MAM
Weekend Unwind with LA Empire’s Ankit Lodha
Mumbai: With another weekend upon us, it is time to unwind with the latest Q&A edition of Indiantelevision.com’s Weekend Unwind – a series of informal chats that peek into the minds of business executives through a fun lens in an attempt to get to know the person behind the title a little better.
In this week’s session, we have LA Empire founder Ankit Lodha, a visionary entrepreneur transforming the rental and vacation home market. Since launching LA Empire in 2022, Ankit has tackled key industry issues like fake listings and price transparency, growing a portfolio of nearly 30 properties across rentals and vacation homes. With flexible mid-term leases and unique experiences, LA Empire is setting new standards in real estate.
Without further ado, here it goes…
Your mantra for life
Nothing changes, if nothing changes. If you want to achieve something you never had, you have to be ready to do something you have never done before.
A book you are currently reading or plan to read
Buy Back Your Time by Dan Martell, it focusses on how to scale business, fast, while avoiding burnout. Trading money for time—that is, buying back free space in your calendar—will give you more financial success than you ever dreamed possible.
Your fitness mantra
I don’t let my mind hold my body back. Every day I aim to push myself and do something new to challenge myself and grow physically and mentally.
Your comfort food
Italian food is my comfort food, Pizza; Pasta all day, every day!
A quote or philosophy that keeps you going when the chips are down
The future you is depending on the current you to keep the promises you made in yesterday.
Your guilty pleasure
I am passionate about cars and enjoy going for long drive. Right now, my favourites guilty pleasures are my Ferrari, Porsche and Maybach.
The last time you tried something new
Last week, I started doing 30 second cold plunge every day after a long workout session.
A life lesson you learned the hard way
Same inputs = same outputs. You can’t expect your life to change if you keep doing the same things. Same inputs will give you same outputs. Once I realized this, I started changing my inputs and then saw the change in outputs as well
What gets you excited about life?
Helping people by solving their problems through modern real estate solutions. When people move to new cities and country, they can focus on the main objective such as education, job, career and not worry about their housing or set-up issues. Personally gone through the situation, I understand the pain points and now I like to solve their problems through next generation real estate solutions.
What’s on top of your bucket list?
To buy a private jet – it’s like a time machine. It can take us from one global office location meeting to another very quickly and be back to the office on same day
If you could give one piece of advice to your younger self, what would it be?
Believe in yourself. Everyday focus on improving yourself and start embodying the future version of yourself that you want to be. It will help you bridge the gap between current version of yourself and future version of you.
One thing you would most like to change about the world
I would change extreme weather conditions, for example: hurricanes; tsunamis; blizzards; etc. The number of lives saved as well as money would be amazing.
An activity that keeps you motivated and charged during tough times
Going to gym or doing anything physical such as running, swimming going or even simple physical activities such as going out of walk in nature of garden.
What lifts your spirits when life gets you down?
Practicing Gratitude. I start focusing on the positive aspects of your life can create an instant shift in your perspective. Taking a moment to reflect on the things you’re grateful for – whether it’s a supportive friend, a beautiful sunset, or a small accomplishment. This practice can bring a sense of contentment and happiness.
Your go-to stress buster
Is to be active. Being active won’t make stress disappear, but it can help to reduce some of the intense emotions you’re feeling. It can also help to clear your thoughts. This will help in dealing with your problems more calmly.
There are lots of ways to be more active. Activities with breathing exercises and movement are particularly helpful for stress. One example of this is yoga.
Brands
Boeing appoints Barun as head of FP&A for global engineering function
Seasoned finance leader to steer budgets and strategy across global centres
BENGALURU: Boeing’s finance cockpit has a new pilot, and he is no stranger to turbulence or transformation. Boeing has appointed Barun as head of FP&A for global engineering, placing him at the centre of financial strategy for its worldwide engineering and technology operations.
Based in Bengaluru, Barun steps into a role that is as expansive as it is critical. He will serve as the primary finance lead for Boeing’s Engineering and Technology Centers globally, working closely with executive leadership to shape financial decisions, manage complex budgets, and design scalable finance processes that support the company’s growing engineering footprint.
In a note announcing his move Barun said, “I’m excited to share that I’ve joined Boeing Global Engineering. This opportunity is incredibly meaningful to me not just from a professional standpoint, but also for what Boeing represents globally.” He added that he looks forward to contributing to an organisation that continues to shape the future of aerospace and innovation.
Barun’s mandate spans strategic financial leadership, operational oversight, and stakeholder engagement. From directing large-scale budgets and schedules to influencing long-term organisational goals, the role blends financial discipline with business foresight. He will also lead cross-functional teams and partner with finance colleagues worldwide to support engineering programmes across geographies, including India.
The appointment caps a long stint at Juniper Networks, where Barun spent over a decade, most recently as finance senior manager. There, he led FP&A for global product business units and G&A functions, driving budgeting, forecasting, and long-range planning. He also played a key role in enterprise-wide transformation, including spearheading an Oracle to SAP ERP migration and building advanced analytics capabilities using tools such as Tableau and SAP Analytics Cloud.
His earlier career includes finance leadership roles at Sony India Software Centre, Cognizant Technology Solutions, and Mphasis, where he focused on financial planning, governance frameworks, and operational efficiency across global delivery centres.
A chartered accountant from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, Barun brings nearly two decades of experience across financial planning, digital transformation, and analytics-led decision making.
His appointment comes at a time when global engineering operations are becoming increasingly complex and distributed, requiring sharper financial oversight and agile planning. With Barun at the helm of FP&A for engineering, Boeing appears to be tightening its financial playbook as it looks to scale innovation with discipline.
