Lara Balsara

* 29 years

* MA in Marketing, UWE, Bristol, UK

* Inducted in the business in March 2004

Current profile

Business development and diversification manager at Madison World. I am also directly involved in HR and development and scouting and structuring of new ventures.

Average day at work:

I reach the office at about 10 am and wind up at around 7 or 8 pm. I also do a bit of work for an hour in the morning at home and for about two hours at night after dinner. Today with a laptop and data card, you can work 24×7 and yet combine business with pleasure. I do think at my age ?work is worship? is a good motto to follow.

Is business all about marketing?

Absolutely! Business is marketing. In fact I strongly feel everything in life is about marketing, whether you are at a job interview, or buying clothes, or doing a deal or trying to impress someone of the opposite sex.

It all boils down to marketing. Having said that, I am also aware that good marketing can kill a bad product faster.

So if it is a product or service, it must be good and offer value or, if it is about individuals, then marketing without substance will not take you too far.

My take on advertising:

Advertising is the most essential ingredient in the success of any organization today. Love it or hate it, you just can’t do without it. Even small companies are realizing the potential of advertising and are using it effectively. Indian industrialists were a bit late in discovering the magic of advertising.

The marketing and advertising campaigns I like the best:

* The new Indigo Airlines commercial based on ‘On Time’ performance.

* L?Oreal ads because they always manage to convince me to buy and try out all their new products.

* Bloomberg news channel’s campaign of simple straight forward news.

The target for the next three years

For Madison to be an ideal combination of an entrepreneurial and professional organization that has systems and processes to help facilitate performance. I would also like Madison to provide an opportunity to young talent to pursue their entrepreneurial dreams with a bit of help in terms of infrastructure and resources and sound mature advice.

Motto at work:

Work is fun?good smart work that delivers is more fun than fun.