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Consultant - Corporate Communications & CSR | 20+ yrs | Brand Reputation Management, Crisis Communications, M&As, Brand launches & Events

About

With over 20 yrs of experience in the field of Corporate Communications, Public Relations, Sales and Marketing, I've had the opportunity to work with a diverse set of organisations across both agencies and corporate. Moving to the startup/ecommerce sector in 2012 with Myntra, I continue to be excited by the potential this sector has to offer and the high-energy leaders who are working towards solving real-world challenges. I've recently concluded my stint with Nykaa, the country's leading beauty and lifestyle omni-channel retailer managing their overall Corporate Communication and CSR mandate. Prior to Nykaa, I spent 5 years at Swiggy supporting their communications goals and helping grow the brand to a decacon. I spent my early days working with leading PR agencies - Text100 (Archetype) and Ogilvy & Mather handholding technology and internet clients such as Yahoo India, Cricinfo.com, SAP Labs India, and Cable & Wireless among others. These experiences have been valuable in equipping me with the tools required to guide and nurture younger brands on their communications journey. Outside of work, I like to travel and experience new cultures and am very passionate about automobiles. This passion led me to become the co-founder of the Bangalore Jawa Yezdi Motorcycle Club (BJYMC) which is one of the largest not-for-profit biking clubs in the country.

Location

Bengaluru

AI stack

claude

gemini

notebooklm

openai

Canva Magic Studio

Work experience

AVP Corporate Communications, Lead - CSR at Nykaa, Aug 2023 - Sep 2024 · 1 yr 2 mos, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, Started my journey in the fashion ecommerce sector with #Myntra back in 2012 and I've come full circle with #Nykaa. The team at Nykaa led by Falguni Nayar has created a mark in India and proven that the ecomm + omni-channel model is sustainable and profitable. Navigating the limitations of being a listed entity, Communications plays a key role in ensuring the brand image is portrayed accurately while being transparent to its stakeholders. I was instrumental in strengthening Nykaa’s position as the country’s leading beauty and lifestyle omni-channel retailer profiling the founders, drive disproportionate visibility for partner brands and in-house brands, manage crisis communications and ORM. Was able to work closely with teams to leverage Nykaa’s marquee events like Nykaaland, Best in Beauty Awards and Nykaa Beauty Bar, managed celebrity-led engagements along with Nykaa’s quarterly and annual result announcements. I also drove the positioning for and strengthened Nykaa’s CSR goals and monitored the utilisation of funds across multiple NGO partners.

GM Corporate Communications at Swiggy, Apr 2018 - Apr 2023 · 5 yrs 1 mo, Bangalore, Joined Swiggy in 2018 when the company was present in less than 10 cities. Since then, as the brand scaled its services to 500+ cities for food delivery and launched new services beyond food such as Genie (pickup and drop service) and Instamart (quick grocery delivery service), Communications & PR has played a key role in positioning the brand. I have successfully managed the brand's corporate reputation (including ORM & crisis comms) while driving visibility for the food marketplace, technology and human resource teams. Battling crisis on a daily basis and building frameworks to effectively manage them was one of the key achievements during my stint. Our marquee annual property StatEatistics which has gained tremendous popularity over the years and both Media and consumers was another successful project conceptualized and implemented by the Communications team.

AVP - Corporate Communications at BlueStone.com, Jan 2016 - Mar 2018 · 2 yrs 3 mos, Bangalore, BlueStone established in 2011 is among India's leading online destinations for fine jewellery. The company is revolutionizing the fine jewellery and lifestyle scenario in India with a firm focus on craftsmanship, quality and user experience. Building the overall reputation and trust of Brand BlueStone was one of the core responsibilities that lie upon the Comms team along with educating the benefits of shopping online for fine jewellery. I was instrumental in building 'trust' among key stakeholders, train and build a pipeline of spokespeople and manage various crisis situations.

Manager - Corporate Communications at Myntra Designs Private Limited, Jan 2012 - Dec 2015 · 4 yrs, Bangalore, During my four year long stint at Myntra, my role involved managing the entire gamut of communications (Communication strategy, Spokesperson development, Thought leadership, Mergers & Acquisitions, Awards and Recognition, Government Relations etc) for the organisation while strengthening the Myntra brand. Additional responsibilities included managing category brand celebrities and consumer and lifestyle events across the country. Myntra is the country's leading online platform for fashion and lifestyle products with over 1000 brands under its banner. Embracing the power of mobile, in May 2015, Myntra became the first ecommerce company in India and probably the world to become an app only company.

Senior Account Manager at Text 100, Sep 2009 - Dec 2011 · 2 yrs 4 mos, Bangalore, I was given the PR mandate to manage Tier I technology & Internet clients with the help of a vibrant and energetic team. This included strategizing for the brands, ideating for events, strengthening their presence in key markets and manage crisis. Was also responsible for managing the digital media mandate for the southern region and also involve in business development & media training opportunities. Client portfolio included SAP Labs, NetApp India, EKA Software, ESPNCricinfo, ESPNF1 to name a few.

Assistant Manager at Adlabs Films Pvt Ltd, Oct 2007 - May 2009 · 1 y 7 mo, Bengaluru Asst, Was in charge of the overall Communications mandate along with events and BTL campaigns for the Big 92.7 FM stations in Karnataka.

PR Consultant at Ogilvy Public Relations, Mar 2005 - Oct 2007 · 2 y 7 mo, Bengaluru, As a PR and Communications ConsultantI took care of the entire client relations for various corporate brands including Yahoo India, Intuit Technologies, Novell, Cable & Wireless, 3Com India, Prestige Group etc. Handled new launches, media training sessions, FAM trips and Crisis Communication for these clients.

Education

MBA, Marketing, Systems, Oxford college of business management

Bachelor of Science, Electronics, Physics & Maths, Christ University, Bangalore