Hires & Promotions: Lenovo, Emami, HomeLane

Lenovo Appoints Chandrika Jain As India Marketing Director 

Lenovo has appointed Chandrika Jain as Marketing Director, India, Lenovo PCSD, effective March 1, 2022. Based in Bengaluru, she will lead the marketing function across the consumer, commercial, tablets, and solutions & services portfolios. She will also be responsible for the overall corporate Lenovo brand in India, including areas such as innovation, workplace, and ESG (environment, social, and governance). Chandrika has more than 22 years of experience in multiple sectors, and currently manages Lenovo’s Worldwide Marketing Hub in India.

Chandrika has worked with Lenovo in various marketing roles for more than a decade. Previously in her roles at various advertising agencies, she worked for technology clients such as Dell, as well as clients in the consumer sector like Himalaya, Carbon (diamond jewelry), and Unilever. She has also worked with PSI for an USAID funded campaign to raise HIV awareness, and at ING bank.

Commenting on Chandrika’s appointment, Shailendra Katyal, Managing Director, Lenovo India, said, “Chandrika’s previous experiences in leading large, global teams and delivering innovative, brand-building campaigns with the customer at the centre of it all, will readily accelerate our mission to strengthen Lenovo’s reputation as a trusted global brand. I am delighted to welcome her in this new role at Lenovo, where she’ll lead the marketing initiatives across businesses and look forward to have her an enriching experience at Lenovo.” 

Bhaskar Choudhuri, Executive Director, Marketing, Lenovo Asia Pacific, said, “Lenovo is undergoing a fundamental transformation that will take us beyond our current position as a global #1 in PCs, and establish the company as a comprehensive leader in technology solutions and services. India is a crucial market in spearheading this transition, and Chandrika is the right person to make the change a reality for the Lenovo brand in India. In her current role she pioneered the first-ever global brand campaign, and she has demonstrated her business and marketing acumen in driving global campaigns for Lenovo’s consumer laptop brands, Yoga and Legion. I have full confidence that her experience will help bring Lenovo innovation to India, and further our vision of Smarter Technology for All.” 

Emami Restructures Its Board

Emami reported that its Founders, R S Agarwal and R S Goenka have expressed their desire to step down from their current executive positions while continuing on the Board. Accordingly, the Board unanimously decided to appoint R S Goenka as Non-Executive Chairman while re-designating R S Agarwal as Chairman Emeritus effective 1st April, 2022. Both the Founders will not accept any emoluments from the Company for taking up their new positions.  The decision comes in the wake of Board restructuring that was part of the succession planning of the FMCG business of the Group.

The Emami Board also acceded to Sushil K Goenka’s desire to step down from his current position as the Managing Director of Emami as part of the transition process and has re-appointed him as a Whole-Time Director of the Company effective 1st April, 2022.

Mohan Goenka & Harsha V Agarwal, Whole-Time Directors of Emami, have been serving the business dedicatedly for over two decades, spearheading multiple functions and growing the business successfully thereby gaining immense exposure to steer the Organisation forward.  The Board therefore found them to be deserving candidates and re-designated Mohan Goenka and Harsha V Agarwal and Whole-Time Directors as Vice Chairman-cum-Whole Time Director and Vice Chairman-cum-Managing Director respectively, effective 1st April, 2022 to steer the organisation forward, subject to shareholders’ approval. 

Commenting on the announcement, Founders, R S Agarwal & R S Goenka said, “We are happy to announce the re-designation of Mohan Goenka and Harsha V Agarwal as Vice Chairman-cum-Whole Time Director and Vice Chairman-cum-Managing Director respectively. They have been at the forefront of running & growing the organisation for over two decades and their ascension today is the formal recognition of their contribution by our esteemed Board.  

Emami has been the fruit of our love and passion for creating an indigenous organisation with a difference.  It has been our privilege serving the company and we are grateful to our Board for their continued guidance, our team members for their zeal and passion for Emami and for helping build and grow the company that we all can be proud of. We also wish to thank all our stakeholders including customers, business partners, investors, shareholders and the community at large for their unstinted support and partnership over the years.  It is only with such support and the strong trust & bond enjoyed between our two families that we could make the foundation of the company strong.  We are confident that our next generation leaders would uphold the legacy and values of Emami going forward.  We wish them the very best for the future.”

Mohan Goenka, Vice Chairman & Whole-Time Director – designate, Emami and Harsha V Agarwal, Vice Chairman & Managing Director – designate, Emami said, “We wish to thank our Founders and the Board for reposing their faith in us to have given us the responsibility of leading and steering the Company forward.  We both have been guided by our Founders’ vision and values and the strong bond of friendship that they shared.    It is this strong bond and discipline coupled with a humble yet result-driven approach that has been inculcated in our system right from a very young age.   We look forward to our leadership team’s continued support and guidance, the sage counsel of our Founders & the Board, and the support of all our stakeholders, especially our team members in our endeavour to take Emami Ltd to greater heights with a strong sense of purpose and ambition.”

Mohan Goenka, eldest son of R S Goenka and Harsha V Agarwal, younger son of R S Agarwal have been serving the FMCG business dedicatedly for over two decades and have gained immense exposure to take the company forward.  They have vast experience across functions with proven execution capabilities and also in strategic acquisitions and their integrations with the existing businesses.  Their excellent people skills, deep understanding of evolving consumer needs and market dynamics and a willingness to embrace new-age businesses make them a formidable team at the top to take the Company to the next level of growth.

HomeLane Appoints Udit Mediratta As CMO

HomeLane has named Udit Mediratta as its Chief Marketing Officer; effective 25th January, 2022. Udit will play a pivotal role in leading the brand innovation and customer acquisition strategies for the company. He will report to HomeLane’s Co-founder & COO, Tanuj Choudhry.

In his new role, Udit will also focus on HomeLane’s go-to-market strategy, brand building, lead generation to drive growth and in increasing customer mindshare through integrated marketing communications.

Udit joins HomeLane from AB InBev in Singapore, where he was the Director Of Marketing & Commercial Operations for the company in the South East Asia region. With over 14 years of experience, he will bring cross-sectoral experience and global strategic expertise, on board.

Commenting on the appointment, Srikanth Iyer & Tanuj Choudhry, Co-Founders, HomeLane said, “Udit is a highly capable marketing leader with extensive industry experience and a proven track record of building strategies for leading global brands. He will add significant value to our brand, HomeLane and help us evolve and augment our customer engagement.”

The co-founders also added, “Considering the growth of HomeLane, despite the uncertainties of the pandemic, we continue to invest in and strengthen our team with our focus to capture new opportunities, expand our services into more markets. We are delighted to welcome Udit on board and look forward to working with him.”

Expressing his delight, Udit Mediratta said, “It has been impressive to see the growth of HomeLane. I truly look forward to joining this dynamic and innovation-driven company with an exceptionally committed team and to contribute towards scaling the future growth of the company.”

Through his professional career, Udit has worked with reputed multinationals including AB InBev and Johnson & Johnson, where he has successfully led teams across the United States, China, India and South East Asia, to deliver accelerated growths and market leadership. He also worked as a Director of Marketing in India, before moving to Singapore, wherein he helped establish Budweiser as the #1 most powerful and leading premium beer brand. Udit is passionate about building brands in culture, nurturing brand communities and product and brand design. He is an alumnus of Manipal Institute of Technology and INSEAD.