Mr. Sunil Gautam founded Hanmer & Partners in 1999 and for over a decade he led and transformed the company to make it one of the largest multi-disciplinary communications firm in India. Under his leadership Hanmer & Partners strategically merged with the MSLGROUP in 2008, to provide the agency a global, strong, dependable and highly experienced partner. A chartered accountant by profession; he built the foundations of HANMER MSL and led the servicing of prestigious clientele comprising over 150 top Indian conglomerates and MNCs.
A veteran in the field of PR, his views are sought by industry professionals both in India and worldwide.
A Management Graduate with a master's degree in International Business; Jaideep Shergill is the currently the Chief Executive Officer of HANMER MSL, part of MSLGROUP. At HANMER MSL, Jaideep is a key member of the Asia Leadership team, and also a member of the India Board for MSLGroup. He brings with him rich experience cumulated over 15 years in the banking and communications industries and diverse markets.
A task master to the core, Jaideep is one of the founding members of HANMER MSL (erstwhile Hanmer & Partners) incorporated way back in 1999. What started as a small company with a handful of employees is now a multinational catering to speciality communications services viz. creative, corporate reputation, crisis management, event management, financial communications, social media and strategic public relations. Over the years, he has been instrumental in shaping the organization, and in his current role, he is directly responsible for growth in the Indian market by giving strategic direction by evaluating the public relations business and consulting with clients.
Recognized as a prominent thought leader, Jaideep has represented the Public Relations industry as a key speaker in many forums both in India and abroad. Under his dynamic leadership, HANMER MSL has seen phenomenal growth both in terms of revenue and market penetration by strategic mergers and acquisitions.
Under his aegis HANMER MSL has won numerous accolades like; awarded the Indian Consultancy of the Year by Holmes Report & GOLD at the B and SABRE Awards in the year 2009. In 2010 won the prestigious IBA (International Business Awards) as ‘Distinguished Honoree’ and also found an ‘honorable mention’ at 2010 Asia Pacific PR Week Awards. In 2011, HANMER MSL walked away with four awards at this year’s prestigious Big Bang Awards.
Hemant has over two decades of experience in devising communications strategy, media relations, marketing and trade communications, crisis and issue management, internal communications, event planning and corporate social responsibility.
He started his career with Century Rayon and later with Tata Electric Company. After over 13 years with Tata Electric, he joined Clea as Assistant Vice President. In 1999, he moved to MTV Networks India as Director Communications. He was the CEO of CricketNext.com in 2000 and in 2005, he joined MTV Networks Asia LDC (Singapore) as Senior Director, Network Communications.
He also had a stint with Singapore Cricket Association. Before joining Hanmer, he was working as a Consultant in Communications, Marketing and freelance journalist at Communicate, Singapore. Over the years, he has worked with various international brands viz. Coca-Cola, MTV, UDV, Singapore Tourism Board and across industries including Media, FMCG, Entertainment & Sports, Finance, Power, Publishing, Online among others.
He has also been a columnist with Sunday Observer, the Afternoon Despatch and Courier, and Rediff-on-the-Net (Mumbai). He has contributed to publications which include The Times of India, India Today, Mid Day, The Independent, Metropolis on Saturday (Mumbai), The Statesman and Bartaman (Kolkata) Cosmopolitan (Delhi), Forbes India, India, Se (Singapore), Tabla! (Weekly newspaper from Singapore Press Holdings). In addition, he has hosted programmes on All India Radio and GO 92.5 FM (Mumbai) and Worldspace Satellite Radio (Singapore).
Hemant is a commerce graduate from Sydenham College of Commerce and Economics and holds a post graduate diploma in Public Relations & Advertising from KC Institute of Management Studies, Mumbai.
Onassis Vaz - Sr. Vice President and Head – Financial Communications & IR,
Member Leadership Team, Mumbai onassis@hanmermsl.com
Onassis brings with him rich experience of the communications industry through his exposure to numerous clients. With over 20 years of experience in the PR & communications industry, Onassis has truly a 360 degree experence in communications be it advertising, media buying, events, public relations or investor relations.
Having handled various financial brands including heavyweights viz. Franklin Templeton, UTI, IDBI Bank, Global Trust Bank, Standard Bank London to having developed strategy & direction for brands such as Pepe Jeans, Eureka Forbes, Honda Motors, Skoda Auto, Adani Wilmar, Suzlon Wind Energy, Venkys India etc. He is the right person for crisis management
With a strong understanding of the Indian Capital markets, Onassis is well versed with all guidelines concerning the markets; be it the Security Exchange Board of India, Bombay Stock Exchange or the National stock Exchange. Onassis has been instrumental for managing communications for various companies looking to raise money from the capital market & listing on the stock exchanges in India. Companies that he has worked closely are the Yash Birla Group, Cinemax India, Lumax Auto, Allied Digital etc., to name a few. In addition to managing Investor Relations for clients such as Spice Jet, Garware Offshore, FACOR Group etc., his experience and understanding spans across various sectors that include Steel, Offshore, Telecommunication, Textile etc. At HANMER MSL, Onassis leads a young dynamic team focused on Financial Communications & Investor Relations in addition to managing and advising clients from various sectors.
Glen brings with him 14 years of experience in the field of public relations. His forte lies in handling communications for consumer, corporate and healthcare brands through his exposure with numerous clients over the years.
Glen currently manages various corporate accounts namely Emirates Airline, TV18, Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corp Ltd., Volkswagen, Piramal Group, MIRC Electronics, VIP Industries, etc., along with regular media liaison.
A commerce graduate with a Diploma in Business Management from Bombay University, he’s been with HANMER MSL since inception. He heads a team of Associate Account Director, Senior Account Managers, Account Managers and Account Executives which oversees various corporate, brand, healthcare, aviation, energy and auto clients
Additionally, entrusted with handling and developing the operations in Pune and Ahmedabad.
Parveez brings with him over 17 years of rich experience in Advertising and Marketing. He has worked in advertising agencies of repute like FCB Ulka, Ambience Publicis, Bates 141 and has done a stint with BPL Mobile Mumbai as well
Over the years, he has worked with a number of clients, such as TVS Motors, Fiat India Automobiles, IDBI Bank, ICICI Bank, HDFC Mutual Fund, Leela Group of Hotels, Gelucil Antacid, Radiocity, Philips, Western Union Money Transfer, Playwin Online Lotteries, Emami Group of Companies, Goodlass Nerolac, L’Oreal, among others
Prior to joining HANMER MSL, Parveez was with Bates 141 as Vice President
Parveez holds a B.E degree in Construction Engineering and has done a Masters Degree in Marketing Management from Mumbai University
Luna Biswas - Vice President, Member Leadership Team, Mumbai luna@hanmermsl.com
Luna brings with her an experience of over 12 years in consumer and media & entertainment public relations. She joined HANMER MSL in May 2002. Apart from spearheading the agency’s media and entertainment and hospitality practice, Luna oversees teams across multiple vertical industries including consumer brands, and retail
Before joining HANMER MSL, she has worked with some of the leading PR firms including Integral PR & Capital Images PR. Luna’s clients have included Bacardi-Martini Ltd., Tupperware, India Today Group, William Grant & Sons, Whyte & Mackay, among others. A graduate of Lady Shri Ram College (Delhi University) with a B.A. in English literature and a post graduate in mass communications, Luna began her career at a consumer brands PR agency
Schubert Fernandes - Vice President, Member Leadership Team, Mumbai schubert@hanmermsl.com
A Graduate in Commerce & Business Management, Schubert started his career in communications by joining a full service advertising agency where he worked for two years. Schubert then went on to complete his post graduation in public relations and corporate communications from the Xavier Institute of Communication, Mumbai, following which he joined Hanmer & Partners and spent four years with the agency.
Schubert has over 9 years of years of work experience in the communications and public relations business imparting counsel to a host of clients and corporates in India and the Middle East. Before returning to Hanmer & Partners in February 2007, Schubert was an integral part of the communications team at Asian Paints, one of the world’s top 10 decorative coatings company.
Schubert has extensively serviced real estate and infrastructure clients both in India and the Middle East. He currently manages the real estate and infrastructure mandates at HANMER MSL.
Vipul Bondal - Vice President, Member Leadership Team, Mumbai vipul@hanmermsl.com
With over 17 years of experience in the field of corporate communication, Vipul currently heads a team that handles a diverse portfolio of clients in financial services, healthcare and consumer technology.
A Chemistry graduate with a post-graduate in Mass Communication, he has also done a programme in Business Management from the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore (IIM-B).
Prior to HANMER MSL, he has worked for leading global companies such as Siemens and Roche, and also with other well-known Indian PR firms. He possesses a good understanding of all aspects of communications including corporate, marketing, financial, crisis communication and CSR. Vipul couples communication strategy with a thorough understanding of business and economic matters.
Atanu Dutta - Vice President, Member Leadership Team, New Delhi atanu@hanmermsl.com
Atanu Dutta has more than 15 years of experience in developing and implementing innovative communication programs to drive growth and profits for clients in competitive markets. His core strengths include understanding positioning needs and developing appropriate marketing communication strategies for clients across industry segments.
Prior to joining HANMER MSL, he has worked with Sun Global (China), VTS Clima (Dubai), Jumbo Electronics (Dubai), Enterprise Public Relations, TBWA, PSI India, Mudra Communications Ltd., Perfect Relations and Mideast (India) Ltd.
A management graduate from T. A. Pai Management Institute, Manipal, he has completed his Bachelor’s degree from University of Delhi.
M. Subramaniam - Vice President, Member Leadership Team, Bangalore subra.m@hanmermsl.com
M Subramaniam or "Subra“, as he is known to one and all, has over 22 years of experience in Public Relations, Advertising and Marketing and has worked with various consultancies and corporations. He has extensive experience in handling internal/ external relationship issues including crisis management
Before HANMER MSL, Subra was with Rediffusion Y&R as Vice President (South). In the past, he has worked with IBM India, Gutenberg PR, Perfect Relations and Ogilvy PR, among others. He has handled numerous prestigious clients such as Airtel, EMC, IBM, Wipro, Apple, Toyota Kirloskar, Ford, Metro Cash & Carry, Coca Cola, Hindustan Lever to name a few.
Subra is a graduate in Commerce and holds a post graduate diploma in advertising & marketing from Xavier Institute of Communications, Mumbai
Pankaj Desai - Vice President, Member Leadership Team, Ahmedabad pankaj@hanmermsl.com
Pankaj Desai joined HANMER MSL in January 2004 and presently heads the Gujarat operations of its Creative Services Business and MSLGROUP CREATIVE+, a global outsourcing hub for various MSL offices worldwide.
He has worked on a portfolio of prestigious clients like GE, MEC, P&G, GNFC, Adani, Torrent, Nilon’s, Shree Cement, FACOR, Radission and Mili Tea. In addition to this, he has also worked with more than 15 overseas MSL offices and its clients. An MBA in Marketing from the University of Pune (India), he also has to his credit, an enriching experience of more than 10 years in marketing & advertising, international trade and corporate communications. His profile includes a vast marketing experience at Suman Trades Pvt. Ltd. and as the Senior Officer, Corporate Communication with Adani Exports, Mundra Port and Adani Wilmar of the Adani Group.
Among his most striking qualities are excellent co-ordination skills and an indomitable spirit which make him an excellent leader and a pleasing personality. His calm disposition in the most pressing times is especially impressive.
Ms Cauvery Nanaiah is an experienced communications professional with a postgraduate Master’s programme in Mass Communication & Journalism from the University of Mangalore.
She started her career as a freelancing journalist for The Times of India in Bangalore and Mangalore. Later, she made a successful career switch to public relations. Her experience in the PR industry spans across 10 years covering diverse sectors.
She has been with HANMER MSL for the last 4.5 years and currently holds the designation of Associate Vice President & Member, Leadership Team, Bangalore. Her focus areas are Finance, telecom, retail, insurance,automobiles, logistics, real estate, IT, lifestyle and hospitality.
Prior to joining HANMER MSL , she worked for Torque Communications Pvt Ltd,and Rediffusion Denstu Young & Rubicam Brand Communications.
In HANMER MSL , she worked with clients like Karvy, Maytas Infrastructure, IBS Software, Aravind Brands, ING Vysya Bank, Murugappa etc. Now, she leads a larger team handling marquee clients like Bharti Airtel, Nike, Nova medical center, Mantri developers, Bharti Axa General Insurance, ING Vysya Life Insurance, Royal Orchid Hotels, Au Bon Pain, Atmosphere, Max Hypermarket , Axa Technologies and Checkpoint from Bangalore.
A face extremely familiar to the Bangalore media, including general and business journalists, Cauvery is very well networked from young scribes to top editors in Bangalore. She is also deft at crisis management.
N. Dhanshekhar Iyer has 14 years of experience in Operations Execution, Finance, Accounts, Taxation/ Auditing, MIS & Reporting. He has had an opportunity to work with Ogilvy & Mather Private Limited, Tata Finance Limited and Telco Dealers Leasing & Finance Company Limited.
He has proven ability of improving operations, impacting business growth and maximizing profits through achievements in Finance Management as well as Internal Control. He is deft in conducting analysis to assess the financial results & profitability implications, identifying business risks & implementing effective mechanisms to mitigate the same.
He possess comprehensive experience in heading activities related to Finance and Accounts; conversant with all operations related to taxation and audits and has extensive understanding in the effective usage of processes.
Dhanshekhar is a qualified Cost Accountant from Institute of Cost and Works Accountants of India and also Associate Company Secretary from Institute of Company Secretaries of India.
Saad Ahmed brings over 5 years of consulting experience from TCS where he was involved with a diverse set of international clients primarily from the Retail, Financial Services and Insurance verticals. His engagements with these clients, which include Citigroup, AXA Insurance and Walgreens Co., have entailed projects that have turned around failing product lines, developed business processes for new country launches and devised innovative channels for customer acquisition.
His primary role would be to plan and work on the overall communications strategy based on well researched and analyzed study. He will champion ideas and creative thinking which works across the agency and he will work with the teams on specific clients and new business development. He will be based between Delhi and Mumbai (living mostly in Delhi).
Saad completed his graduation in 2004 from Rochester Institute of Technology, NY in Information Technology where he was awarded the RIT International Scholarship. He also holds an MBA in Strategy and Marketing from the Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad.
Sudeep is a a seasoned corporate & marketing communications professional with a career spanning more than 15 years across diverse communications elements including of Corporate, Brand & Product PR, Financial PR, Brand Communications, Activation-led Events/Events Management, Industry / Peer Group networking with key business chambers, Communications Research, Online & Social media communications.
Sudeep has worked on several large and important brands including The Tatas Group, Singapore Airlines, GMR Group, AES Corp, Govt of Sri Lanka (The Presidency), Embassy of Egypt & Egypt Tourism, NDTV, Indian Airlines (NAC) etc. His immediate last assignment was at Spice Global (a Telecom & Technology conglomerate) as the Group Corporate Communications Head, where he was instrumental in managing the visibility, transformation and build process for Spice as a brand.
He has been an active visiting faculty & guest speaker at several management, vocational institutes and forums including IIMC Delhi, Balaji Inst. of Telecom Management IIPM, FMCC Delhi, Indira Institute Indore etc.
Sushma Rana heads the HR & Training department and brings with her over 15 years of rich experience in the field.
With HANMER MSL since 2006, she manages the entire gamut of HR & training functions for India offices. This includes overseeing and leading staffing/ talent acquisition & retention, orientation & on boarding, employee relations, policies and practices, forecasting, compensation practices, employee morale and engagement programs, employee reward and recognition program, training and career development and performance management.
Before joining HANMER MSL, Sushma was a commissioned officer of the Indian Navy. Upon completion of her mandatory service, she took early retirement as a Lieutenant Commander. In her nine years experience with the nation’s premier maritime force, she was exposed to the most versatile facets of human resource management and training with postings all over India. For her creditable work whilst in the Navy, she was awarded with a commendation from the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, South in 1999.
Sushma holds a B.Tech degree in Electronics & Communications from NIT, Hamirpur (H.P) and has a post graduate diploma in Human Resources from Symbiosis Institute of Management Studies.
