Sakal Media ropes in Radha Kantipudi

She will head the community network of the group and will be responsible for expansion plans.

Sakal Media Group has appointed Radha Kantipudi as head, community network. She has over 18 years of experience in social and corporate entrepreneurship in the US and the Asia-Pacific region.

At Sakal, Kantipudi will lead community network programmes such as Tanishka and Youth Inspiration Network. Her key focus will be to scale up the suitability of these projects and replicating the model within India and internationally.

She will report to Abhijit Pawar, managing director, Sakal Media Group and work closely with Bobby Nimbalkar, head strategic council. Reporting to Radha will be Prasad Thipsay, chief manager, Tanishka and Rupal Sancheti, head, Young Inspirators Network.

Kantipudi is also the CEO of 'The Taara Collective (TTC), an NGO that she co-founded in 2011. The organisation's mission is to skill women, enhance their employment opportunities and encourage entrepreneurship, thereby ensuring their economic independence. She also serves on the board of two educational institutions in rural Andhra Pradesh in India. These institutions offer undergraduate programmes in science, business management, liberal arts and engineering. She was the key promoter in setting up an institute for paramedical sciences offering diploma courses in nurses and medical diagnostics to economically backward women.

Kantipudi has also worked with Intel Corp for over 14 years in various capacities. Her core area of expertise is strategic planning, business development, program management and operational management. She has a master's degree from Arizona State University in Finance/Accounting and Information Systems and a commerce degree from Osmania University.