MAM
Goafest 2012 launches ‘marketing wizards’
MUMBAI: Goafest 2012‘s organising committee announced the launch of the programme named ‘marketing wizards‘ for delegates under 30 years belonging to the member companies of the Indian Society of Advertisers (ISA).
Marketing Wizards is an initiative wherein each ISA member can nominate up to two rising stars from their marketing teams under the age of 30 years to experience the highs and thrills of Goafest 2012.
Goafest 2012 chairman Arvind Sharma said, “This year we are focusing on getting clients to Goafest 2012. We hope to see many more senior marketers and a large contingent of young advertisers at the festival. Marketing Wizards has been created as an initiative to drive young advertisers‘ participation and ensure that everyone is aware of what is in store for them at Goafest 2012. Marketing Wizards will be an ideal platform for marketers to reward their rising stars. Goafest 2012 will not only help them widen their advertising horizons they will also have a great time at the event.”
ISA chairman Bharat Patel said, “We welcome this initiative from AAAI & Goafest to increase participation of our members and specifically their rising stars. Successful partnerships between advertisers and their advertising agencies are fundamental to success of brands. In many ways, Goafest and the Abbies are a celebration of this success. Equally they are opportunities for our bright young marketers to imbibe and learn. I believe our rising stars will benefit immensely by actively participating in this opportunity. The ‘Marketing Wizards‘ initiative is indeed very attractive and I am sure our members will make the most of it.”
Goafest 2012 is being organised by AAAI and Ad Club Bombay in partnership for the fifth year and will be held on 20 and 21 April at the Zuri White Sands in South Goa. It will be preceded by an advertising conclave on 19 April. The festival is themed the ‘Magic of ideas.‘
MUMBAI: In India’s fast-moving payments race, Visa has just swiped in a new leader. The company has named Suresh Sethi as its India country head, marking a key leadership shift as it sharpens its focus on digital payments growth in the market. Sethi steps into the role following his recent exit from Protean eGov Technologies, where he served as chief executive officer. He succeeds Sandeep Ghosh, who has moved on after more than four years at Visa to pursue an external opportunity.
The appointment comes at a time when Visa is doubling down on its expansion strategy across India and the wider region, deepening partnerships and accelerating adoption in an increasingly competitive digital payments ecosystem.
Sethi brings with him a broad, cross-market perspective shaped by decades of experience across corporate banking, retail financial services, mobile money and large-scale government technology initiatives. He began his career at Citigroup, where he spent 14 years working across India, Africa, South America and the United States, focusing on transaction banking services within the corporate bank.
His appointment signals a blend of institutional experience and market familiarity qualities that could prove critical as Visa navigates a landscape where fintech innovation, regulatory evolution and consumer adoption are all accelerating at once.
As digital payments in India continue to scale rapidly, the leadership change underscores a simple reality, in a market where every tap, scan and swipe counts, who leads the charge can matter just as much as the technology itself.
