Rediffusion-Y&R promotes Gautam Talwar as chief strategy officer

In what Rediffusion-Y&R chooses to call a strategic leadership development, Gautam Talwar has been promoted as chief strategy officer. He takes over as head of the strategic function from Arvind Mohan, who resigned a few days ago.

Talwar had joined Rediffusion-Y&R in April 2010 as executive vice-president, new business development and special projects. He has contributed significantly to the new business initiatives undertaken by the agency and has created a strategic path for the agency to enter into the new media space.

A post-graduate in management studies, Talwar has also completed an intensive course on filmmaking from the Manhattan Film Academy. He carries with him more than 14 years of experience in the advertising and entertainment industry.

He began his career with Grey Worldwide, followed by several years at Lowe in account management and strategic planning. His next move was to Lateral Solutions (Netpreneurship), which was followed by Lowe Dubai and most recently, Kaleidoscope Entertainment.

On his new position at the agency, Talwar comments, "Rediffusion-Y&R has always been respected for its commitment to building great brands. With this opportunity, I hope to leverage my strategic strengths and build further on this legacy by creating meaningful communication that will deliver on brand objectives and create campaigns that will work for our clients and the agency."

It is noteworthy that Mohan's exit is just one amongst many that Rediffusion has witnessed in the recent past. Less than a month ago, the agency lost four of its top executives, of whom, three were from the Mumbai office, and one was from the South.

D Rajappa, president, Rediffusion-Y&R, clarifies, "People and businesses keep moving in the industry. There is enough and more talent in Rediffusion -- in fact, the agency is a powerhouse of talent. Most industry stalwarts have been at Rediffusion at some point in their careers. While some have moved out, there are many who are moving into these roles, as well."

Talwar concurs with Rajappa that the recent management churn will have no adverse effect on the way the agency is functioning.

"The advertising industry is one that sees a lot of attrition. It's not new," Talwar tells afaqs!. He goes on to assure that all the machinery -- in terms of an aggressive growth plan and revenue models -- is in place at the agency and that he looks forward to capitalising on the new media space. While he will be responsible for working on most brands handled by the agency, the focus will be on the larger brands such as Tata Motors (Nano), MTS, LG and Kingfisher, amongst others.