Haresh Chawla, Group CEO of Network18 moves on

After more than a decade at the helm of the group, he has put in his papers as he seeks to pursue other interests

BestMediaInfo Bureau | Delhi | November 10, 2011

Haresh Chawla, who has led Network18 for well over a decade, is currently overseeing a seamless leadership succession plan at the half-a-billion-dollar media conglomerate spanning news and entertainment broadcasting, web portals, publications, filmed entertainment and ecommerce operations and Viacom18.

Under his widely admired stewardship, Network18 grew from a single business news channel (CNBC-TV18) and solitary portal (Moneycontrol.com), with revenues of Rs 15 crore in 1999, to a diversified media group with revenues in excess of Rs 2,500 crore in 2011.

Commenting on Chawla's decision to eventually pursue other interests, Raghav Bahl, Founder & Editor of Network18, said, “Haresh is the kind of colleague one can only dream about, so utterly honest, committed and focussed he is on delivering excellence. However, I fully understand his desire to explore other interests, being a person with such boundless enthusiasm and passion for success. Perhaps Haresh's greatest achievement is the strong cadre of next-generation leadership that he has nurtured at several of our group operations. Over the next few months, Haresh will work closely with me and this young crop of leaders to ensure a seamless transition of leadership. Finally, on a personal note, I wish to say that you never can quite say good bye to an extraordinary friend and colleague like Haresh. He will always be around, as a friend, philosopher, guide and advisor to Network18, and me, personally. His can-do spirit is irretrievably woven into Network18?s DNA.”

Chawla, on his part, said, “It's very rare for a professional to play a part in setting up so many businesses in a lifetime, and to lead such a talented team as we have at Network18. I am forever grateful to Raghav for the opportunity and the faith that he had in me. And I am deeply grateful to all my colleagues who worked with me to build this network. Together, we built an enviable culture of excellence and speed at Network18, and I will work towards ensuring this legacy is carried on with the new leaders in the group. Personally, it's been a most fulfilling phase of my life and I now look forward to taking on newer challenges.”

Info@BestMediaInfo.com

Info@BestMediaInfo.com