APAC Mentees and Mentors 2023

 

About the Rise Mentoring Programme

Our award-winning Rise Mentoring Programme is a coveted six month programme to support women working in, or aspiring to work in the media technology sector.

The 2023 Mentoring Programme sees a variety of experienced broadcast media technology sector industry leaders, at a diversity of levels of seniority, ready to offer expertise, knowledge and guidance to our female Mentees.

A special thank you goes to our industry sponsors for 2023/24 as the programme is only made possible due their generous support.

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APAC Mentees 2023

ABHI RAO

ABHI RAO

My name is Abhi, and I am the Managing Director of OTTVerse. Since joining the company in 2021, I have helped in driving its growth and development. From crafting the business plan to strategizing content initiatives, I have been involved in various aspects of OTTVerse's expansion. Prior to joining OTTVerse, I served as a business analyst in the Fintech industry and founded a startup in Edtech. I hold a degree in Computer Science Engineering and an MBA from Queens University in Canada. I am passionate about building and nurturing startups.

MENTOR: Rupali Sarkar, Media & Broadcast Professional at ARK Infosolutions

AKANKSHA NARODE

AKANKSHA NARODE

Human behavior and societies make me curious. I try to understand communities better with the help of data. I hope to contribute in building better structures and institutions catering to human societies.

MENTOR: Shad Hashmi, APAC Partner Lead Media & Entertainment at AWS

EMMA ZIKER

EMMA ZIKER

My background is in localization, specifically project management/leading client-facing project management teams. I'm originally from the US, but have lived and worked in Japan for over 10 years. As an industry newcomer, I'm thrilled to be able to leverage these experiences to help retell stories for a global audience!

MENTOR: Melissa Soubratty, Content Director at WTT

HARSHITHA C V

HARSHITHA C V

A project management professional with an overall experience of 8 years. An ex-entrepreneur running a boutique in Mysore. I have pursued a post-grad from Christ University, an Executive MBA. An illustrator, DIY enthusiast, and fun-loving mother.

MENTOR: Paul Shutt, Deputy Global Head of Customer Success at Vizrt

JISHA GEORGE

JISHA GEORGE

Jisha is an experienced HR professional with over 8 years of experience in recruitment and talent management. Currently, pursuing HR Management and Analytics at IIM Kozhikode to enhance my skills. Jisha is a skilled recruiter with a proven track record of hiring top talent. She is also an expert at building relationships, managing teams, and organizing successful campus recruitment events.

MENTOR: Sulina Menon, Chief Client Officer at OMD India

MEIZHEN HOU

MEIZHEN HOU

A girl want to be a director.

MENTOR: Liming Fu, Chief Representative, APAC at IABM

MICHELLE SMITH

MICHELLE SMITH

Born and brought up in Bangalore, India. My career started off as a sales executive in Expedia UK 247, after which I joined Deluxe in December 2013. I like reading up on Interior decor. I love dogs and I’m a pet parent of three and enjoy reading up on different training techniques that are used to train dogs and other animals.

MENTOR: Shivani Kochhar, Senior Manager Sales Systems, Technology and Operations, APAC at Warner Bros. Discovery

PRAMESWARI RAHMANU

PRAMESWARI RAHMANU

A professional EnglishIndonesian translator with 6 years of experience in the audio visual industry.

MENTOR: Sharifah Ahmad, CMO at Torque Video

RAKHI SUNDAR

RAKHI SUNDAR

A Pioneer Localization Operations-Leader, acknowledged for inspirational leadership of teams within multi-cultural areas including India, Europe and the US. Proven ability to lead teams in an exciting and actionable way and run end-to-end project delivery with a track record of launching new innovations. A start-up specialist – setting, managing and growing operations for multiple processes and diverse businesses with best results. P&L accountability consistently exceeding customer satisfaction scores on quality, time and cost parameters. A people leader and have empowered many women to have their own startups in India. A life time supporter of a Girls NGO called Baale Mane in Bangalore, helping these young girls to have great careers.

MENTOR: Shweta Jain, Principal Industry Specialist, Media and Entertainment at AWS

RICHA VATSALA

RICHA VATSALA

over 18 years of experience, specializing in Marketing Communications Media Strategy planning. Proven expertise & track-record in Marketing Media planning and media buying functions for effective communication strategies, advice, buys and support

MENTOR: Vivian Yu, Marketing Director APAC at Pixotope

SUJA AMIRTHA

SUJA AMIRTHA

PMP certified project manager with 7 years of experience with relevant experience in client management, account management and aiding improvements in strategic projects across businesses. Seeking greater responsibilities where my experience will drive and motivate stakeholders and team members in the organization.

MENTOR: Peter Bruce, Snr Manager Channel Sales, APAC at Harmonic

YUN RU TAN

YUN RU TAN

Project Manager in the broadcast media and creative industry. Experienced in overseeing diverse projects, timelines and managing stakeholders' expectations.

MENTOR: Tony Berthaud, Vice President, Sales & Services, APAC & EMEA at Harmonic

RISE MENTORING PROGRAMME 2023

APAC Mentors 2023

LIMING FU

LIMING FU

More than 30 years experiences in broadcast and media industry, worked within many Europe and US based international firms, with multi-culture and multi-national working teams, led and build up APAC team, brand promotion, build up channel and partners, grown up business, during those working, also learned many experiences both on enhance manage level, more focused on strategy thinking and team working and leadership. But also follow up technical trends, working on technical sales, build up sales team and grown up the business; After so many years in this “small” industry, had built up widely connections and customers base around APAC region, mostly strong in China. like CMG/CCTV, SMG, BRTV, mostly related with T1 and T2 level customers, as well as big SI companies.

MENTEE: Meizhen Hou, Trainee at Beijing Sport University

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SHAD HASHMI

Shad Hashmi is a customer-obsessed, cloud-focused media executive leading AWS Media and Entertainment Partnerships across APJ. In his previous role at BBC Studios, he built and launched digital products, led partnership initiatives with Telcos, and ran media operations. Before this, he held commercial and engineering roles at Encompass Digital Media, a Tier 1 broadcast services provider, and CNBC. Shad also gives back to the media community by mentoring and working on diversity initiatives.

MENTEE: Akanksha Narode, Associate at Quilt.AI

PAUL SHUTT

PAUL SHUTT

Paul is the Deputy Global Head of Customer Success at Vizrt, a role in which he leverages 15 years of experience in the media technology sector. Throughout his career, he has led cross-functional teams, managed key customer relationships, always with an eye towards the successful application of cutting edge technology and innovation. His experiences range from system architecture to strategic planning, focusing on customer satisfaction and business outcomes.

MENTEE: Harshitha C V, Subject Matter Expert at Delux entertainment and Distribution INdia Pvt LTd

SHWETA JAIN

SHWETA JAIN

Having worked in media industry for two decades in leadership roles across technology and new business initiatives, Shweta has a deep understanding of the challenges as well as the innovation which the industry thrives on. Ever since joining AWS in Jan-2018, Shweta has been a trusted advisor to media organisations in the APAC region on their strategy to leverage cloud for their most critical workloads. Shweta lives in Singapore with her family and is mom to two teenage girls who also happen to be her cycling and Zumba buddies. She’s passionate about I&D&E topics and is currently APAC Chair at RISE, a not-for-profit group to drive gender diversity in the media industry.

MENTEE: Rakhi Sundar, Sr. Director: Project Operations at Deluxe India

RUPALI SARKAR

RUPALI SARKAR

Rupali is a seasoned professional with over 13 years of expertise in the Media-Broadcast and Cloud domain. Her journey has been a dynamic exploration of various dimensions within the industry, where she has successfully taken on roles as an Inside Sales, Pre-sales Manager, Project Sales Engineer, Channel Sales Manager, and Business Development specialist. Throughout her diverse career, Rupali has been at the forefront of leveraging broadcast & cloud technology to enhance media workflows, optimize content management, and deliver seamless user experiences. Currently, she holds the position of Senior Manager- Business Development at Yotta Data Services, India. Beyond her professional achievements, Rupali is driven by a strong desire to mentor women, empowering them to shift their mindset, foster self-empowerment, and achieve growth in all aspects of life. Her guidance and support aim to inspire positive transformations, guiding women on their journey to success and fulfillment.

MENTEE: Abhi Rao, Managing Director at OTTVerse Private Limited

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VIVIAN YU

With over 20 years of experience in the B2B market, Vivian's expertise with international brands and tech companies. Her wealth of experience, which includes marketing roles at Avid and Ross Video, drives regional strategy to people management, marketing campaigns, and social media campaigns that resonate with the unique needs of the region

MENTEE: Richa Vatsala, Co Founder at Digibrandshake

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SULINA MENON

MENTEE: Jisha George, Lead Recruiter at Deluxe Entertainment Distributions India Pvt. Ltd

PETER BRUCE

PETER BRUCE

Peter Bruce is a 30-year veteran of the broadcast and media industry. After gaining an Engineering Higher National Diploma in Broadcast and Communications at Ravensbourne University London. He began his career at Digital Visions, Austria and has worked for leading companies such as Ampex, Sony, Philips Broadcast, Vitec Group and Grass Valley. Recently Peter has been the IABM Director of APAC, establishing the regional office in Singapore. He now works for Harmonic Inc. as the Snr Manager Channel Sales for APAC. He is specialising in Partnerships, Reseller Networks, Business Development, Business Growth for the Video, Media and Broadcast sector.

MENTEE: Suja Amirtha, Associate Project Manager at Deluxe Entertainment Distributions India Pvt. Ltd

SHARIFAH AHMAD

SHARIFAH AHMAD

As the CMO and Head of Global Projects for Torque Video Systems, Sharifah orchestrates all aspects of publicity and drives brand growth in line with the overall corporate strategy. She also oversees project management and supports business operations. Thanks to a conducive workplace culture, Sharifah lives the spirit of volunteerism through various community services, as well as academic programmes with the youth.

MENTEE: Prameswari Rahmanu, Freelance translator

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MELISSA SOUBRATTY

MENTEE: Emma Ziker, Client Services Team Lead at Deluxe

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TONY BERTHAUD

MENTEE: Yun Ru Tan, Content Operations Manager at BBC Studios

SHIVANI KOCHHAR

SHIVANI KOCHHAR

Shivani Kochhar has a rich experience of enterprise applications and have spent major part of her 24+ years’ experience in the Media and Broadcast Industry. She has collaborated with customers from across the APAC region to envision, plan and implement business focused technology solutions, while working on operational efficiencies, process improvements, managing cost and risk. She has an extensive experience in application Implementation, integration, project management, business analysis and service delivery. Apart from ASIA and Oceania, she has also implemented Broadcast Management Systems and Content Management Systems in Latin America, Discovery Inc. Shivani is based in India and currently working as Sr. Manager Sales Systems for Warner Bros. Discovery, managing Sales Systems across APAC. She is associated with RISE and was shortlisted for the RISE 2022 award. She now wants to give back by mentoring and creating awareness on the need of gender diversity.

MENTEE: Michelle Smith, Team Lead at Deluxe Entertainment Distributions India Pvt. Ltd

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Membership to Rise is free and is open to everyone working across, or aspiring to work in, the broadcast and media technology sector.

As part of our community, you will be invited to all of our networking events / conferences / panels, as well as be asked to nominate your colleagues in our annual Rise Awards.

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