SPJIMR Alumni Achievers: CEOs, Marketing & HR Leaders, and Social Change Agents Making Global Impact

SPJIMR Mumbai is one of the top B-Schools of India that produced the most successful CEOs and CXOs of popular brands such as P&G, Tata Motors, Bacardi, GSK, Nivea, Modelez.

Established in 1981, SPJIMR Mumbai is India’s leading AACSB-accredited B-school located in India’s financial center, Mumbai, home to Fortune 500 companies. SPJIMR is ranked #2 in India and #44 globally by The Financial Times 2022 Global Rankings. The institute also offers Merit cum Means based scholarships worth 2 crores. SPJIMR has developed deep industry connections that attract great placement opportunities. SPJIMR students have received the highest salary of INR 53.16 LPA and an average salary of INR 32.05 LPA in2022. SPJIMR functions as an autonomous institute with entrepreneurial agility and consistently ranks amongst the top ten best management institutes in India. Keep reading the article for more information on SPJIMR.

CEOs/ President/COOs

Balaka Niyazee, Senior Vice President & General Manager, Feminine Care, North America, Procter & Gamble (P&G)

 SPJIMR Alumni, Balaka Niyazee is a Global CXO who believes that greatness comes from the duality in action.

 Niyazee is the Senior Vice President & General Manager, of Feminine Care, North America at the consumer goods giant Procter & Gamble (P&G). She did her management studies at SPJIMR in 1999 and joined P&G straight out of the campus of SPJIMR as a Key Account Manager. Since then, while working at P&G, she has worked on businesses across Asia Pacific, India, Western Europe, Greater China, and most recently North America. Her experiences are broad, spanning developed and developing markets, FMCG and Prestige Beauty, as well as Sales & General Management roles.

Mr. Girish Wagh, Executive Director, Tata Motors

Girish is currently the President and Head of the Commercial Vehicle Business Unit at Tata Motors. He is also on the board of Automobile Corp of Goa Ltd, Tata Motors Ltd, Tata Cummins Ltd., and Tata Marcopolo Motors Ltd.

He worked in the capacity of Sr. Vice President (Tata Small & Passenger Car Segment) & Head of Project Planning and Program Management of Tata Motors and was a key figure in Tata’s Nano project. He also designed and headed the project of the Tata Ace mini truck.

Rajesh Jejurikar, Executive Director, Auto & Farm Sector at Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd

Rajesh has had a very successful run in the corporate marketing sector. After working with Voltas (1986–90), FCB Ulka (1990–91), and Marico Ltd. (1991-2000), he joined the Automotive Sector at Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., as Vice President (Marketing) and was part of the team that launched the Scorpio. His role was expanded in 2003 when he was appointed Executive Vice President (Sales & Marketing) for the Automotive Sector.

Deepak Iyer, President, Mondelez International, India

Deepak, President of Mondelez International, India has more than 20 years of professional management experience spanning roles in Sales, Marketing, Franchise Management & General Management with P&L responsibility. Deepak managed portfolios of countries & is currently President & Managing Director at Mondelez International, India

Neil George, Managing Director, Beiersdorf, Nivea (India, Bangladesh, S Lanka, Nepal & Bhutan)

Soon after graduating from SPJIMR in 1996, Neil took on one of the most coveted MBA roles in brand management at P&G. He spent the next few years at P&G and was promoted to a Regional Brand Management role. In 2001, he moved to Reckitt Benckiser in a global role as the Regional Marketing Manager, MENA in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Mahesh Madhavan, Chief Executive Officer, Bacardi

SPJIMR alumnus Mahesh is the Global CEO of Bacardi, the largest privately held and family-owned spirits company in the world, since September 2017. He rose from General Manager (Marketing) for India to getting more responsibility within the company. Mahesh was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Bacardi Limited and was elected as a Director by the Board in September 2017.

Hardeep Singh, Chief Executive Officer, 7-Eleven, India

Hardeep Singh is the CEO of 7-Eleven India. 7‑Eleven is the world’s leading convenience store. Founded in 1927 as an ice and beverage stand in Dallas, today 7-Eleven is a brand loved all around the world with a network of over 71,100 stores operating in 17 plus countries and regions globally. 7-Eleven entered India in partnership with Reliance Retail Ltd. Hardeep has earlier worked as Sr. Vice President - Supply Chain & Logistics at Walmart and as Regional Category Planning Director at Unilever. 

Stars and CXOs in Marketing

Lulu Raghavan, Managing Director, Landor & Fitch

Lulu Raghavan is a leading authority on branding and design in India. She is the managing director of Landor Mumbai which is a preeminent global brand strategy and design firm. Raghavan set up the Landor India office in 2008. He has worked on large branding assignments for some of India’s most respected companies, including the National Stock Exchange, Mahindra, Godrej, Aditya Birla, and the Taj Group, among others.

Anurita Chopra, Chief Marketing Officer, India Sub Continent at GSK Consumer Healthcare India (now Haleon)

Anurita Chopra is the CMO for India Sub-continent at GSK Consumer Healthcare, which is now known as Haleon. She is a top consumer marketing professional with over 20 years of category and business leadership. She has worked with leading brands like Sensodyne, Philips, Nokia, KurKure (PepsiCo), and Bru (HUL).

Stars and CXOs in Finance

Priti Rathi Gupta, Managing Director, Anand Rathi Shares and Stock Brokers Ltd 

Priti Gupta is an alumnus of SPJIMR and is the Managing Director at Anand Rathi Shares and Stock Brokers Ltd. She is a reputed and well-regarded finance professional, a valued expert, and a leading woman entrepreneur in the financial space. Priti also leads the advisory team for commodities and exchanges globally with a keen focus on base metals and energy.

She is also a trained classical singer, with a keen interest in theatre and art, and seeks to usher in meaningful, thought-provoking cinema that can set bars and break boundaries. Priti is a SPJIMR alumnus of the FMB 2003-04 batch

Aayush Upadhyay, Vice President, Deutsche Bank

Ayush Upadhyay is the Vice President of Deutsche Bank. He is a CA with MBA and has more than 13 years of experience in Client Management, Mutual Fund Operations, Fund Accounting & Corporate Finance. Ayush has been serving the Deutsche Bank for the last more than seven years and was elevated to the VP position in April 2020. Before joining Deutsche Bank, Ayush had served as Vice President of Corporate Finance with Trident Limited and had also served at Religare Finvest Limited, SBI SG Global Securities Services Pvt. Ltd and Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Co.

Atul Sodhi, Global Head of Debt Capital Markets, Crédit Agricole

An alumnus of SPJIMR MMS 1990-92 batch, Atul Sodhi is the Global Head of Debt Capital Markets, Crédit Agricole. Atul was Managing Director & Head - Debt Origination and Advisory, Asia Pacific, Jul 2015 - Feb 2018 Hong Kong; was Managing Director - Head of Loan Syndications - Asia Pacific, Hongkong from 2007 - Jul 2015; served as Head of Client Coverage, India from 2004 to 2007 at Mumbai, and served at Various positions in Corporate Origination and Coverage from 1997 to 2004 at Mumbai, Delhi and Chennai

Stars and CXOs in HR

Jyoti Abrol, Director – HR, Thermo Fisher Scientific India

SPJIMR Alumnus of PGDM 2003-05 batch, Jyoti Abrol is the Director – HR at Thermo Fisher Scientific India. She is a Senior Human Resources Business Partner and Leader, with hands-on experience in shaping high-performing cultures in high-growth environments.

Jyoti has the ability to Design, Develop and lead executable people strategies that help build and sustain high-performing teams and individuals. Her expertise and experience on the business side give her the ability to craft strategies that meet both business goals and objectives.

Manit Mittal, Vice President Human Resources - Ola

SPJIMR Alumnus of PGDM 2001-03 batch, Manit Mittal is the Vice President of Human Resources – Ola. He is an HR leader who leads people transformation initiatives to build effective organizational structure, desired culture, and business strategy as they relate to human capital. 

Manit started his career in the HR process & compliance roles including industrial relations, talent acquisition, learning & development, HR systems, audits, analytics, etc. A specialist in creating a culture that values meritocracy and growth for today and tomorrow, Manit functions as a strategic business advisor to the people managers, business unit leaders, senior management, remuneration committee, CXOs as well as the board members.

Entrepreneurs

Pradeep Kar, Founder, Chairman, and Managing Director, Microland Limited

An alumnus of SPJIMR MMS 1981-83 batch, when SPJIMR offered the MMS program, Pradeep Kar founded Microland in 1989. In the rapidly changing business and technology landscape, he ensures that Microland is ‘Making digital happen’ for clients and partners across the globe.

A serial entrepreneur, Pradeep has founded and sold three technology companies, namely, Indya.com (sold to Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation), Planetasia.com (India's first Internet Professional Services Company), and Net Brahma Technologies.

Dipankar Bhattacharjee, Chief Manager (Administration & Welfare), Indian Oil Corporation Limited

SPJIMR alumnus of PGPM 2012 batch, Dipankar Bhattacharjee, is the Senior Manager at Indian Oil Corporation. An ace sportsman who has done his country proud, Dipankar has 20+ years of work experience in the Petroleum Marketing sector. Deepankar is a two-time Olympian and a three-time Indian National Badminton Champion. He was the Captain of the Indian Badminton Team at Thomas Cup 1996

Dipankar is the Founder of Dipankar's Badminton Academy, Guwahati, and is grooming future Olympians at the academy.

Mohan Ramaswamy, Co-Founder & CEO of TerraGo Logistics

SPJIMR alumnus of PGDM 1998 batch, Mohan Ramaswamy is the Co-founder & CEO of TerraGo Logistics, which offers Simple, Flexible, and Scalable Integrated Logistics Solutions, across various touch points in India. Prior to turning an entrepreneur, Mohan held leadership roles in leading companies like Diageo, Inbev, Dell, GSK, and Marico.

Madan Padaki, Founder and CEO, “1Bridge”

Madan Padaki, Founder and CEO of “1Bridge” is a SPJIMR alumnus of the PGDM 1997-99 batch. 1Bridge has been founded with the vision to give access, choice, and convenience to Rural-Urban (Ruban) consumers.

 An entrepreneur & a Changemaker, Madan believes that every youth has to be empowered to unleash their unlimited potential. Madan is also the Co-founder of G.A.M.E. India which was founded in 2018. He is also the Managing Trustee of Head Held High Foundation, Bangalore.

Social Sector Leaders

Vinita Singh, Trustee, “We The People of India”

SPJIMR alumnus of MMS 1992-94 batch, Vinita Singh is the Trustee of ‘We the People of India’. A great social activist, Vinita gets inclined naturally toward exploring issues and solutions through active dialogue and consultation.

Vinita has 25 years of experience in the development sector, working extensively on livelihoods, citizen's rights, and civic education. She was involved in setting up International Resources for Fairer Trade, Satark Nagrik Sangathan, and the National Homeworkers Group. Currently, she is transforming civics education in India as Managing Trustee with We, The People.

Debjani Ghosh, President, NASSCOM

A top Women Achiever, Debjani is the President of the National Association of Software & Services Companies, popularly known as NASSCOM, which is the association of all leading IT, ITES and Technology companies. Debjani took over this prestigious role in April 2018. In January 2018, she was felicitated by the President of India under the auspices of the ‘First Ladies’ program, which honors exceptional women pioneers in their respective fields. She has also been listed in the ‘100 Most Influential Women in UK-India Relations: Celebrating women’ list.

Debjani was also a Member of the India Advisory Board at Cisco from April 2017 to April 2018. Prior to this, she was working at Intel Corporation as Managing Director, of South Asia and VP of SMG. She was in Intel Corporation from the year 2007.

SPJIMR Distinguished Alumni at a Glance

How does SPJIMR produce these Champions?

SPJIMR follows many rules to produce these global leaders including the following a

Unique Selection Process: Instead of looking merely for a high CAT percentile, SPJIMR goes through the applicants’ complete profiles and shortlists them for early interviews even before the CAT scores are out! SPJIMR also looks for high clarity in career goals and asks candidates to select their preferred specialization right at the time of application. These and many other distinct approaches make sure that SPJIMR gets the cream of the crop, every year.

Unique Pedagogy & Industry Relevant Curriculum:

SPJIMR is known for its unique pedagogy which includes simulations, case studies, guest lectures, field visits, live projects and autumn internships. Apart from classroom training with a consistently updated curriculum as per industry requirements, SPJIMR has a host of pioneering non-classroom activities like Abhyudaya, DOCC (Development of Corporate Citizenship), ADMAP (Assessment and Development of Managerial and Administrative Potential), Personal Growth Lab and Science of Spirituality. These initiatives focus on developing the high Emotional and Social Quotient of the budding CXOs at SPJIMR.