MAM
GroupM elevates Ashwin Padmanabhan to chief operating officer, GroupM South Asia
Mumbai: GroupM, WPP’s media investment group, today announces the elevation of Ashwin Padmanabhan as chief operating officer for South Asia.
Ashwin, will now oversee a streamlined structure that brings together GroupM’s extensive and diversified key practices. This includes Influencer Marketing, Content, OOH offering and Nexus. Investments, Trading, Partnerships, Motion and Entertainment will continue to be part of his portfolio. Ashwin’s strategic vision will play a pivotal role in seamlessly integrating GroupM’s diversified services, to develop and deliver a best in-class solution that unlocks value for clients and GroupM.
As the current President of GroupM Investments, Trading, Partnerships, Motion and Entertainment Ashwin’s commitment to innovation and process-driven excellence has solidified GroupM’s position as a leader in client-centric and technically advanced media solutions.
GroupM South Asia CEO Prasanth Kumar said, “Ashwin’s deep understanding of client requirements and industry ecosystems and his proven track record ensures a seamless alliance across respective domains. He will continue to drive synergies across multiple practices emphasizing simplicity and consolidation to consistently deliver outstanding client work.”
Padmanabhan said, “Clients today are looking for bespoke operating strategies that help transform their businesses and GroupM has always been an architect of new approaches when it comes to its clients. I look forward to working with our teams to drive long-term success for brands, bringing effectiveness and optimization to our services that generate enduring impact.”
Ashwin will continue to be based out of Gurgaon and report to Kumar.
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.
