Suresh Balakrishna calls it a day at Mail Today

The COO of Mail Today has put in his papers and Rakesh Sharma, CEO, Aaj Samaj is likely to join in his place.

Suresh Balakrishna, chief operating officer, Mail Today has put in his papers and will serve his notice period until the end of March. According to sources, Rakesh Sharma, chief executive officer, Aaj Samaj is slated to join in his place. In his new role, Sharma will report to Ashish Bagga, CEO, India Today Group.

Balakrishna's next destination is not known yet; and sources say that he plans to take a short sabbatical.

Balakrishna has been associated with the India Today Group since 2007. He was an integral part of operations and business performance at Mail Today, which is a 74:26 joint venture between the India Today Group and Daily Mail of the UK.

Prior to this, he worked with Diligent Media, publishers of DNA, as head - sales and marketing for two years. He was part of the launch team of the newspaper and had joined the English daily before its launch. Apart from this, he has also worked with Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited, where he was the executive vice-president - marketing.

In 2003, he joined Hindustan Times Delhi and was with the publication for two years, as vice-president - media marketing. He has also worked with Linterland, where he headed the rural division of Lintas Media.