Brands
Covid19’s impact on the advertising & marketing world
MUMBAI: The deadly Covid19 has put every country in an alarming situation with the economic impact of the pandemic disease being immediate for certain industries.
To understand the effect of this global health crisis on the advertising, marketing, and consumer durables indiantelevision.com spoke to industry experts. They think that this crisis will have large-scale disruption in the coming months. They are of the opinion that the ad industry will be tremendously impacted as the two most important factors for advertising, product availability and consumer sentiment, are both headed south.
“Large-scale disruption is coming and the real impact is to be seen in the coming months. For one, on a global scale, events are being cancelled as a precautionary measure and this will impact the B2B marketing space. The impact of events and conferences is big on the marketing services industry and not so much the mainstream advertising or social media advertising industry. However, from the mainstream perspective, it's an opportunity to magnify reach and brands will jump to use this to spread public service messages veiled with their brand connections,” says Socxo CMO and program head Ajit Narayan.
According to Narayan, there will be supply shortage as many of the Asian suppliers and more Chinese suppliers have already started pulling back on raw material and other equipment needed to complete the product. Without products to supply, what will be advertised?
Additionally, there will be buying postponement by consumers and a recession like behaviour which nobody anticipated will come so fast. The sentiments are already echoing in the stock markets.
Sharing the same views Godrej Appliances business head and executive vice president and CEAMA president Kamal Nandi said: “The coronavirus attack had a negative impact on consumer durables sector due to its dependency on imports from China – be it for finished goods or components. A price increase of up to 3 per cent for consumer durables, such as televisions sets, air conditioners, refrigerators, and microwaves is anticipated from March 2020 onwards. It mainly contributed to the short supply of components and finished goods due to Coronavirus outbreak, apart from the duty increase on certain components like compressors and motors and in some cases on finished goods.”
The ad business may take a hit in the near future as any health-related problem always lowers the market sentiment. “The Coronavirus is a big one given the huge impact it has on China and its spread across many countries. It adversely impacts business given China has millions of dollars of exports and this affects the world markets The stock market dip has a negative impact on the market and businesses. The first thing that gets affected is brand advertising, still seen as an expenditure. In a low sentiment market mostly the essentials get purchased and indulgence has to wait for better times,” echoes Havas Media chief executive officer Anita Nayyar.
With more than 4000 deaths, borderlines being shut and life at a halt there’s still so much we don’t know. In this scenario, media plays a pivotal role in providing correct information without blowing it out of proportion. This is the hype of panic which needs to be controlled.
Meanwhile there are necessary steps brands can take to manage Coronavirus crisis. Narayan says, “Brands will get recognition for active steps they take as precautions and not the typical advertising at this juncture. The trend of remote work which was very slow is gaining momentum now. This could trigger a pivot in the real estate industry as the towers of offices could get impacted without physical office presence needed. This is especially true for the tech industry where it's already finding fast adoption.”
He further adds, “If the businesses find their productive rhythms through remote work, the question that might arise would be one of reducing office space. Which is already a buzzing topic in global markets. Additionally, business owners need to proactively take steps to engage with mature information and fact dissemination among employees. Take action against false information and help employees get through this tough time.”
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.
