Girish Nilekar

About Girish Nilekar

With over 20 years of leadership in the financial services and banking industry, I specialize in the intersection of data-driven insights and creative storytelling to drive multi-million dollar growth campaigns. As the Head of Premier, Private, International, and Wealth Marketing at HSBC India, I lead the end-to-end strategic marketing for the bank’s most prestigious segments. ​My approach is defined by a unique transition from sales and product management to marketing leadership. This background gives me a deep understanding of P&L accountability and the ability to articulate how marketing strategies directly fuel larger business objectives at the C-suite level. ​I am passionate about building sophisticated marketing ecosystems that deliver a balance of:​Analytical Rigor: Leveraging business analytics and AI-powered marketing tools to move from raw data to actionable business insights. ​Creative Excellence: Designing large-format, high-impact campaigns led by A-list influencers and celebrities to define brand narratives and establish thought leadership. ​Technology: Establishing and scaling marketing technology stacks, social media practices, and digital acquisition journeys to drive full-funnel optimization. ​Core Expertise:​Segment Leadership: Deep experience in HNI, Ultra HNI, and Emerging Affluent customer lifecycles. ​GTM Strategy: Delivering 360-degree go-to-market strategies for complex wealth management and international banking offerings. ​Performance Marketing: Optimizing Return on Marketing Spends (ROMS) through attribution modeling and predictive analytics. ​I am committed to mentoring high-performing teams and fostering a culture of continuous learning and customer-centricity.

Experience

1. Senior Vice President - Private Bank Premier Wealth & International Marketing

   HSBC

   Feb 2021 — Present · Mumbai, IN

   Spearhead brand & marketing for the affluent segments at HSBC India : HSBC Private Bank, HSBC Premier, Wealth Management Services and International. Key result areas are to establish HSBC as a thought leader in these segments to drive brand preference. Significant experience in large format campaign design and execution having worked on multi-million dollar campaigns led by influencers and A lister celebrities. Co-created large format media led partnerships that defined brand narratives. Design and optimise creative marketing strategies for multi media sales channels and use data for full funnel optimisation. Customer life stage led campaigns - from onboarding to cross sell and from customer wallet share growth to customer retention Developed and executed persona-based, content-led campaigns, including \'always on\' social media Leveraged data analytics and visualization to generate actionable insights for business operations, enabling data-driven decision-making and improved business outcomes. Identified key customer segments and developed targeted marketing campaigns that increased customer engagement.Directed the planning and execution of all online and social media campaigns, driving significant increases in website traffic, lead generation, and customer engagement. Developed and implemented analytics-based modeling for reward/milestone-based campaigns, improving customer activation and cross-sell rates Measured campaign performance against pre-defined targets for cost of acquisition, optimizing for a Return on Marketing Spends (ROMS) of at least 2x. Implemented attribution modeling to accurately track marketing ROI and optimize budget allocation. Led, mentored, and motivated team members to foster a positive work environment and achieve organizational goals. Organized training programs focused on skill development, knowledge enhancement, and customer- centricity, resulting in improved team performance and customer satisfaction.

Education

• Savitribai Phule Pune University

  PDMM, Marketing Management

  1996 — 1997

• Savitribai Phule Pune University

  B.E., Mechanical Engineering

  1990 — 1994

• MIT Sloan School of Management

  EDP, Design Thinking

  2018 — 2018

• Xavier Institute of Management(XIM Bhubaneswar)

  Master of Business Administration - MBA, Marketing/Marketing Management, General

Skills

• Business Strategy
• P&L Management
• Customer Relations
• Product Management
• Product Development