1.Please share with us a bit about your background!
Let me start with what matters the most to me – my family. My husband and I are proud parents of a bright and lovely daughter who is now 10 years old and my idea of fun is being able to spend quality time with them both. Outside of work, my interests include traveling (my husband and I are avid travelers), trying out new food, and staying fit. I moved to Mumbai over 25 years ago with my family from Amritsar and now call the Maximum City home.
By academic qualifications, I trained to be a statistician but ended up starting a career in media sales. Over the past 22 years, I have been fortunate to have gained exposure to many forms of media – broadcasting, print, digital publishers, and short-format video apps. Work has been a fascinating and satisfying dimension of my life, and I really enjoy what I do, as digital marketing appeals to both the marketer and statistician in me.
2.Why did you decide to join AnyMind?
After spending over two decades in publishing, agencies, and start-ups, I wanted to be in a fast-growing technology company, solving problems faced by brands in a cutting-edge manner. The AnyMind stack is really attractive as it is built at the intersection of what brands, creators, and publishers are looking for.
Further, I was impressed by the company culture, which empowers everyone and gives the freedom to create new products and services. Openness, transparency, teamwork and forging ahead boldly are, to my mind, other positive attributes of the company’s culture that I found very attractive.
3.What do you think are AnyMind’s biggest strengths right now?
I believe AnyMind’s biggest strength is its ability to deliver integrated, data-driven marketing solutions underpinned by borderless technology, developed to help brands and businesses transcend borders.
While there may be many boutique shops providing individual solutions, AnyMind has the unique ability to provide integrated and holistic technology and solutions to solve customers’ needs.
4.What is one word to describe your leadership style? Please elaborate!
Inclusive.
I listen to teams and involve them in the decision-making process. I encourage everyone on the team to participate, communicate openly, and share responsibility. I believe this fosters collaboration through accountability and often leads to the collective effort of a team to identify problems and develop solutions, as opposed to assigning individual blame or credit to one person when things go right or wrong.
I believe in having spontaneous, open and candid communication within the team, which I believe helps build trust. Empowering teams and encouraging them to share their ideas on important aspects matters a lot to me.
5.What does success look like for you?
Success to me is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it!
6.Personally, what kind of impact do you want to bring to the India and Middle East regions, and by extension, to AnyMind?
Doubling the people and tripling the profit will be my goal
7.What is one thing that few people know about you, but you would like to convey through this interview?
A lot of people know that I am often invited to speak at industry forums, which is something I enjoy. However, many don’t know that I still feel stage fright and, in fact, get butterflies in my stomach even now when I am about to give a public talk. One has to believe that “I can!” Getting out of our comfort zones is important, and challenging and changing ourselves is essential.
8.What do you do to maintain a healthy work-life balance?
Working full-time comes with its own share of stress. I’m fortunate to have an understanding family, which is the wind beneath my wings. That said, I try to intersperse intense work days with long weekends with my family. I like to think I plan well and I don’t procrastinate. I always like being in action mode, which helps me become efficient with my time. It’s not about having time; it’s about making time!
9.What is one thing you can talk about for hours?
Fashion!
10.What is one thing that you would like to change in the industry?
The inertia to try new and innovative solutions.
