Mumbai-based brand and communications consultancy Tilt has got onboard Michelle Suradkar as its Chief Operating Officer. She comes on board effective November 15 , and will report into Joseph (Joe) George. Suradkar was until 2020 at MullenLowe Lintas Group where she was the Group Chief HR Officer. She was also part of the group’s managing committee. An MBA from Jamnalal Bajaj Institute, Suradkar started out with the Coca-Cola company before joining Lintas, where she was, for almost 20 years.
Speaking on the appointment, George, who is Founder & CMD, Tilt Brand Solutions, said: ”We are at a very exciting and critical juncture at Tilt. We have been fortunate to have had a terrific run the first 3 years of our existence; and this has given us confidence to shift gears as we ready up to manage scale and the accompanying complexities. Michelle is someone whom I have worked with very closely for almost a decade when at Lintas; and her competencies, interests, work ethic and energy is just what we all at Tilt need as we embark on the next phase of our journey at Tilt. I am both grateful and excited that she has agreed to take on this responsibility”
Speaking on her appointment at Tilt, Suradkar added: “I have watched with admiration how Tilt has gone about building itself these past three years, and I am not surprised with what they believe they can achieve from here on. Scaling up while continuing to deliver to clients the brave and effective work they have come to expect from Tilt is a task that is as exhilarating as it is challenging. I am looking forward to us building a world-class, made-in-India model which becomes the benchmark for our industry.”
MullenLowe Lintas Group has hired Heather Gupta as Group HR Director. She takes over from Michelle Suradkar, the current Group Chief HR Officer, who is taking a break from work for personal reasons.
Virat Tandon
Gupta’s move back to the group coincides with a renewed focus on meaningful integration at all levels of the business. Said Virat Tandon, Group CEO, MullenLowe Lintas Group: “We could not imagine an HR leader better suited for the task, given our vision of hyper-bundled solutions for the future, and the need for extreme agility as we integrate the various parts of our offering. Heather’s experience across diverse media businesses, including traditional and digital advertising, production, movies, TV, and content make her perfectly placed to help us shape our existing people for the future and also attract the very best talent in the industryâ€.
Heather Gupta
Commenting on her appointment, Gupta said: “I am thrilled to be returning to Lintas Group, after a journey of several years on a sharp learning curve across the media spectrum. Lintas is a special place with a strong identity and emotional resonance, and the company’s vision for the future is incredibly excitingâ€.
Lowe Lintas + Partners has announced the rollout of the second edition of its training program – Lowe Lintas Apprenticeship Program in India.
As one of the leading communication agencies in the country, Lowe Lintas + Partners has always supported unique training and recruitment initiatives that aims to broaden its already diverse talent pool. Thus was launched a unique 18-month training program in August 2012 known as the Lowe Lintas Apprenticeship Program (LLAP). The objective of the program is to seek out the oft-overlooked talent available in non-metro cities, identify those with potential and give them the opportunity to succeed in the marketing communications industry. In the first edition, the agency reached out to eight cities across India and received enrollment from about 3000 students. In fact, the apprentices from the first batch of LLAP are currently working as full-time employees across various divisions in the company and are shaping their careers as advertising professionals.
Building on the success of LLAP 1, the agency plans to broaden the initiative by visiting more colleges for the second edition of the program. Thus Lowe Lintas + Partners has moved off the well-trodden path of recruiting from ranked B-Schools, and approach Institutes and Colleges in smaller cities that are making a name for themselves on the parameter of educational excellence. These colleges are evaluated basis the faculty and management focus on the overall development of the student, the opportunities for self-expression provided, and where students are focused on achieving excellence, rather than a singular emphasis on placements. Graduate students with backgrounds as varied as Geology, Zoology, Computer Science, Physics, Commerce, Dentistry, Management, Economics, Engineering and Journalism apply for this program.
The second batch of LLAP will start on July 1, 2015 with the recruitment process currently underway.
Joseph George
Sharing his views on the program, Joseph George, CEO, Lowe Lintas + Partners said, “This is an important and exciting talent initiative for the Lowe Lintas + Partners, which is investing a significant amount of time and resources in this course. The program is intensive, practical, and represents an absolutely unique opportunity to tap into the tremendous potential of the smaller cities of India. The group of students finally selected represent extreme diversity – different academic pursuits, varied socio-economic backgrounds, they all come from different parts of the country, their personalities and interests are divergent. But what is common is the hunger to achieve, the willingness to put their all into this program with the unshakeable belief that they will succeed.â€
Michelle Suradkar
Of the total applicants, 25 students will get a chance to train for 18 months at Lowe Lintas + Partners. “Apprentices receive training on a wide range of topics related to creative thinking, branding, consumer insight generation, advertising appreciation, and design. These classroom sessions combined with reading assignments, live projects, immersion stints and hands-on experience on live accounts, ensures a packed 18 months,†added Michelle Suradkar, HR Director, Lowe Lintas + Partners.
Basis their performance and ability to excel on the job, the Apprentices stand a chance to secure a permanent job at Lowe Lintas + Partners. During their apprenticeship the students will be provided with a stipend along with accommodation in Mumbai.
After visiting Aligarh University a few days ago, the next stop on the selection tour is Bhubaneswar where the agency has already received enrollment queries in excess of 2000 students. Selections will happen between the 8-11th of December. The agency is expecting enrollments to the tune of 5000 students for the second edition of the program.
The final rounds of selection will be conducted in April and May 2015 through panel interviews with business and creative heads of the agency.
