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Cisco ups Prerna Suri to Asean communications head
MUMBAI: IT and networking major Cisco has promoted Prerna Suri as head of communications, southeast Asia as of August 2020. She joined Cisco from Facebook as communications manager APJC in March 2020, and in six months she has been pushed up the ladder and will be based in Singapore.
Her job profile consists of leading Cisco’s communications efforts in Asean (south east Asia), a diverse region, with unique perspectives and opportunities. Her work includes collaborating with senior leaders, crafting strategic messaging, managing media relations, responding to crises and helping teams with their communications’ needs across Asean.
Prerna has previously worked for organisations such as the UN in information roles, and in news outlets such as Channel News Asia, NDTV, and Al-Jazeera as a journalist.
She holds a master’s degree from the London School of Economics and a bachelor of arts in journalism from India's prestigious Lady Shri Ram College for Women.
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McDonald’s India CBO Arvind RP exits after seven years
The chief business officer exits after a stint that took him from marketing to leading South India operations.
MUMBAI: Arvind RP is out. The chief business officer of McDonald’s India has stepped down from the fast-food giant after more than seven years, and is currently serving out his notice period.
It is a significant exit. Arvind joined McDonald’s India in 2019 as director of marketing and communications, a fairly conventional brief, but steadily accumulated responsibilities until he was running the profit and loss for the company’s entire South India operation, with store operations, new outlet development, marketing, human resources and training all falling under his remit.
In a LinkedIn post, he was characteristically warm about his time there. “Looking back, many of the moments that stand out in my career aren’t just about outcomes or milestones; they’re about the incredible people who were part of the journey,” he wrote, adding that he had been “lucky to be surrounded by fantastic team members.”
Before McDonald’s, Arvind spent six years at skincare chain Kaya, where he led marketing and analytics, overseeing brand-building, product innovation and digital and customer relationship management. His career spans a remarkable sweep of Indian industry: retail at Levi Strauss & Co, consumer goods at Britannia Industries, and automobiles at TVS Motor Company, where he also took an international posting in Jakarta.
With 25 years of experience across quick-service restaurants, beauty, fashion and FMCG, Arvind will not be short of takers. The only question is who moves first.
