Management Team

Sujit Bhattacharyya, Technology Advisor and Mentor

Sujit Bhattacharyya, aged 54 years, is the Technology Advisor and Mentor of the CL group. He holds a bachelor of technology degree in electrical engineering from Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur and a post graduate diploma in management from IIM-B. He has more than 17 years of experience in the education sector. He has been involved with our Company since 2001, holding various designations and joined CLEIS in March 2008. Prior to his association with our Company, he worked with Wipro and Dharma Systems.

R. Shiva Kumar, Chief Academic Officer (CAO)

R. Shiva Kumar, aged 50 years, is also a whole-time director on the board of directors of CL Media and also the Chief Academic Officer of the CL group. He holds a bachelor's degree in technology from Indian Institute of Technology, Madras and a master's degree in management from Indian Institute of Management, Kolkata. He has more than 20 years of experience in the private education sector. He has been involved with our Company since 1997, holding various designations.

Sreenivasan .R, Chief Customer Officer (CCO)

Sreenivasan .R, aged 55 years, is the Chief Customer Officer of the CL group and an employee of CL Media. He holds a bachelor's degree in science from Meerut University, a master's degree in technology from the Jawahar Lal Nehru University, New Delhi and a master's degree in business administration from Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore. He has more than 16 years of experience in the education sector. He has been involved with our Company since 2000, holding various designations.

Sujatha Kshirsagar - President & Chief Business Officer, Career Launcher

Sujatha Kshirsagar is President and Chief Business Officer of our EdTech business directly overseeing digital business, NCR Partner Network, COCO geographies along with marketing and alliance functions. Sujatha has a rich multi-faceted personality and pursuits including mountaineering, pottery while being an enthusiastic singer too. An alumnus of IIMB(1995), she built a great career as a banker with ANZ Grindlays and Standard Chartered for 19 years. She has scaled Kilimanjaro and has also made it to Everest Base Camp.

Arjun Wadhwa, Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

Arjun Wadhwa, aged 41 years holds a Bachelor's Degree in Statistics from Sri Venkateswara College, Delhi University, an Advanced Diploma in Software Technology, and a PGPM from MDI, Gurgaon in Finance and Information Systems. A former CL student in 1999, He joined the Company as a Summer Trainee in 2001 and barring an 8 year entrepreneurship stint wherein he successfully launched and exited a Sports Tech start-up, has been associated with Career Launcher ever since. He has been appointed as the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) with effect from October 15, 2018

Ashish Bahri, Executive Vice President and Head of Marketing & Alliances

Ashish Bahri, aged 47 years, is the Vice-President Business Development of our Company. He holds a bachelor's degree in commerce from University of Delhi, and holds a diploma in management from All India Management Association Centre for Management Education. He has over 25 years of experience in the franchise operations and business development. He joined our Company in November 7, 2014. Prior to joining our Company, he has worked with NIIT Limited, STG International Limited and First Computers.

Vinod Bhan, Vice President - Operations

Vinod Bhan, aged 47 years, is the Vice President - Business Head - GK Publications & Operations Head CL Educate. He holds a bachelor's degree & MBA in business administration from Manipal University and professional diploma in Software Technology and Systems Management from Aptech, New Delhi. He has over 23 years of experience within the CL and has worked in multiple domains like Technology, Operations, Commercials, sales and marketing sectors. He joined our Company in March’ 1999 as Executive - EDP department.

Rachna Sharma, Vice President - Company Secretary and Compliance Officer

Rachna Sharma, aged 45 years, is the Vice President - Company Secretary and Compliance Officer of our Company. She is an associate of the Institute of Company Secretaries of India and holds a master's diploma in business administration from Symbiosis Institute of Management Studies, Pune. She has over 18 years of experience in secretarial functions. She joined our Company in March 2009. Prior to joining our Company, she has worked with Himachal Futuristic Communications Limited, Jindal Leasefin Limited, UKLI Real Estate Private Limited.

Piyush Gupta, President - Kestone

Piyush Gupta (age 43), President - Kestone, is a graduate of Jadavpur University, Kolkata and holds a master's degree in Business Administration from ICFAI Business School. Piyush began his career with Ceasefire Industries, and joined Kestone in 2005. He has been instrumental in the rapid growth of Kestone; and has successfully expanded the businesses overseas, including in Singapore, Dubai, and the US.

Puneet Jindal, Senior Vice President - Platform Monetization

Puneet Jindal (age 45), Senior Vice President, has over 22 years of experience in B2B sales, business development, and product management. An MBA graduate from Symbiosis (SIIB), he has driven top-line growth and successfully managed P&L at companies like Aakash Edutech and Oracle. Puneet excels in cross-functional team leadership and strategic account management.

Abhilash Mathew, President - Kestone Singapore

Abhilash Mathew (age 43), President - Kestone Singapore, has over 20 years of experience in marketing communications, specializing in event planning, project management, and client servicing. He has held key roles, including Account Director at George P Johnson. Abhilash holds an MA in Mass Communication from Commits Institute of Journalism and Mass Communication and a B.Sc. in Computer Science from Christ University, Bengaluru.

Manish Gupta, Executive Vice President - Technology

Manish Gupta (age 50), Executive Vice President, has over 23 years of experience. As the former CTO and co-founder of Unyscape Infocom, which was acquired by Intelegencia Inc. in 2022, he has excelled in development and implementation of innovative solutions, software engineering, cloud computing, and cybersecurity. His expertise lies in driving engineering & technology strategy and leveraging cutting-edge advancements to deliver exceptional value to customers and stakeholders.

Gautam Bawa, Senior Vice President - Digital Sales

Gautam Bawa (age 35), Senior Vice President - Digital Sales has over 10 years of extensive experience in the education sector. He first joined CL in 2014; and was instrumental in achieving significant growth and high student success rates, pioneering the online business vertical and enhancing cross-sell opportunities. Gautam holds a PGDM from IIM-Calcutta and a B.Sc. (Hons) in Mathematics from St. Xavier's College, Kolkata.

Arindam Mukherjee, Executive Vice President - Network Expansion

Arindam Mukherjee (age 56), Executive Vice President - Network Expansion, is a seasoned sales & marketing professional with over 31 years of experience, including 21 years in the FMCG sector and 8 years in media. As COO of VKC Nuts, he had pioneered the General Trade business and developed a successful IPR portfolio for Hindustan Times Media. Arindam launched Orbit chewing gum as a market leader and introduced Gillette's Mach3 razor brand. He has also managed Coca-Cola's franchise transition and achieved impressive growth in challenging markets like Odisha for Asian Paints. He had completed his PG from Faculty of Management Studies - University of Delhi and pursued his graduation from IIT - Delhi.