Former Adobe South Asia and India MD Umang Bedi to join Facebook as MD for India region

NEW DELHI: Former Adobe South Asia and India MD Umang Bedi is joining Facebook as managing director for India region, taking over from Kirthiga Reddy, who is relocating to the United States to a take a new role at Facebook’s Menlo Park Headquarters.

Bedi has had stints with marquee technology companies, including Adobe, Intuit and Sun Microsystems, but none with social media companies. He will be responsible for building and maintaining strategic relationships, for the social media giant in India, where it has its second-largest user base, after the US.

However, India lags behind most geographies when it comes to digital revenues, something that Bedi would like to see change. “India is at a cusp of exponential digital growth,” Bedi, managing director-designate, Facebook India, told ET.

“I believe Facebook India can deliver effective outcomes for its customers.” India’s digital ad market at $1 billion is growing at a CAGR of 40%. Quoting market research firm emarketer, Bedi said: “The headroom for growth is immense.

By 2020, 35-40% of all ad spends will be on digital platforms.” Bedi, 38, is a 18-handicap golfer and recipient of ‘40 under Forty, India’s hottest business leaders Award’ for 2014, given by this paper and Spencer Stuart.

In over five years at Adobe Systems as South Asia region managing director, Bedi took the India operations from building core Adobe products for the global market to selling those products aggressively. Under him, Adobe built and grew the digital media business.

Under him, Adobe signed up clients across ecommerce, travel, aviation, banking, including the likes of Flipkart, IndiGo, Jabong and Makemytrip.com, for the digital media business. In the last one year, India overtook the Australian and few other markets in the region in this business.

On his plans for Facebook India, Bedi said: “I’m at Adobe till June 23 and at Facebook from second week of July.

Can’t comment on Facebook till I join there. But overall from my experience at Adobe, I can say that digital media business provides immense growth opportunity.”

“In 2011, when Bedi joined Adobe, he set up stiff goals and met them,” Naresh Gupta, who preceded Bedi at Adobe Systems, said. “He’s sharp, thoughtful and good with people. And unlike a typical IT manager, Bedi is flamboyant.”

Correction ET reported on June 7 that Karan Bajwa was being tipped to take over as head of Facebook India. We were wrong. Facebook announced on Tuesday that Umang Bedi will succeed Kirthiga Reddy. Our Facebook status: Contrite.