Moves and wins roundup: Week of 20 May

NP Singh decides to step down as MD and CEO of Sony Pictures Networks India

Sony Pictures Networks India’s (SPNI) managing director and CEO, NP Singh, announced his decision to leave the company, bringing to end his 25-year association with the broadcaster. SPNI has started a structured succession planning process for his successor.

Singh said that he will continue to lead the organisation until his successor is found. He plans to focus on social change and shift from operational roles to advisory ones. Rising to the post of CFO of Sony India in 1999 and CEO in 2014 and has also served as chief operating officer of the company.

Cheil India appointed as Luminous Power Technologies' creative agency  

Cheil India has been appointed as the creative agency for Luminous Power Technologies. Its mandate for the power company is to reinvent itself by devising an integrated strategy, creative, and key large campaigns, as well as solar category enhancement led by digital.

Sun Neo Hindi GEC appoints Madison Media Alpha as media AOR

Madison Media Alpha, a unit of Madison World, has won the media agency on record (AOR) of Sun Neo Hindi GEC, aiming to make the channel a household name across India's Hindi heartlands. While the agency has been working for Sun Bangla and Sun Marathi channels, Sun Neo Hindi GEC is the first Hindi channel that it will handle under the Sun TV Network.

Snapchat bolsters India leadership team 

Snapchat has significantly expanded its leadership team in India with strategic hires across content, partnerships, augmented reality, growth, and sales, effectively doubling the team size in a year. The new appointments include industry veterans such as Saket Jha Saurabh, director of content, partnerships and augmented Reality; Chirag Kohli, head of frowth; Amit Ojha, India agency lead; Neha Jolly Sawhney, India sales head; Yagnesh Ravi, ads solutions lead; Uthara Ganesh, head of public policy for India and South Asia; Rashmi Dastidar, head of integrity and compliance for APAC and EMEA; Lekshmi Geetha, head of people for India; and Poonam Nikam, head of communications for India, Singapore and Japan. 

Grapes appoints Akshay Bhatla as vice president of growth

Integrated communication agency Grapes has appointed Akshay Bhatla as vice president of growth for its SEO and organic verticals. He will oversee various functions, including SEO, ASO, ORM, CRM, and advanced analytics across multiple geographies. In his previous stint, he served as vice president of growth and marketing at EQL Fintech where he led digital marketing, user growth and retention, product marketing, etc. Prior to this, he worked with brands including Times Internet, Meesho, Zee Media, Dainik Bhaskar and Augnito. He is also the startup mentor at E-Cell IIT Madras and IIT Guwahati.

Media Maniacs Group bags PR mandate for solar installer and manufacturer KLK India

KLK has appointed Media Maniacs Group as its PR partner. As part of the mandate, the agency will be responsible for carrying out all media activities for the brand; including strategic media planning, brand building, press events, SEO and social media optimisation. It will also develop effective media engagement strategies to strengthen KLK India's presence across print and digital media.

TheSmallBigIdea secures digital communications mandate for DHL Express' association with Mumbai Indians

TheSmallBigIdea has partnered with DHL Express to manage the digital communications for the DHL x Mumbai Indians partnership in 2024. DHL is the principal sponsor and official logistics service provider for the Mumbai Indians team. The digital agency leveraged the DHL-Mumbai Indians partnership to craft creative social media pieces and engaging activations like ‘ThatsMyGame’ and ‘DilSeIndianSpiritSeMumbaiIndians'. These series of ads highlight the company’s role as the official logistics partner of the T20 cricket team featuring Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah and Ishan Kishan.