MAM
AkzoNobel strengthens management team with two key appointments
Mumbai: In a bid to strengthen its management team, AkzoNobel India has appointed Neelima Kataria as country HR manager for the India sub-continent and Vandana Krishnia is named new marketing head for the company’s paints business.
Speaking on the change in leadership, AkzoNobel India managing director Rajiv Rajgopal said they need the leadership of high performers. “To this end, I am delighted to welcome Neelima and Vandana – two very strong leaders who enrich the organization with their sheer breadth of domain expertise, entrepreneurial passion to innovate, cross-sectoral experience and people-centric approach,” added Rajgopal.
As the new marketing head for AkzoNobel’s paint business in India, Krishnia will spearhead the strategising and execution of a long-term marketing roadmap aligned with the company’s profitable growth ambitions for India. Her key priorities will be to bolster the relationship between consumers and Dulux by strengthening the brand and shaping consumer-centric innovations.
She joins AkzoNobel after most recently serving as chief marketing and passenger experience officer at DIAL, GMR group. In her professional journey spanning 18 years, Krishnia has driven marketing management, consumer products, pricing strategy, consumer research for organisations including Hindustan Times and State Bank of India among others.
As country HR manager for AkzoNobel India, Kataria will work closely with the India leadership team and board of Akzo Nobel India towards crafting a meaningful employee experience that augments its business growth ambitions for India. “Among her key priorities will be to drive AkzoNobel’s HR strategic plan to attract the right talent, develop high-performance teams in a fast-evolving business landscape, helm people-centric policies, oversee rewards & recognitions, and embrace employee wellbeing, diversity, and inclusion to strengthen AkzoNobel as an employer of choice,” said the statement.
Kataria brings with her over two decades of HR expertise and best practices across geographies and industries. Before joining AkzoNobel, she was the head of HR at Apollo Tyres for Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Africa. Previously, has worked in HR leadership and expertise roles at HT Medias, Fullerton Securities, Bharti Walmart, IBM Daksh and TNT Express.
MAM
Indigo appoints Aloke Singh as Chief Strategy Officer
Air India Express MD joins to steer global growth and operational efficiency.
MUMBAI: Indigo just recruited its next big strategist from the rival camp because when you’re chasing the skies, sometimes the best way to fly higher is to borrow the pilot who already knows the route. InterGlobe Aviation, parent company of IndiGo, announced on 23 March 2026 that its board has approved the appointment of Aloke Singh as Chief Strategy Officer. Singh, who most recently served as managing director and CEO of Air India Express, will lead enterprise-wide strategic planning, operational efficiency initiatives and the airline’s aggressive push into international routes.
Reporting initially to managing director Rahul Bhatia and later to Indigo’s incoming CEO Singh brings over three decades of experience across strategy, operations and commercial functions in aviation. At Air India Express he drove network expansion and performance turnaround, earlier roles at Air India and Oman Air sharpened his focus on long-term planning.
“Aloke brings an exceptional blend of strategic vision and operational depth,” Bhatia said. “His experience will be critical as Indigo seeks to build a more agile, resilient and future-ready organisation.”
The appointment arrives at a pivotal moment. Indigo, India’s dominant domestic carrier, has faced intense scrutiny after operational disruptions in December 2025 thousands of cancelled and delayed flights due to crew scheduling misalignments with new pilot fatigue norms triggering fines, passenger chaos and regulatory heat. Former CEO Pieter Elbers resigned in March 2026 citing personal reasons, though his exit followed sustained pressure from those setbacks and rising costs.
Singh described joining Indigo as “a pivotal moment” for both the airline and Indian aviation, as the carrier accelerates beyond its domestic stronghold into a more competitive global arena.
In an industry where turbulence is measured in both altitude and headlines, Indigo isn’t just hiring a strategist, it’s recruiting a steady hand to navigate from domestic dominance to international takeoff, one calculated flight plan at a time.
