FCB India announces its newly elevated C-Suite leadership team

FCB India announces its newly elevated C-Suite leadership team

Debarpita Banerjee named CEO, Surjo Dutt as CCO & John Thangaraj as chief strategy officer.

FCB India

MUMBAI: FCB Group India recently announced the restructuring of its creative agencies and a new three agency structure - FCB Ulka, FCB Interface and FCB India. FCB India, the newest agency in the fold, led by Swati Bhattacharya as the creative chairperson, has now announced its newly elevated C-Suite leadership team. FCB India will be led by Debarpita Banerjee as chief executive officer, Surjo Dutt as chief creative officer and John Thangaraj as chief strategy officer.

In an increasingly digitised marketplace of ever-increasing options, influencing consumer choice has become more complex than ever before. It is this tremendous complexity that informs FCB India’s belief system: that siloed, medium-first thinking is no longer enough to build powerful brands in today’s world. FCB India aims at bringing a multi-disciplinary approach to creative ideation, drawing from fields as varied as design and data to media and marketing, the company said in a statement on Thursday.

FCB India creative chairperson Swati Bhattacharya, said, “When Debbie, Surjo, and John enter the room to solve a problem…you know it will be done. Very rarely do you see such chemistry and energy in the boardroom. They can afford to be terribly honest with each other, and that directly makes the idea shiny and the brand shinier!”

Debarpita Banerjee joined FCB in 2016 as president- North & East and now heads the agency as the CEO. A seasoned business leader with prior experience in both marketing and advertising, she headed marketing for National Geographic India in her previous role. She is a content enthusiast and also leads Fuel- the branded content and production arm at the agency.

Surjo Dutt joined FCB in 2016 as national creative director. In his previous role, he was heading creative for specialist digital agency Sapient Nitro. Dutt combines over two decades of advertising experience across both mainline and digital with a strong focus on filmmaking and creative disruption.  

John Thangaraj joined FCB in 2016 as executive planning director. In his previous role, he was head of strategy- North for Mindshare. Thangaraj brings close to twenty years of marketing communications expertise to the table, having worked across the ecosystem- from qualitative research & brand marketing to account planning, media strategy, and advertising.

Speaking on this new developement, FCB Group India chairman & CEO Rohit Ohri said, “Hybrid thinking truly begins with hybrid talent. Debbie, Surjo and John’s diverse experience across content marketing, media strategy and digital storytelling, respectively, uniquely positions them to deliver to the challenges of building and growing brands in today’s complex, ever-changing marketplace”.

“Debbie, Surjo & John have been instrumental in growing the FCB brand across new clients, categories and markets. Having spent half a decade working with each other, they play off each other’s strengths, bring multiple perspectives to the table and form a formidable base from which to further consolidate the tremendous equity they have already built. I wish them the best in their new roles and have no doubt that they will lead FCB India into a new era of success,” Ohri added.