The National Foundation for India (NFI) has announced the appointment of Narayan Devanathan as chief strategy and communication officer.
Devanathan moves from Dentsu, where he was chief client officer.
He will join NFI with immediate effect. Devanathan had joined Dentsu Marcom in September 2011, as senior vice president, national planning head.
NFI was founded in 1992 by Bharat Ratna C Subramaniam and MS Swaminathan, who played a key role in the Green Revolution, along with Kamla Chowdhry – an educationist and institution builder.
Biraj Patnaik, executive director, NFI, said, “As a key cog in the wheel of civil society, NFI has been strengthening hundreds of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) for the past three decades to function at the intersection of the state, market and citizens. As India moves forward, our job is to help all three actors—government, corporates and citizens—ensure as few people as possible are left behind, by law, by culture or by community. I’m delighted to have Narayan come on board this journey and help shape the narrative to create greater impact not just for NFI but for all the stakeholders in this critical movement.”
Devanathan said, “I’m not going to pretend I’m an expert in this field nor am I coming with any illusions of being a change-maker here. There are thousands of incredible people doing incredible work for the country, and I hope I can make a contribution by helping convey their stories with greater impact—for themselves and for all of us. Civil Society plays an extraordinarily important role in the smooth functioning of a democracy and I feel incredibly lucky to get this opportunity to be a part of it. I am hoping to rope in as many of my colleagues from advertising and the industry in this journey together.”
With over 25 years of experience, he has also worked with companies like Ogilvy, Cramer Krasselt and Euro RSCG, among others.