MAM
Tracking the working woman
While the Indian housewife has been assiduously tracked and her media habits traced by eager advertisers, the Indian working woman has been dodging definition. A recent study by Kartik Iyer, President- Initiative and Madhavi Goswami- Intellect Research & Technologies, Lintas Media Services, however shows that the woman in office exhibits media habits that are closer to her male counterparts than to her homemaker sisters.
 Media consumption patterns of working women are closer to those of men rather than those of non working women |
The number of working women exposed to press is 104 per cent more than non-working women is one of the significant findings of the study. Working women also consume 49 per cent more cinema than non-working women and four times more Internet than non-working women, the study says.
 Televison viewing patterns of working men and women are similar, those of non working women are different |
Interestingly though, the television and radio habits are not very different for both working as well as non-working women but working women are much higher on Press, Cinema and Internet. The study, based on figures thrown up by the Indian Readership Survey and analysed using the ESPRIT consumer segmentation and mapping tool of Intellect, reveals that the media reach for working women mirrors that of their male counterpart. Except for cinema, the media habits of both these demographics are quite similar. The study tracked target group SEC AB, 10L+ HHs, Females Age 20-40 yrs as a base, using
Even in terms of day part viewership, the pattern of working women conforms to that of working men while non-working women show a difference in the viewership. For working men and women, the peak is in the prime time band while non-working women peak both during the afternoon time band as well as the prime time band.
 Except for cinema viewing, media use patterns of working men and women tally |
The time spent in a day on watching television again coincides for working men as well as working women. Working women spend less time watching television than non- working women do. This pattern of being ‘like working men’ is apparent across other parameters of media consumption too such as language of media consumption, genre preferences, etc, the study shows.
The analysis garnered has been used to determine the involvement of women in decision making (particularly the role of working women), and the current gender skew in advertising for various categories. The TAM TV Adex database has been probed to understand the existing gender skew in advertising spends. Correspondence analysis was done to examine the skews in ad duration across various categories with respect to different genres of channels and hence target groups.
 The average amount of time spent in television viewing is nearly the same for all three, however |
The study analysed ad durations of various categories vis-?-vis the channels that they are advertised on, thus reflecting the target audience being advertised to and found that TV spends are being targeted at both the male and female audience but the skew is more towards males. Household durables such as televisions, refrigerators, cars/ jeeps etc are being advertised to both genders but they have a skew towards the males. The study concludes that media planners need to include women as a part of the audience that needs to be advertised to incase of major household durables can not only impact the decision making process for the consumer, but also optimise the spends for the advertiser
MAM
Gurpreet Singh named President of DishTV Alumni Network
Former Dish TV executive to lead community building and collaboration.
MUMBAI: Back to the dish, but this time it’s about connections, not channels Gurpreet Singh is returning to familiar territory with a new mandate that swaps subscribers for relationships. Singh has been appointed President of the DishTV Alumni Network, a move aimed at strengthening ties among former employees and building a more engaged professional community around the Dish TV ecosystem. The initiative reflects a growing trend among large organisations to formalise alumni networks as platforms for collaboration, mentorship and business opportunities.
The appointment draws on Singh’s deep-rooted history with Dish TV, where he held multiple leadership roles over nearly a decade. As National Business Head between June 2019 and September 2020, he oversaw profit and loss as well as operations, managing revenues of Rs 6,000 crore and leading a team of around 1,250 employees across the country. His tenure included working alongside two regional business heads and 16 circle heads, underscoring the scale of operations he handled.
Prior to that, Singh served as Executive Vice President and National Head for Sales and Revenue from 2016 to 2019, and earlier as Senior Vice President and National Head for Sales and Revenue. He also briefly led international operations as Country Head for Sri Lanka, further expanding his exposure across markets.
His broader career spans leadership roles across telecom and consumer businesses, including a stint as Chief Operating Officer at Bharti Airtel’s Malawi operations, senior leadership roles at Reliance Communications, and earlier positions at Hindustan Sanitaryware and Kodak India, where he spent over a decade.
In his new role, Singh is expected to focus on reconnecting former employees, fostering collaboration, and building a structured alumni ecosystem that leverages shared experience and industry networks. As companies increasingly recognise the long-term value of their extended workforce, the DishTV Alumni Network appears set to turn nostalgia into a strategic asset, one connection at a time.
