At the helm

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The Team
Nikhil Khanna: Managing Director

Nikhil Khanna has a vast experience of over two decades, in the field of public relations. Prior to Avian, he was the Director of Good Relations. He handled the Airbus account for 10 years from 1991 to 2001; devising strategies, building valuable relationships with the media and other influencers, developing communication systems and processes, liasioning with the press office in Toulouse, mitigating crisis and managing campaigns that facilitated converting media opinion on Airbus's technological superiority through debates on fly-by-wire, 777 Vs. A340, among others. Other clients handled by him include Cathay Pacific, SAAB Aviation, Bell Helicopter, Cartier, United Distillers, Zurich Risk Management and Volvo among others. He managed the media campaign strategy for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the last election. He also managed individual candidates in four previous elections. Nikhil is also the founder director of Friday Content Solutions, India's largest information

services company, catering to over 300 clients. Nikhil lives with his family in Delhi. In his free time, Nikhil writes for various publications like Times of India, Hindustan Times, The Telegraph, Outlook, Verve, etc.

Nitin Mantri : CEO

Nitin Mantri is the Chief Executive Officer and Business Partner of Avian Media. In his current role, he is leading the company's operations, strategy and planning cell. He has been with the organisation for over five years. Under his leadership, the firm has consistently grown in its network and clientele. Prior to Avian, Nitin was Director at Pleon, a leading PR agency in Europe (part of the Omnicom group). At Pleon, Nitin was responsible for the UK operations as well as heading the corporate and technology B2B practices with direct responsibility of Pleon's key accounts - IBM, Nortel, COLT Telecom, Hughes Network Systems and Infosys. Nitin has over 15 years of experience in corporate and high-tech PR and marketing communications. He has extensive experience in strategising, planning and implementing global PR campaigns, having worked with technology/e-commerce, telecommunications, security, management consultancy and corporate clients.

Before Pleon, Nitin worked with Microland as their Manager, Communications, for ITspace.com in Bangalore. He started his PR career at Genesis PR, where he was Consulting Associate, heading technology and corporate practices in Mumbai. He managed a diverse range of clients, including Symantec, Intel, IBM, TATA Interactive Systems, Accenture, HLL, PowerGen and JM Morgan Stanley.

Nitin is a postgraduate in business administration. He lives in Delhi with his wife and two children. He loves playing badminton, tennis and squash.

Girish Huria : COO

Girish Huria is the Chief Operating Officer of Avian Media. In his current role, he is responsible for aligning and strengthening the firms operations and also drive its growth and profitability. Before joining Avian, Girish was Managing Partner, Genesis Burson-Marsteller, and was one of the region heads. He was responsible for the growth and profitability of the North and East markets. At Genesis B-M, he led the campaigns for General Electric, Pepsi Brands, Ford Motors and Vodafone, besides several others in the BFSI, aviation, consulting and telecom space. Girish has over 13 years of experience, which includes leading several corporate and brand reputation programmes. His expertise also lies in financial, employee and crisis communications. Given his hunger to learn and grow, Girish has been part of

several learning sessions, including courses run by WPP. He is also the only Indian PR professional to successfully complete the ICCO training on "Negotiation Skills" for which he was awarded the Certificate of Merit. Girish lives in Gurgaon (Haryana) with his wife and son. An outdoor person, he enjoys cycling and playing cricket.

Manash K. Neog, Associate Director

One of the founder members of Avian Media, Manash currently leads the Public Affairs mandate. Manash has gained an in-depth understanding of various sectors in his professional experience of 12 years. With expertise in government relations, advocacy and senior media relations around sectors such as technology, defence, community development and energy, Manash has the ability to execute assignments in tight deadlines. He has been running successful campaign for clients such as British Petroleum, GMAC, UNAIDS and Alcatel Lucent. Manash has a vast knowledge of running national and global programmes and a deep understanding of issue/crisis management. Prior to Avian, he was with Ogilvy PR and handled brands like Boeing, GAIL, 3COM and Rockwell Automation. Manash started his PR career with Good Relations (I), handling major international brands like Sun Microsystems, Guinness UDV, Airbus and Volvo.

Fluent in Hindi and English, Manash holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Delhi University and a certificate in marketing communication from All India Management Association, Delhi.