Group FMG ropes in Monsanto Global's Sandeep Kulkarni as CFO

Group FMG, a global provider of marketing and media solutions, has appointed Sandeep Kulkarni as its chief financial officer (CFO). As CFO, Kulkarni will be responsible for driving growth plans, streamlining financial policy, advising on the financial implications of management decisions, acquisitions and business line profitability. Kulkarni, who will be based out of the company's headquarters in New York, will report to Dilip Keshu, CEO, Group FMG.

"Kulkarni comes to Group FMG from one of world's most successful multinational organisations. His addition is of great importance to the company as we continue to grow and expand," said Keshu.

Prior to joining Group FMG, Kulkarni was manager, mergers and acquisitions, at Monsanto. In his twelve-year career with Monsanto, Kulkarni has held various senior positions in Singapore, US and India. Before that, he has worked at companies like Iridium India Telecom (VP, finance), Coca Cola India (finance controller) and Pharmacia United Ltd (finance controller).

Headquartered in New York, Group FMG has offices in London, Bangalore and Chennai. The company was formed with the integration of Whitefield (a marketing solutions company backed by the private equity firm India Value Fund Advisors and Neeraj Bhargava's Zodius Capital) and FMG. In March 2011, a consortium led by IVFA invested around $20 million to acquire a majority stake in Group FMG. The company creates rich media content across all major channels like digital, social and mobile. Its clientele includes brands like Sears, Staples, Pepsi, Boots, Harrods, Boden, Disney, Penguin, Harper Collins, BBC, AMI, IBM, Yahoo, Microsoft, Sony, TAG Heuer, Salvatore Ferragamo, Nanette Lepore, Net-a-Porter, Lord & Taylor, Uniqlo, and Sandals.

In July this year, the company appointed Mark Inskip (who was working with Ogilvy & Mather as regional director, consulting) as its MD for the company's European operations. This was followed by the appointment last month of Prakash Gurumoorthy as managing director (MD), India.

(Edited by Prem Udayabhanu)