BBH India appoints Ankit Sharma and Layla Khan as Senior Vice Presidents – Strategy

BBH India, part of Publicis Groupe India, has announced two senior-level appointments in the Planning function with Ankit Sharma and Layla Khan joining the agency as Senior Vice-President – Strategy. Their mandate will be to lead and drive the planning and strategy function. Both leaders will spearhead the strategic direction on key client relationships and drive the ‘Zag’ quotient in our strategic endeavours across our brands. Sharma and Khan will be based out of the agency’s offices in Gurugram and Mumbai respectively.

The new leaders will report directly to Himanshu Saxena, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director at BBH India.

Speaking about the two key appointments, Himanshu Saxena, Chief Operating Officer and MD, BBH India said, "We are thrilled to welcome Ankit Sharma and Layla Khan to our leadership team. Both these leaders come with a stellar track record of delivering highly impactful and effective campaigns on a variety of global and local market-leading brands. Their wealth of experience and passion for creating exceptional work across advertising, digital, design, experience, and analytics for our clients will reinforce our position as a leading force in India.”

Sharma comes with over 16 years of diverse experience across Advertising, Brand Consulting and Analytics. His expertise lies in applying human behaviour, design thinking and semiotics to brand building across agencies such as DY Works, JWT, Analytics Quotient, McCann Worldgroup and FCB India. He has partnered with brands including PepsiCo India, Dabur, Britannia, ITC (Aashirvaad and Sunfeast), Dominos’ (US Market), TVS Apache, Hero Motocorp and Nike amongst many others. His work has been celebrated at various Effie Awards editions over the years.

On his new role at BBH India, Sharma said, “I am excited to join an agency that embraces a culture of defying the norms. In the fast-changing world of advertising, BBH's ‘Zag’ philosophy offers a refreshing approach to brand building and I am excited to be a part of this transformative journey."

Meanwhile, Khan comes with over 15 years of experience working at creative agencies like Wunderman Thompson (now called VML), Mullen Lowe Group, and Contract Advertising (WPP) in India and Sri Lanka. She has played a pivotal role in shaping the future of global brands such as HSBC, Kellogg’s, De Beers, Yardley London, Upfield Flora and Unilever (Lakme, Tresemme, Knorr, Hellman Mayo, Marmite, Pureit, Surf Excel, and Vim). She has also delivered success for multiple homegrown brands such as Kotak Wealth, Haldiram’s, Godrej Interio, Everyuth Naturals, Sugarlite and D’décor. Layla is passionate about deciphering region-specific cultural and sub-cultural codes and fashioning tech-infused narratives that has earned her coveted accolades at the prestigious Effie Awards in India and Sri Lanka.

Speaking about her new role, Khan said, “In an era where AI is increasingly shaping our world, BBH’s founder John Hegarty once said “Technology is not an idea. It’s the means to express an idea.” and this resonates strongly with me. I see rapidly evolving technologies holding immense potential to aid evocative storytelling that inspire, drive engagement, and develop innovative ways for brands to be relevant to its customers. I’m thrilled to join BBH and excited to contribute to its legacy of ground-breaking work.”