Google appoints Kanika Kalra as director of consumer apps and platforms marketing

MUMBAI: Google has appointed Kanika Kalra as director of consumer apps and platforms marketing, where she will lead marketing strategy and growth initiatives for the company’s consumer applications and platforms in the region.

Kalra brings more than two decades of experience across consulting, technology and consumer goods, with a career that has moved seamlessly between boardrooms, brand labs and digital platforms.

She joins Google after serving as regional marketing director for health at Reckitt in South Asia, a role she held from April 2024 to March 2026. There, she led marketing strategy for the company’s health portfolio across the region.

Before Reckitt, Kalra spent over six years at McKinsey & Company in Mumbai, rising through the ranks to become a partner. During her time at the consulting firm, she advised leading companies on growth strategy, marketing transformation and consumer engagement.

Her earlier career includes leadership roles across some of the biggest names in consumer brands and e-commerce. She served as vice president of marketing at Snapdeal, and previously worked at Unilever as global brand director, where she led core and innovation work on the Fair & Lovely portfolio.

Kalra also held marketing roles at Hindustan Unilever, PepsiCo Foods Private Limited and GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare, building experience across categories ranging from personal care to food and health products.

She began her professional journey at Genpact before moving into marketing and consulting roles that would define her career.

Kalra holds a PGDM in marketing from the Indian Institute of Management Lucknow and a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Lady Shri Ram College, University of Delhi.

With experience that spans consumer brands, consulting and digital platforms, Kalra’s move to Google marks a return to the fast-moving world of tech, where marketing meets scale and strategy meets speed.