Nissan Motor India Appoints Naraayan Kannan As Director Communications

Nissan Motor India has appointed Naraayan Kannan as Director Communications for Nissan India effective 6 February 2023. In his new role, he will be a member of the Management Committee (MC) for India, responsible for managing internal and external communications, public relations, and will play an important part in strengthening Nissan's brand image in India.

Naraayan Kannan will report to Frank Torres, President Nissan India Operations, and Katherine Zachary, Region Vice President - AMIEO Communications, and will work closely with the Nissan Leadership Team, including the managing directors of Nissan India entities. He will be based in Gurgaon, Nissan Motor India (NMIPL's) headquarters.

Naraayan is a seasoned professional with almost two decades of experience in strategic communications, public relations, crisis management, government affairs, brand partnership launches, celebrity, and business advisory. Prior to this, Naraayan worked as Executive Vice President, SBU Head - Corporate, Crisis & Advocacy at Concept Public Relations India where he built the auto and corporate SBU. He has also worked with organizations such as SRT Sports Management (The Sachin Tendulkar Home Office), Adfactors PR, Reliance Industries, and was formerly the head of communications at METRO Cash & Carry India.

Rakesh Srivastava, MD, Nissan Motor India, commented “We are pleased to welcome Naraayan to the Nissan India family. Backed by his extensive experience in public relations, public advocacy, and government affairs, Naraayan will play an important role in delivering communications strategies to accelerate Nissan India’s transformation. We are extremely confident that his expertise and in-depth knowledge of communications and prior experience with the brand will help further drive the communication priorities of Nissan India.”

Naraayan Kannan, Director Communications, Nissan India, said, “I am delighted to be a part of the Nissan India family at such an exciting time in India. This has been a dream come true for me as I have managed the brand from the agency side for a long time and with the ‘Move Beyond’ strategy, the future is undeniably encouraging for all of us. With the support of the management, we hope to deploy a robust strategic communications program for India.”

Naraayan comes to Nissan Motor India with a diverse educational background, starting with a Bachelor’s Degree in Philosophy, a Post Graduate Diploma in Public Relations, a Masters Degree in International Relations from the University of Tasmania (Australia) and a Post Graduate Diploma in Defence & Foreign Affairs from the Takshashila Institution. He has also completed two management development programs each, in Corporate Social Responsibility from Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) and in Leadership from Indian School of Business (ISB).