Aegis Network HR Rita Verma Sunil Seth

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Netflix India names Rekha Rane director of films and series marketing

Streaming giant bets on a seasoned marketer who helped build Amazon and Netflix into household names

Published

2 days ago

February 9, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: Netflix has put a proven brand builder at the helm of its films and series marketing in India, naming Rekha Rane as director in a move that signals sharper focus on audience growth and cultural cut-through in one of its most hotly contested markets.

Rane steps into the role after seven years at Netflix, where she has quietly shaped how the platform sells stories to India. Her latest promotion, effective February 2026, crowns a run that spans brand, slate and product marketing across originals, licensed content and new verticals such as games.

A strategic marketing and communications professional with roughly 15 years’ experience, Rane has spent much of her career building technology-led consumer businesses and new categories, notably e-commerce and subscription video on demand. She was part of the early push that introduced Amazon.in, Prime Video and Netflix to Indian homes, then helped turn them into everyday brands.

At Netflix, she most recently served as head of brand and slate marketing for India from March 2024 to February 2026, leading teams across media and marketing for global and local content portfolios. Before that, as manager for original films and series marketing, she led IP creation and go-to-market strategy for titles including Guns and Gulaabs, Kaala Paani, The Railway Men* and The Great Indian Kapil Show, spanning both binge and weekly-release formats.

Her earlier Netflix roles covered product discovery and promotion in India and integrated campaign strategy to drive conversations around the content slate, product awareness and brand-equity metrics.

Before Netflix, Rane logged more than three years at Amazon in brand marketing roles in Bengaluru. There she handled national and regional campaigns for Amazon.in, worked on customer assistance programmes in growth geographies and contributed to the go-to-market strategy for the launch of Prime Video India.

Her career began well away from streaming. At Reliance Brands in Mumbai, she worked on retail marketing for Diesel and Superdry. A stint at Leo Burnett saw her work on primary research for P&G Tide, mapping Indian shoppers’ paths to purchase. Earlier still, at Orange in the United Kingdom, she rose from sales assistant to store manager, running a team and owning monthly P&L for a retail outlet.

The arc is telling. As global streamers fight for attention in a crowded Indian market, executives who understand both mass retail behaviour and digital habit-building are prized. Rane’s career sits at that intersection.

For Netflix, the bet is simple: in a market spoilt for choice, sharp marketing can still tilt the screen. And with Rane now leading the charge, the streamer is signalling it wants not just viewers, but fandom.

Brands

Orient Beverages pops the fizz with steady Q3 gains and rising profits

Kolkata-based beverage maker reports stronger revenues and profits for December quarter.

Published

2 days ago

February 9, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: A fizzy quarter with a steady aftertaste that’s how Orient Beverages Limited, the company that manufactures and distributes packaged drinking water under the brand name Bisleri closed the December 2025 period, as the Kolkata-based drinks maker reported improved revenues and a healthy rise in profits, signalling operational stability in a competitive beverage market.

For the quarter ended December 31, 2025, Orient Beverages posted standalone revenue from operations of Rs 39.98 crore, up from Rs 36.42 crore in the previous quarter and Rs 33.53 crore in the same quarter last year. Total income for the quarter stood at Rs 42.24 crore, reflecting consistent demand and stable pricing across its beverage portfolio.

Profit before tax for the quarter came in at Rs 3.47 crore, a sharp improvement from Rs 1.31 crore in the September quarter and Rs 0.39 crore a year ago. After accounting for tax expenses of Rs 0.79 crore, the company reported a net profit of Rs 2.68 crore, nearly three times the Rs 0.99 crore recorded in the preceding quarter.

On a nine-month basis, the momentum remained intact. Revenue from operations for the period ended December 31, 2025 rose to Rs 117.66 crore, compared with Rs 106.95 crore in the corresponding period last year. Net profit for the nine months climbed to Rs 5.51 crore, more than double the Rs 2.18 crore reported in the same period of the previous financial year.

The consolidated numbers told a similar story. For the December quarter, consolidated revenue from operations stood at Rs 45.06 crore, while profit after tax came in at Rs 2.06 crore. For the nine-month period, consolidated revenue touched Rs 133.57 crore, with net profit of Rs 4.49 crore, underscoring the group’s improving profitability trajectory.

Operating expenses remained largely controlled, with cost of materials, employee benefits and other expenses broadly aligned with revenue growth. The company continued to operate within a single reportable segment beverages simplifying its cost structure and reporting framework.

The unaudited financial results were reviewed by the Audit Committee and approved by the Board of Directors at its meeting held on 7 February 2026. Statutory auditors carried out a limited review and reported no material misstatements in the results.

In a market where margins are often squeezed by input costs and competition, Orient Beverages’ latest numbers suggest the company has found a reliable rhythm not explosive, but steady enough to keep the fizz alive.

MAM

Washington Post CEO exits abruptly after newsroom cuts spark backlash

Leadership change follows layoffs, protests and a bruising battle over trust.

Published

2 days ago

February 9, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: When the presses are rolling but patience runs out, even the editor’s chair isn’t safe. The Washington Post announced on Saturday that its chief executive and publisher Will Lewis is stepping down with immediate effect, bringing a sudden end to a turbulent two-year tenure marked by financial strain, newsroom unrest and public backlash.

Lewis’s exit comes just days after the Bezos-owned newspaper announced sweeping job cuts that triggered protests outside its Washington headquarters and a wave of anger from readers and staff. While newspapers across the US are grappling with shrinking revenues and digital disruption, Lewis’s leadership had increasingly come under fire for how those pressures were handled.

The Post confirmed that Jeff D’Onofrio, a former Tumblr CEO who joined the organisation last year as chief financial officer, has taken over as CEO and publisher, effective immediately. In an email to staff, later shared by reporters on social media, Lewis said it was “the right time for me to step aside.”

The leadership change follows the announcement of large-scale redundancies earlier this week. While the Post did not officially confirm numbers, The New York Times reported that around 300 of the paper’s roughly 800 journalists were laid off. Entire teams were dismantled, including the Post’s Middle East bureau and its Kyiv-based correspondent covering the war in Ukraine.

Sports, graphics and local reporting were sharply reduced, and the paper’s daily podcast, Post Reports, was suspended. On Thursday, hundreds of journalists and supporters gathered outside the Post’s downtown office in protest, calling the cuts a blow to public-interest journalism.

Former executive editor Marty Baron described the moment as “among the darkest days in the history of one of the world’s greatest news organisations.”

Lewis defended his record in his farewell note, saying “difficult decisions” were taken to secure the paper’s long-term future and protect its ability to publish “high-quality nonpartisan news”. But his tenure coincided with growing scrutiny of editorial independence at the Post.

Owner Jeff Bezos faced criticism for reining in the paper’s traditionally liberal editorial page and blocking an endorsement of Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris ahead of the 2024 US election. The move was widely seen as breaking the long-standing firewall between ownership and editorial decision-making.

According to a Wall Street Journal report, around 250,000 digital subscribers cancelled their subscriptions after the paper declined to endorse Harris. The Post reportedly lost about $100 million in 2024 as advertising and subscription revenues slid.

While the wider newspaper industry continues to battle declining print advertising and the pull of social media, some national titles have stabilised. Rivals such as The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times have managed to build sustainable digital businesses, a turnaround that has so far eluded the Post despite its billionaire backing.

As Jeff D’Onofrio steps into the role, the challenge is stark, restore confidence inside the newsroom, win back readers who walked away, and prove that one of America’s most storied newspapers can still find its footing in a brutally competitive media landscape.