In his new role, Deb will work closely with BBH India’s leadership team to accelerate business growth, deepen existing client partnerships and further build the agency’s culture of creative excellence, effectiveness & business transformation.

With over two decades of experience spanning agency leadership, brand management, strategy, and transformation, Deb joins BBH India from McCann, where he served as Head of McCann Worldgroup Mumbai. Over the course of his career, he has held several leadership roles across markets, including RAPP Malaysia, TBWA Indonesia, Publicis Malaysia and Indonesia, among others. At RAPP Malaysia, Deb built a full-stack creative company by bringing together capabilities across content, eCRM, personalisation, digital, social and technology solutions, powered by data and analytics. He was also associated with Publicis Groupe India in 2008 in a key leadership role.

Paritosh Srivastava, CEO, Saatchi & Saatchi India, BBH India, and Propagate India, said, “BBH Mumbai is home to some of the Groupe’s largest client relationships with focus on creative excellence. Over the last few years, it has built strong client partnerships and gained market share in what is arguably India’s biggest market. Having worked with Deb before and knowing his experience in building integrated businesses, I am confident he is the perfect fit to leverage our ‘Power of One’ model. I am delighted to welcome him back to the Groupe. His energy and ability to build strong client relationships and high-performing teams will be invaluable as BBH Mumbai steps into its next chapter.”

Himanshu Saxena, Managing Director, BBH India and President (North & East), Saatchi & Saatchi and Propagate, added, “BBH’s growing scale and creative reputation is now ready to take another leap. In view of Mumbai market’s significance, we felt it was the perfect time to bolster our Mumbai leadership stack with a seasoned talent like Deb. His integrated full-funnel experience and sensibility for breakthrough creativity perfectly fits BBH’s Zag mindset. I am super excited to welcome a talent like Deb in the team.”

Deb Dutta, Executive Director & Head of Office, Mumbai, BBH said, “I admire how the team at BBH India is focused on helping brands win a larger share of the market, and also invested in navigating the next phase of the creative industry. There couldn’t be a better time to join BBH and come back to the Groupe where I’ve spent a big part of my career. Excited to make the most of the ‘Power of One’ for all our client partners.”

Since launching at the World Economic Forum in Davos three years ago, Working With Cancer has grown into a global movement of more than 5,000 companies, protecting over 40 million workers worldwide. What began as a shared commitment by employers is now reinforced by new research underscoring the measurable impact that supportive workplace policies can have on employee health and quality of life.

A newly conducted review led by Dr. Victoria Blinder, oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and Dr. Gina Mazza, Associate Professor of Biostatistics at Mayo Clinic, highlights evidence of a link between sustained employment, or return to work, after a cancer diagnosis and improved health related quality of life. Dr Blinder adds that workplace conditions can play a role in shaping these outcomes, reinforcing the importance of flexibility, understanding, and appropriate accommodations during treatment and recovery.

The studies reviewed include data such as:
• Employed survivors report ~28% better overall quality of life (QOL) than non-employed at 5 years.
• Physical functioning remained ~29% higher in employed survivors at 5 years
• Employed participants in one study were approximately 3.7x less likely to report moderate-to severe depressive symptoms, and 2.4x less likely to report moderate-to-severe anxiety symptoms, than unemployed participants

From Evidence to Action: An AI Coach Inspired by the Study

Grounded in these findings, Working With Cancer has developed a new AI-powered coach, designed to help employers translate these insights into personalized, practical support for employees living with cancer. Watch the demo HERE.

Available to all companies that sign the Working With Cancer pledge, the coach enables organizations to communicate and adapt their health, benefits, and workplace policies to the individual needs of each employee. Built on Large Language Models and designed to address pain points experienced by patients, managers, HR and benefits leads, it includes purpose-built safeguards, allowing companies to securely upload their own policies so employees receive guidance tailored to their actual situation.

The AI system draws from curated, vetted resources from Working With Cancer’s expert partners, delivering accurate, transparent responses while avoiding the risks associated with open-internet health queries. A task-specific, multi-agent architecture supports cancer patients, managers, and colleagues with context-aware guidance, with strict boundaries that prevent medical diagnosis. Privacy and anonymity are foundational, with no data retained beyond each session.

A Global Campaign Calling on Employers to Act

With this growing evidence linking work, under the right conditions, to positive health outcomes for cancer patients, Working With Cancer is launching a global campaign to encourage more companies to sign the pledge and help extend these benefits to more employees.

Through a film (click HERE to view) created by Publicis Conseil and supported by up to $100 million in pro bono media donated by partners including Disney, Google/ Youtube, Zeta Global, TikTok, NBCUniversal, Paramount, iHeartMedia, Westwood One, Clear Channel Outdoor, Captivate, Screen vision, and NCM, the campaign makes clear that employers are not peripheral to the cancer experience. They can be a meaningful part of recovery, dignity, and quality of life.

Directed by Kailee McGee, a stage IV cancer survivor and award-winning filmmaker, the campaign features survivors from all walks of life—including CEOs, celebrities, and employees—sharing how working helped them maintain normalcy and control during treatment. Participants include survivors from Walmart, L’Oréal, Pfizer, Barclays, Accenture, and Carrefour, among others.

With photographs by Sandro Miller a renowned portrait photographer and a stage 4 cancer survivor, the campaign will appear in a Times Square out-of-home takeover on February 4, in recognition of World Cancer Day.

Saurabh will spearhead the agency’s Consumer Experience (CX) practice, focused on integrating strategy, data, content, platform innovation, and emerging technologies to deliver measurable impact for brands. He will also play a key role in promoting Publicis Groupe’s unique ‘Power of One’ model to unlock new opportunities and strengthen client partnerships.

Marking his return to Publicis Groupe India, Saurabh brings over two decades of experience in driving integrated marketing strategies, digital innovation, and business transformation. He has led mandates for brands including Unilever, Jio, Vodafone, and IBM, while building teams and service lines across e-commerce, B2B, and consumer sectors. Prior to this, he served at OLIVER+ as the Business Head for eCommerce & Technology Services. He has also held leadership roles at Indigo Consulting and Ogilvy India.

Reporting into Paritosh Srivastava, CEO, Saatchi & Saatchi India, BBH India, and Saatchi Propagate India, Saurabh will work closely with Prachi Bali, EVP & Business Head, Saatchi Propagate India and Snehasis Bose, Group Chief Strategy Officer, Saatchi & Saatchi India, BBH India and Saatchi Propagate India.

Speaking on the appointment, Paritosh Srivastava, CEO, Saatchi & Saatchi India, BBH India, and Saatchi Propagate India said, “Saatchi Propagate India has been on an amazing growth journey over the last few years. Today, we are amongst the top digital agencies in the country, working with some of the major national and international brands. To keep this momentum going, we are strengthening our capabilities with a focus on owning the entire CX journey. Saurabh’s deep expertise in this space makes him the perfect partner to lead us into this next phase. With Snehasis, Saurabh and Prachi at the helm, Saatchi Propagate India is ready for its next phase of growth.”

Saurabh Mankhand, EVP & Head of Consumer Experiences, Saatchi Propagate India, added, “The future of brand growth is about creating predictive, personalised experiences through a seamless convergence of strategy, data, and platform innovation across the entire omni-channel ecosystem. This has placed CX at the very core of the business, and I’m excited to join the team at Saatchi Propagate India, who are already deeply engaged with clients on these strategic journeys. My focus will be on enhancing our collective ability to deliver proactive CX solutions that not only meet modern customer expectations but deliver the significant, measurable growth our clients demand.”