Mumbai, Feb 2026: The MMA India Board’s first meeting of 2026 set a clear tone for the year ahead.
The meeting convened C-level leaders from across brands, platforms, agencies, and the marketing ecosystem. The Board aligned on what marketers must prioritise to drive real business impact. Especially in a year marked by economic pressure, rapid technology shifts, and rising financial & RoI accountability.
Rather than broad agendas, the discussion converged on six focused priorities. Practical, outcome-led, and anchored in value creation. Together, they form the MMA India Board’s growth mandate for 2026.
Board members present included:
Amit Jain (Chairman), Prasanth Kumar (Co-chair), Moneka Khurana (MMA India), Sunita Bangard (Aditya Birla), Gunjan Khetan (Perfetti), Saugato Bhowmik (Meta), Anupriya Acharya (Publicis), Deepali Naair (Biocon), Arun Neelakantan (HUL), Anindita Veluri (Adobe), Deepak Bakshi (Accenture), Siddharth Shekhar (Google), Pulkit Trivedi (Snap), Vipul Kedia (Affle), Sundar Balasubramaniam (Myntra), Gulshan Verma (Amazon), Sanjay Trisal (AppsFlyer), Varun Sethuraman (Nestle), Aaditya Pathak (BARC), and Anurita Chopra (Haleon).
The 6 Priorities Shaping 2026
The Board was unequivocal: marketers must strengthen their financial fluency.
The ability to link marketing decisions to P&L outcomes, cash flow, and enterprise value is no longer optional. Without it, marketing risks being viewed as a cost. With it, marketing earns trust and influence at the highest levels.
“Growth leadership starts when marketing speaks the language of business.”
Marketing, commerce, quick commerce, and D2C are no longer distinct lanes.
The Board aligned on retail media as a central growth lever. One that demands new thinking across planning, measurement, and capability. Brands that treat commerce as peripheral risk falling behind those who build for convergence.
“The growth opportunity sits where media and transactions meet.”
AI remains a dominant force. But the focus is shifting.
The Board pushed beyond conversations on efficiency and productivity, calling for clearer use cases that enable growth, new operating models, and scalable impact across creativity, workflows, and measurement.
“AI maturity will be judged by outcomes, not experimentation.”
The credibility gap in marketing measurement remains a pressing concern.
The Board reinforced the need for stronger linkage between marketing activity and business results. Across screens, channels, and time horizons. Econometrics and RoMI-led approaches (Return on Marketing Investment) were positioned as critical tools to anchor decisions in economic reality.
“If impact can’t be demonstrated, confidence erodes.”
The marketer’s role is evolving faster than traditional training models.
New tools, AI-led workflows, and changing expectations require ongoing capability building. At the same time, the Board stressed that fundamentals remain essential. In a nutshell: brand building, performance balance, and strategic clarity.
“The future belongs to marketers who keep rebuilding themselves.”
One of the strongest themes was the value of reciprocal learning.
Challenger brands bring speed, experimentation, and new playbooks. Established organisations bring scale, systems, and long-term perspective. The Board aligned on enabling deeper exchange between the two. Grounded in real examples and applied learning.
“Growth accelerates when experience and experimentation come together.”
Final word
With its 2026 priorities clearly defined, the MMA India Board enters the year with focus and intent.
The agenda ahead is rooted in advancing marketers’ ability to create value. Through sharper decision-making, stronger accountability, and practical frameworks that translate ambition into impact.
As execution unfolds through the year, the Board’s message is clear: 2026 will reward marketers who stay focused, fluent, and firmly anchored in business outcomes.
Read more: Get Your SHEconomy Right: MMA India Challenges Gendered Marketing Narratives
