Sunita Rajan signs off from Bloomberg Media after five-year APAC run

SINGAPORE; Five years, a global media brand, a formidable APAC sales operation, and now, time for a new innings.

Sunita Rajan is stepping down as managing director, APAC media sales & marketing at Bloomberg Media, bringing the curtain down on a five-year stint at the financial news giant.

Rajan announced her departure on LinkedIn, saying she was leaving the business with “real momentum, incredible talent, and a clear foundation for continued growth”.

She did not, however, reveal what comes next.

That has only added a little intrigue to the exit of one of Asia’s better-known media sales executives.

“I remain as passionate and energised about the future of this industry as ever, and I am so excited for what’s next,” Rajan wrote.

Her Bloomberg chapter began in January 2021. Before that, she spent almost five years at CNN, where she rose to senior vice president, advertising sales, and more than 16 years at BBC Worldwide Asia, ultimately becoming executive vice president, advertising sales, Asia/ANZ.

Her CV reads rather like a map of the evolution of international media in Asia.

Rajan joined Star TV in 1992, just as satellite television was beginning to redraw the region’s media landscape. She later moved to Channel V, where she was part of the team that helped build the music channel into a major youth brand in India.

At Channel V, she led sales and marketing across India and the Middle East and worked on strategies to drive carriage, audience share and advertiser interest.

She subsequently spent more than a decade at BBC, helping build advertising sales across Asia-Pacific and Australasia, before moving to CNN and then Bloomberg.

In other words, Rajan has spent more than three decades selling media through several technological and commercial revolutions, from satellite television and cable to digital, social and increasingly data-driven advertising.

At Bloomberg, she leaves after five years in which she helped lead the company’s commercial business across APAC.

Her departure has prompted a sizeable stream of tributes from colleagues, clients and industry leaders.

David Hearn, global head of government partnerships and forums at Bloomberg Media, reached for cricketing language, noting that some innings are measured in runs while the best are measured in impact. He credited Rajan with knowing when to “play the long game” and when to take a swing.

Haslinda Amin, editor-at-large and anchor at Bloomberg TV, called Rajan more than an incredible colleague, “an amazing friend and a source of support”.

Alex Israel, global head of video at Bloomberg Media Studios, described her as a “true force of nature” and an inspiration, adding that she had “left the game better than” she found it.

Rachel Tarley, executive editor at Bloomberg, said Rajan would be missed, while Andrew Demaria, global content and media executive, simply called her a “dead set legend”.

Outside Bloomberg, the tributes were equally warm.

John Defterios described Rajan as “a force for good in Asia for over two decades”. Media veteran Meenakshi Menon wished her well for the next adventure, while Rahul Mishra called her “always inspiring”.

Sally Arnold highlighted Rajan’s depth of knowledge and business acumen, crediting her support in helping build Bloomberg’s presence in Australia.

And perhaps the most telling compliment came from Carolyn Gibson, who called her Bloomberg tenure “another amazing chapter” and looked forward to hearing about her next adventure.

Rajan herself kept the tone reflective rather than revelatory.

The achievements mattered, she said, but so did the relationships, shared laughs and support built along the way.

She also reserved a special thank-you for Michael Bloomberg, saying she would always cherish the opportunity to work with the company’s founder and leader.

Now the Bloomberg badge goes back in the drawer.

The next chapter, it seems, is still under wraps. But after a career spent building businesses, brands and revenue across some of the world’s biggest media companies, Rajan is unlikely to be short of offers, or innings.