Associates: Business Development

Professional Experience

With years of Sales and Administrative experience, Asru is the Kolkata Administration Associate for RJA. He has a very expert understanding of Indian distribution especially rural marketing. Widely travelled and posted in many parts of India, is a veritable sales professional who lives the role.

Call him at +91 9830374843 for any sales development support required.

Professional Experience :

Zarine is the events planner, reliable and often difficult to shake off! With her wide experience in Administration and Human Resources, working both with PSUs and Multinationals, she is meticulous in her following up and delivery.

Call Zarine @ +91-91-20-534927 or email her at zwadia36@gmail.com

Professional Experience

R "Bala" Balachandran is a business builder and entrepreneur with 35 years of experience spanning several sectors, product categories, markets and blue chip companies.

22 of these 35 years have been as a CEO and C Level Executive across 4 countries in Asia and Africa. .

Beginning his career, after post graduation from IIM Bangalore, in advertising as one of the industry's first Account Planners, Bala quickly rose to head, as President and later Chairman of OgilvyOne Worldwide, the pioneering direct marketing company.

Moving on to what he has described his "first love" - telecommunications - in heading marketing and customer service for the Sri Lankan subsidiary of Telia, Bala has since headed telecom companies and major telecom projects in India, and West and East Africa.

Subsequently, he has gone on to head multi sector multi product groups of companies in East Africa - first heading a group of consumer facing companies in diverse product categories, and thereafter a group of EPC, consulting and services companies.

In between and since, he has started several businesses both as an "intrapreneur" and entrepreneur - selling one of the latter, in organic foods , after a quick and profitable build-up. He, along with his wife and business partner Preeti Balachandran, today runs a trade consultation company specialising in global sourcing of foods, bulk agro commodities, organic specialities, etc. He also advises emerging companies and brands in different sectors, and mentors some start-ups in digital marketing and branding.

Bala's key strengths include the conception and execution of business, brand marketing and sales strategy; customer service systems and structures; project management and network rollout; and the motivation and hands-on leadership of teams from small to huge, with the demonstrated ability to get his co-workers to consistently live up to their true individual and team potential. He has consistently built cohesive, enthusiastic and high performance teams across sectors, countries and cultures. His skills in communication, presentation and public speaking, coupled with a strong personal work ethic, have helped him in this.

Bala is an avid high altitude trekker, and has completed in a twelve month period 3 legendary Himalayan treks - the Chadar, the Kailash Parikrama and the Everest Base Camp treks. Besides tennis and golf, his passions include driving, eclectic reading and computers. He has spoken at international industry seminars in Asia and Europe; and has been on the guest faculty of several management schools, and the governing bodies of industry associations.

Professional Experience

Preeti Balachandran is a business builder and entrepreneur with a flair for recognising business opportunities in the everyday lives of people, and finding ways to actualise these opportunities and build strong bonds with customers.

Trained as a company secretary, Preeti's entrepreneurial skills flowered quite early, starting a garments business while still a graduate student.

Subsequently, Preeti went on to build a corporate career, first in media in selling advertising space; and then, in a rapid rise in management, going on to head, as Chief Executive while still in her late twenties, a start-up business newspaper in Eastern India.

Subsequently, she moved to the financial services arena - first as a senior professional in a leasing company, and then as Country Manager and CEO of an American firm entering the financial services arena in India, preparing offer documents for ADRs and GDRs.

Taking a sabbatical while her husband - and now also her business partner - "Bala" Balachandran moved cities and countries in his executive career , Preeti subsequently co-founded with him an organic foods business which they then sold after a successful build-up before moving for the second time to Africa. She has been - and is - a grower of organic cereals and vegetables herself, and a champion of organic practice.

On their return, she and her husband are now building a global sourcing business specialising in foods, agro commodities and edible oils and organic produce and specialities.

Preeti is known for her enormous people orientation and strengths in interpersonal relationships. Known for her intrepid, ever-positive and "never-say-die" approach, she has succeeded in building bridges across countries and cultures; and is sought after for her inclusive and empathetic, people-sensitive team building.

A keen trekker, golfer and tennis enthusiast, Preeti enjoys wide and eclectic reading, as well as cookery and travel.