MAM
Kritika Saxena elevated to head of marketing at TCS India
MUMBAI: Five years ago, Kritika Saxena swapped the television studio for the corporate boardroom. Today, she’s got the promotion that proves it was the right call.
Saxena has been elevated to head of marketing for India at Tata Consultancy Services, stepping up from her role leading corporate communications and public relations at the IT giant. It’s the kind of career move that validates a gamble many wouldn’t dare take.
“I have often been asked if it was worth it,” Saxena shared on LinkedIn, reflecting on her 2020 switch from journalism to corporate life. “After 5 years, I have so many moments, even daily, that I can find myself saying a whole hearted yes to that question.”
In her new role, Saxena will oversee all marketing efforts across India, working to amplify TCS’s brand presence throughout the region. She’ll also helm the company’s flagship experience centre in Mumbai, a showcase space that tells the TCS story to stakeholders and visitors from around the world. Additionally, she’ll head marketing for the Public Services India and Rest of World business vertical.
The promotion comes after a successful five-year stint building TCS’s communications profile. But Saxena’s path to this moment began much earlier, in the fast-paced world of broadcast journalism.
She spent over 12 years at CNBC-TV18, rising through the ranks from senior correspondent in 2008 to chief of bureau for Mumbai and South India by 2020. During that tenure, she broke stories, anchored interviews, analysed markets, and contributed to numerous flagship shows. Before that, she cut her teeth at BBC Worldwide, The Times of India, and various other media outlets.
The transition from newsroom to corporate suite isn’t always smooth, but Saxena found a common thread. “One lesson stands out for me that is common for marketing, communications and journalism: good storytelling is at the heart of everything,” she noted.
That philosophy clearly resonated. Last year, she played a key role in launching TCS’s ‘Accelerating India’ campaign, an initiative close to her heart that she’s thrilled to continue steering in her expanded role.
Saxena was quick to credit TCS’s culture of internal growth. “I’m forever amazed at how TCS encourages growth for everyone and gives the space for career elevation and expansion in its own vast boundaries,” she said, thanking colleagues Abhinav Kumar and Girish Ramachandran for the opportunity.
It’s a reminder that career pivots, however daunting, can lead somewhere special. For Saxena, the journalist who once reported on corporate India now shapes how one of its biggest names tells its own story. Not a bad plot twist at all.
Her journey proves what many suspect but few dare test: sometimes the best stories aren’t the ones you cover, but the ones you live.
MAM
India’s employability gap persists despite strong hiring intent
Only 1 in 5 institutions achieve 76 to 100 per cent placements within six months of graduation.
MUMBAI: India’s young workforce is ready in numbers, but the real question is whether they are ready for work and senior leaders from industry, academia and policy gathered in Delhi to find practical answers. A closed-door roundtable hosted by Vaishali Nigam Sinha, co-founder of Renew, brought together key voices to discuss actionable solutions for bridging the persistent employability gap. The session highlighted that while job opportunities are expanding, the alignment between education and industry needs remains a critical challenge.
According to Teamlease EdTech’s Career Outlook Report HY1 2026, 73 per cent of employers plan to hire freshers in the first half of 2026, signalling steady recovery in entry-level hiring. However, employers are shifting focus from mere qualifications to demonstrable capability, placing greater value on internships, live projects and proof-of-work.
Teamlease Edtech, founder and CEO Shantanu Rooj emphasised the need for better alignment, “India’s employability challenge is no longer about access alone, but about alignment between education and work. Employers are increasingly relying on demonstrable capability such as internships, projects, and applied learning as indicators of readiness.”
Vaishali Nigam Sinha stressed the importance of execution over intent, “India has both the talent and the opportunity. What is needed now is alignment. We have to move from intent to execution by embedding employability into the system itself.”
Other prominent speakers included Dr Chenraj Roychand, Chancellor of Jain (Deemed-to-be) University, who called for universities to evolve from degree providers to ecosystem enablers, Prof M. Jagadesh Kumar, Chairman of the Board of Governors at IIM Calcutta, who highlighted the need for flexibility and multidisciplinary learning, and Dr T.N. Singh, Director of IIT Patna, who advocated deeper industry engagement through research and experiential learning.
The discussion also drew insights from the book Accelerating Impact. Enabling Dreams – Making India Employable by Shantanu Rooj and co-authors, which features contributions from leaders like Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Dr Krishnaswamy Kasturirangan and Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar.
During the event, Teamlease Edtech Foundation launched Project SEED, a national initiative aimed at bridging the education-employability gap for underserved youth. The project focuses on early intervention at the school level to guide students towards informed career choices and work-integrated pathways.
With only 16.67 per cent (1 in 5) of institutions achieving 76–100 per cent placements within six months of graduation, the conversation made one thing clear, India’s demographic dividend will deliver real value only when education and employability walk hand in hand. The gathering served as a timely reminder that the future of India’s workforce depends not just on creating more jobs, but on preparing young people far better to seize them.
