Sanju Menon appointed as COO of Publicis Ambience & Publicis Beehive

Publicis Worldwide, India has announced the appointment of Sanju Menon as chief operating officer of Publicis Ambience and Publicis Beehive. Sanju takes over the reins from Paritosh Srivastava, who recently was elevated to the role of managing director of L&K Saatchi & Saatchi. Sanju will be responsible for driving the growth agenda while also providing fresh thinking and impetus to a host of brands under Publicis Ambience & Publicis Beehive.

Sanju assumed charge from January 2, 2020 and will report to Srija Chatterjee, MD, Publicis Worldwide, India.

Sanju joins Publicis Worldwide from Leo Burnett India where his last role was as Executive Vice President managing the entire Bajaj portfolio for the agency. Apart from Bajaj, he was also instrumental in inculcating and driving the Power of One philosophy for some of the largest brands across the Publicis Groupe including Jeep, Viacom, Bridgestone, Sketchers, Abbott Nutrition and Cholayil among others.

Commenting on the appointment, Srija Chatterjee said: “It’s been an emotional ride these past few days as one of our most dependable faces departs to take on a larger role at the Groupe level. But that’s an exciting journey to undertake and Paritosh deserves every bit of the success that has come his way. I’d like to thank Paritosh for setting up steady and solid-looking agencies under Publicis Ambience & Publicis Beehive. At the same time, I’d like to welcome Sanju to the Publicis Worldwide family and can vouch for his credibility as one of the most exciting talents to watch out for. His credentials in driving growth and strategy and his team-bonding skills make him a prized asset to possess. I look forward to partnering him and carving out an upward trajectory for several brands under the Publicis stable.”

Adding his views, Paritosh Srivastava said: “Leaving is always tough, especially when it’s been a deep emotional relationship of over 8 years. Publicis Worldwide will always be close to my heart and will root for its success and glory. However, the silver lining is that no one better than Sanju Menon could have taken the mantle. He’s a fantastic human being and an incredible professional who will add amazing value to our wonderful clients. I’m certain that he will take the agency to greater heights. My heartfelt wishes to Sanju, Srija, Ajay, Neeraj, Suraj, Sridhar and the entire PWW team for a great ride into the future.”

On joining Publicis Worldwide, India Sanju Menon said: “The last five years at Leo Burnett have been very rewarding. I will cherish the association I have had with the various teams I have worked with. With LB’s rich history of innovation, these years have been of great learning too, and I hope to take every bit of it with me to Publicis Worldwide. From the outside, I have seen that Publicis Worldwide has fantastic talents and long-standing relationships with brands that are trusted, loved, and have enormous potential. Equipped with the Publicis Groupe’s ‘Power of One’ philosophy and with the trust of our partners, I look forward to working with Srija and her talented team on building effective and innovative solutions that will make Publicis Worldwide more agile, and a powerhouse within the group. I’m looking forward to being a part of this exciting new journey.”

While at Leo Burnett, Sanju was responsible for delivering solutions for Bajaj across crucial functions like shopper and retail, activation, branded content, website development and maintenance, social and search. Some of his work for the iconic Indian brand went on to win top honors across reputed award festivals including Cannes Lions, Effies, Clio etc.

Sanju has been with Leo Burnett since 2015. He joined Leo Burnett from Rediffusion Kolkata where he worked as the Branch Head. He joined the agency as a brand associate in 2007 and grew to the position of business head in 2011 before moving on to head the operations from 2013. He started his advertising career with SN Design in 2005 and a year later joined Bates 141 as brand executive.