Lalit Sharma joins WPP Media as vice president, investments, marketplace and partnerships

DELHI: He has sold it, planned it and bought it. Now Lalit Sharma is getting the chance to run the lot. Sharma has joined WPP Media as vice president, investments, marketplace and partnerships, India, starting in October 2026.

The appointment caps a career that has taken in nearly every side of the Indian media trade. Sharma began in July 2007 as an executive in operations at GroupM, working across Mumbai and Gurgaon. He stayed four years before moving to Publicis in June 2011, where he spent almost five years as manager, planning, in Gurugram.

In March 2016 he tried something different, joining ShopClues as senior analyst, marketing, a year-long spell in e-commerce. In April 2017 he was back at GroupM, this time as investment group head, a post he held until October 2019.

Then came Wavemaker, where Sharma spent four years and 11 months in two roles. He started in October 2019 as associate investment director and was promoted to investment director in December 2023, staying until August 2024.

The next move took him to the other side of the table. In August 2024 Sharma joined TV Today as assistant general manager, and in May 2025 he moved to ABP Network as account director, where he stayed for a year and a half until October 2026. Few agency investment heads get a view from the seller’s chair. Fewer still bring it back.

The analysis

Three threads run through this appointment. First, the title itself. Investments, marketplace and partnerships is a wide brief, and Sharma’s background fits it. His years on GroupM and Wavemaker investment desks speak to the buying side, while the broadcaster stints at TV Today and ABP Network give him a feel for how media owners price, package and sell. That dual view is valuable when negotiating partnerships.

Second, the pattern of loyalty to the WPP stable is striking. Sharma’s career has passed through GroupM and Wavemaker before this move to WPP Media, which suggests a deep familiarity with how the group works and with the clients and partners around it.

Third, the e-commerce year at ShopClues and the years in planning at Publicis add range. A leader who has planned campaigns, bought inventory, worked in marketing at a digital retailer and sold airtime for broadcasters understands the whole chain, from brief to billing. In a market where advertisers are asking more of every rupee, that breadth is an asset.