NEELA MARIKKAR

She is the Chairperson and Managing Director at Dentsu Grant and Dentsu Communications, Sri Lanka. She serves on Dentsu’s Greater South Executive Council, and she was the former President of 4A’s Sri Lanka (The Association of Advertising Agencies), and the founder President of the International Advertising Association (IAA). She served on the board of the American Chamber of Commerce, and she was a recipient of the HK McCann Award and the Zonta Woman of Achievement Award for her contribution to the Sri Lankan advertising industry. She is the daughter of Reggie Candappa; the godfather of advertising in Sri Lanka. She was the President of Sri Lanka First, an influential group of corporate leaders who were keen to promote a peaceful settlement by negotiation between the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. She was a Consultant to UNDP’s Invest-in-Peace Program, to help revive the country’s war affected economy. She led a group of Sri Lankan business leaders to South Africa to study the role business played in their peace process and post conflict reconstruction. She served in the Women Waging Peace Network and at their Colloquium, she was invited to be a speaker on the role of women in peace building at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, USA.

She is an advocate for Peace, Women’s Rights, Gender Equality in the Workplace, Environment and Child Rights. She has been credited for reinventing the advertising industry in Sri Lanka, and she is a truly multiracial Sri Lankan with a Sinhalese mother, a Colombo Chetty father and a Ceylon Moor husband. Always a step ahead of the rest, she launched Dentsu’s digital agency brand, Isobar, in Sri Lanka, and in a short span of time, the agency has been recognized as being the fastest growing digital agency in the island, and was also the recipient of the Silver Campaign Asia Digital Agency of the Year Award for South Asia. In 2016, she was the recipient of the ‘Outstanding Women Leadership Achievement Award’ presented by the World Women Leadership Congress. She was also recognized as being one of the ‘Top Fifty Women Leaders in Asia,’ at the 7th Edition of the CMO Asia Awards held in Singapore. In 2014, she was recognized as being one of the ‘Top Fifty Most Powerful Women in Business’ in Sri Lanka.

She is a trailblazer; a fearless leader who has successfully executed several game-changing projects in Sri Lanka that has directly impacted the lives of several thousand citizens. She uses her strong voice to propagate positive social change in Sri Lanka. She Can and she is an innovative, creative, empowered, courageous power woman; Neela Marikkar.

Share with us a summary of your corporate journey?

Art was my first passion and I believed I could make a career in that field. After my studies in the USA, I moved to London and got my first break with a fashion magazine as an Assistant Art Director. It was an exciting break for me as this publication was for the trade and it predicted fashion trends, colors and designs for the coming year. It was great fun to work with some famous European designers who gathered there each season to discuss what they would come up with. I subsequently, left my job to start a completely new career to support my husband in the tourism and leisure sector in London. Tour operations to Sri Lanka and South Asia were just beginning to pick up and I had the fun task of planning tour packages along with designing all the brochures and collateral material. However, I missed home terribly, and my father kept asking me to return back home and join him at the company. After ten years of living in London we decided that maybe we should move back especially as we wanted our children to grow up in Sri Lanka and have their roots here.

We returned even though the war was in full force, but feeling optimistic about the future. I initially joined as an Art Director and worked my way up to being the Executive Director and thereafter the CEO. On my father’s demise I took up the position of Chairperson and Managing Director which is the role I hold today in the company.

Share with us a summary of your personal journey; from classroom to boardroom?

My school life at St Bridget’s Convent was a wonderful period in my life. I learnt leadership skills from a young age and my faith has been a constant in my life. My passion was Art and Drama and I took part in many plays. I was also an active member of the Debate team and of course, I won art prizes throughout. I went on to the Sir J.J. School of Art in Mumbai, India, and that was a time when there were severe restriction in foreign currency. I think my parents felt this college was the best option they could come up with for me. It was a life changing year for me to be put on a plane at seventeen years and sent off to India on my own, where I had to find my way through college life and live-in university halls in a rough part of town, bussing it to college every day. From living a very sheltered, protected life, this was perhaps the best life experience for me. Although, it was a very hard year it was compensated with some of the most wonderful friends, I made in college who have remain as close friends even today. From Bombay, I was fortunate to make it to college in the USA, to continue my studies in Graphic Design. I had a wonderful American family who I lived with during my time there, who took care of me like their own daughter. It was a very impressionable time in my life and I embraced it all. From thereon I did a series of internships in Toronto, Canada, in the field of advertising arranged by my father through his company network. Before returning to Sri Lanka, I decided to backpack through Europe which was a great experience. Guess I had a streak of adventure in me even then. Much later on when I was working full time in Sri Lanka as the CEO, I was very fortunate to have the opportunity through my work to be invited to do Executive Learning Programmes at Columbia Graduate School of Business, and through my peace activism work at the John F Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. These were also life changing opportunities as I interacted with some amazing people. All of these were opportunities to learn and those life experiences really helped me to become the person I am today. With the merger with Dentsu International my role as the Chairperson and Managing Director for Sri Lanka and Maldives has been a most interesting one as I am leading the transformation of the business from being family owned to being a part of a global MNC network. Given the change we are seeing in the industry it’s an exciting time for me.

What are the most important attributes of a successful leader today?

I think there are many traits that one should have. Integrity, ability to delegate, empathy, confidence, and he or she must be brave, be fair and open minded. He or she must also have the ability to listen, be passionate and most importantly must believe in themselves.

Tell us three exciting game changing projects you have executed during your career?

I was part of a business collective of senior corporate leaders that founded Sri Lanka First. An initiative borne out of the terrorist attack on the international airport in 2001. My biggest client at the time, Sri Lankan Airlines, lost half its fleet on ground. The impact on business, the country’s economy and the people was devastating. That resulted in us wanting to explore a peaceful solution to the conflict much like the business community did in South Africa in ending apartheid. We decided to educate our citizens in partnership with media houses through a multi media campaign on what the war was costing; both in terms of lives and much needed economic development. This was a game changing campaign, and it was before the advent of digital and social media. We asked people on a designated day to demonstrate their stand on peace and an estimated million people came out of their homes and offices and stood in support.

I also had the opportunity to do a consultancy for the UNDP on a programme titled ‘Invest in Peace’. We worked with business chambers from north to south and small businesses bringing them together to collaborate in reconstruction efforts. Many of them had never had the opportunity to work together. It was great to see this collaboration. This included organizing business forums in Tokyo and New York to attract investment. My work in this area opened up many wonderful opportunities for me to speak on this subject across many international forums like Harvard University, The European Commission, The Hague, The Table of Free Voices in Berlin, The Woodrow Wilson Centre in Washington DC, etc. I organized a business delegation to South Africa where we met with business leaders like Cyril Ramposa, the current President of South Africa, and Rolff Meyer, who spearheaded the role of business in their peace process.

Another game changing campaign was to stop a second coal power plant from being constructed in the beautiful area of Sampur, Sri Lanka. Working closely with a group of likeminded people, the media, environmentalists, the local community leaders and legal experts, I helped design and launch an awareness campaign - “Say No To Coal.” Our strategy was to educate the public, policy-makers and political leaders on the devastating effects of coal on the environment. The Norochcholai power plant was a living example of the damage that it could cause. Further, the destruction of the beautiful area of Sampur and the sensitive marine ecosystem of Kodiya Bay, famous for giant clams and blue whales, would have been destroyed with the highly toxic water that would be pumped back into the ocean. The plant if it went ahead, would have once again displaced large numbers of the local population who had just been resettled there after the war. We lobbied heavily with policy-makers and the then government at the highest levels, alongside with civil society groups and brilliant legal experts who filed legal cases to stop the plant from going ahead. The collective effort succeeded. The plans were shelved. And thankfully, the current government is committed to no more coal.

How do you differentiate yourself? Do you ever think ‘Am I crazy?’

I am not a brand hence I don’t look to differentiate myself from anyone. My beliefs and my actions I believe is what defines me. I am passionate about social issues and when it comes to my work, I set high expectations for myself and strive hard to reach them. I think this is probably where I drive myself a little ‘crazy’ to reach the expectations I set for myself. I am my own driver. I don’t take no for an answer. I never give up till I give it all I have got. At least I have the knowledge and satisfaction that I tried my hardest.

What is your why?

I believe that we can make a difference, especially being in the communications field and that’s what drives my passion in whatever I do.

Who do you look up to for your mentorship and your inspiration?

I have more than one mentor. Inspiration comes from many sources. My father was a big influence in my life. He was not just my father and my boss, but he was also my closest friend. I watched how he handled situations and people even his adversaries. He never held grudges or anger against anyone despite what hurt they may have caused him. Generous and loving, he took life lightly. He would always tell me ‘Neela no point worrying about things you cannot change.’ These are words I remember even today. I constantly worry, so I try to put his words into practice. There are many others in my life who have been an inspiration and mentors including my two wonderful daughters, Leah and Tasha. They continue to inspire me. I learn from them every day.

Your biggest regret?

I have had ups and downs and throughout my life has been an evolving journey. Every adversary is a learning experience and an opportunity. So no, I don’t have any big regrets. When I look back, I see how blessed I am.

What is your biggest fear and how do you manage it?

That my daughters will always be safe and cared for. That’s my prayer every morning. They are my pride and joy.

What has been the highlight of your career so far?

The partnership we forged with Dentsu International, an outstanding global multinational agency network. Bringing a global giant of this stature to invest in Sri Lanka was an exciting venture. Dentsu have a staff strength of 68,000 people working in 355 offices in 143 countries. It was a big decision for me as the business was started by my father which I had the opportunity to grow further. Parting with it was no easy decision but looking at the future and how the advertising business was evolving, I knew in my heart it was the right thing to do. The industry as my father knew it had changed dramatically with the advance in technology and digital platforms. As a leader my task was to future proof the business. We had to embark on a new trajectory which will be driven by insights that is data and technology led. Dentsu was the perfect partner. We are living in a time of transformation. I am excited for the future of the business and the industry.

How do you keep generating new ideas for your business?

I think people’s behavior is what forces agencies to keep innovating and ideating for our clients’ brands. We need to create new ways of telling our brand stories. Technology has changed the way consumers see brands and how they purchase, and the pandemic has fast tracked this change even more.

Have you ever been harassed or discriminated against?

Fortunately, in my field women are empowered and are dominant in this industry. Personally, I have not experienced serious discrimination for being a woman.

Where do you see yourself ten years from now?

I have no idea at this stage. Maybe return to painting or relax on a beach enjoying a Negroni.

How do you want to be remembered one day?

A leader who stood for what she believed in.