Amitesh Rao joins Rediff, Delhi, as national business head on Airtel

Rao has a background in telecom, software and advertising

Amitesh Rao has been appointed national business head on the Airtel business at Rediffusion DY&R, Delhi. He moves in from JWT, Delhi, where he was vice-president on the Pepsi account.

Rao joins Rediff today and he will report to Ramesh Srivats, executive vice-president, Rediff, Delhi. At Rediff, Rao will handle the Airtel business nationally and will be responsible for partnering Airtel in achieving its business goals.

Srivats says, “Rao brings with him a great mix of experience and energy. His strategic and leadership skills will go a long way in enhancing our engagement with Airtel. His contribution in creative, strategy and activation will also be leveraged.”

An IIM Bangalore graduate, Rao has a background in telecom and software, apart from advertising. After graduating in 1995, he joined RPG Paging Services in the sales and marketing division. In 1996, he stepped into the field of advertising, when he joined McCann. He joined the agency as a senior account executive, and stepped out in 1999 as account director. During his first stint with advertising, he worked on brands such as Nestle and Microsoft, amongst others. He was instrumental in launching Bacardi.

In 2000, he got involved in setting up a software company, along with a few others. In 2004, he gave up his operational role there, but continues to hold a stake in the firm.

In 2005, he returned to advertising, and joined Publicis India. He joined as vice-president and strategic planning director, overseeing the work on HP, Nestle, ABN Amro, Unicef and Microsoft, besides the other accounts that the agency handled.

Towards the end of 2005, he moved to JWT, where he has spent around one and a half years.

Rao adds, “Airtel is one of the biggest and leading brands in India. It has momentum, but in terms of establishing a strong identity, a lot still needs to be done. The challenge comes with the stature of the business and possibilities in the future.”

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