MAM
Colgate moves media biz to MEC
MUMBAI: It is a catch that could be worth Rs 1 billion. Colgate-Palmolive (India) Ltd. has decided to shift its media planning and buying business to Mediaedge:cia (MEC), a GroupM company.
TME, the media arm of Rediffusion DY&R, will, thus, have to end a 25-year-old relationship in India that had even survived the global alignment of Colgate-Palmolive‘s media business with MEC in 2004. India, in fact, was the only country where TME had the media mandate until now.
The change will be effective 1 April. Earlier, Mindshare, part of GroupM, had retained the Unilever account.
Says Mediaedge:cia India MD T Gangadhar, “As part of its strategy to achieve better global and divisional alignment, Colgate-Palmolive (India) has reassigned its media planning and buying account to MEC India, a WPP group company, which is Colgate-Palmolive‘s globally aligned media agency.”
Rediffusion DY&R, however, will continue to handle Colgate-Palmolive‘s creative duties.
Says TME president Divya Radhakrishnan,” It has been a great journey and we are extremely proud of our association with Colgate Palmolive. To be able to retain the business for six years is a tribute to the great work that the team at TME has done over the years. Global realignments are a modern reality and it‘s a pity that a great partnership has to end due to matters beyond our control.”
Colgate-Palmolive‘s range includes toothpastes, toothpowder and toothbrushes under the Colgate brand, dental therapies under the banner of Colgate Oral Pharmaceuticals and personal care products under the Palmolive brand.
MAM
Gurpreet Singh named President of DishTV Alumni Network
Former Dish TV executive to lead community building and collaboration.
MUMBAI: Back to the dish, but this time it’s about connections, not channels Gurpreet Singh is returning to familiar territory with a new mandate that swaps subscribers for relationships. Singh has been appointed President of the DishTV Alumni Network, a move aimed at strengthening ties among former employees and building a more engaged professional community around the Dish TV ecosystem. The initiative reflects a growing trend among large organisations to formalise alumni networks as platforms for collaboration, mentorship and business opportunities.
The appointment draws on Singh’s deep-rooted history with Dish TV, where he held multiple leadership roles over nearly a decade. As National Business Head between June 2019 and September 2020, he oversaw profit and loss as well as operations, managing revenues of Rs 6,000 crore and leading a team of around 1,250 employees across the country. His tenure included working alongside two regional business heads and 16 circle heads, underscoring the scale of operations he handled.
Prior to that, Singh served as Executive Vice President and National Head for Sales and Revenue from 2016 to 2019, and earlier as Senior Vice President and National Head for Sales and Revenue. He also briefly led international operations as Country Head for Sri Lanka, further expanding his exposure across markets.
His broader career spans leadership roles across telecom and consumer businesses, including a stint as Chief Operating Officer at Bharti Airtel’s Malawi operations, senior leadership roles at Reliance Communications, and earlier positions at Hindustan Sanitaryware and Kodak India, where he spent over a decade.
In his new role, Singh is expected to focus on reconnecting former employees, fostering collaboration, and building a structured alumni ecosystem that leverages shared experience and industry networks. As companies increasingly recognise the long-term value of their extended workforce, the DishTV Alumni Network appears set to turn nostalgia into a strategic asset, one connection at a time.
