GroupM Appoints Madhvi Pahwa as Chief People Officer, South Asia

GroupM, WPP’s media investment group, has appointed Madhvi Pahwa as its new Chief People Officer for South Asia.

Pahwa, previously Chief People Officer Mindshare APAC, has been promoted into the role to lead the GroupM India talent team and develop GroupM’s talent proposition for the region. She will report to Prasanth Kumar, CEO GroupM South Asia.

In her 6 years as Mindshare’s APAC CPO Pahwa led several ground-breaking initiatives in the region including:

• The design and rollout of Mindshare’s award-winning ‘Balance’ program in APAC. This resilience training programme won a Women Leading Change Award two years in a row (2020 & 2021) and is now being extended globally
• Bringing Mindshare’s ‘Momentum’ high potential leadership training programme to Asia 
• Delivering numerous L&D programmes across commerce, AI and planning

Pahwa replaces Rohit Suri, who is moving on to explore other opportunities.

Prasanth Kumar, CEO GroupM South Asia, said: “Madhvi has a proven track record of delivering innovation and education that moves the dial for the business. She is the perfect choice to lead the GroupM South Asia talent team and to lead us into the next phase of our growth.” He added, “I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Rohit Suri for his commitment and efforts in helping build the talent team across South Asia. We greatly appreciate his contributions and wish him the best.”

Madhvi Pahwa, Chief People Officer, GroupM South Asia, said: “Our employee promise has been to make Mindshare the place where you do your best work, and it has certainly been true for me. The people, priorities and culture just come together almost magically to bring out the best in you. I am grateful and proud to be part of the GroupM network that has given me growth opportunities across multiple agencies and geographic remits spanning global, regional and markets while supporting flexibility and personal priorities. I am super excited for the next chapter for GroupM India.”

A replacement for the role of Mindshare APAC CPO will be announced shortly.