MAM
Clevertap brings in Honey Bajaj as SVP and global chief of consumer experience
Mumbai: Clevertap has brought Honey Bajaj on board as senior vice president (SVP) and global chief of consumer experience. Bajaj is a design strategist, an innovation leader and a social entrepreneur with extensive work in India and the US.
Before joining Clevertap, Honey built an innovation pipeline for several Fortune 500 companies, including Boston Consulting Group Digital Ventures, Disney, Microsoft Research, MIT Media Lab and Tata Group. At Tata Group, she developed detailed market segmentation frameworks based on purchase behaviour to orchestrate product launches and go-to-market strategies.
She is also a dual degree holder with a master’s degree in engineering and management and a master’s in sustainability studies from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She is currently pursuing her PhD in design and innovation methodologies in the digital world.
“As we scale Clevertap into a global category creator for ‘retention cloud,’ we realise that our customers are eager to co-create experiences that will fuel growth and the future of their own digital businesses,” Clevertap chief growth officer Vikrant Chowdhary. “For this reason, we are expanding our leadership team with a new appointment that benefits the most important stakeholder: our customers’ customers.”
He further added, “From fintech to ecommerce, and from on-demand super apps to media and streaming services, companies need the inspiration and tangible examples of the ‘art of possible’ to unleash human-centered design thinking, unlock new perspectives and drive powerful momentum and positive results for all stakeholders. “This outcome is inextricably linked with our customers’ abilities to realise and hyper-personalise omnichannel journeys for their customers.”
“I have always focused on designing for impact and inventing for scale by contextualising tech for the consumers,” said Honey Bajaj. “The truth is, no matter what we think we’re doing, we are all in the customer-experience business. Before you can accomplish it, you need to envision it. The digital behaviour and expectations of customers is evolving faster than most industries are able to deliver. I am looking forward to my journey with Clevertap to embed human-centered principles and design thinking into a series of initiatives and programs,”
She added, “These efforts will allow digital-first companies to co-create and simulate digital journeys that will fuel growth through superior customer experience and will enable Clevertap’s customers to realise their consumer journeys in a more seamless and contextual manner as the lines of the digital and omnichannel world are no longer separated.”
Brands
Abhinav Rastogi named global marketing director for YouTube Shopping
Google veteran to scale creator commerce and expand shopping across global markets
SINGAPORE: Abhinav Rastogi has stepped into a new role as global marketing director for YouTube Shopping, marking the latest chapter in a more than decade-long career at Google.
Rastogi, who took on the position in February and is based in Singapore, will lead global marketing for YouTube Shopping, a platform designed to connect creators, viewers and merchants in a single ecosystem. His remit includes expanding the service into new markets and strengthening its positioning as a growth channel for both creators and brands.
In a reflective note on the transition, Rastogi pointed to a simple but powerful idea driving the role. For years, creators have quietly built trust with audiences through consistent and authentic content, and that trust often shapes purchasing decisions. What is changing now, he said, is the infrastructure around that behaviour. YouTube Shopping aims to make it easier for viewers to discover and buy products recommended by creators they already follow.
The scale is already significant. More than half a million creators have joined the programme, with recent expansion into Japan through a partnership with Rakuten signalling further global ambitions.
Rastogi believes the future of shopping on YouTube will be driven by a blend of creators, content and communities. In his view, it is the human voice behind the screen, not just the product, that ultimately builds trust and drives discovery.
Prior to this role, he served as director of marketing, YouTube Asia Pacific, where he led regional marketing across creator engagement, brand building and reputation. During that time, he played a key role in launching and scaling YouTube Shopping across eight markets in the region.
Earlier stints at Google include group product marketing manager, consumer apps, overseeing growth for products such as Search, Maps and Assistant across India and Southeast Asia, and product marketing manager roles spanning consumer apps and YouTube, where he contributed to launches including YouTube Music, YouTube Originals and YouTube Shorts.
Rastogi began his career in consulting with Boston Consulting Group and A.T. Kearney, before moving into the technology sector. He is an alumnus of Indian Institute of Management Calcutta and Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur.
Alongside his corporate role, he is also an active angel investor, backing early-stage startups in consumer technology and electric mobility across India and Southeast Asia.
As he settles into the new role, Rastogi is betting on a future where every video can double up as a storefront, and where commerce feels less like a transaction and more like a recommendation from a trusted voice.
