The month of April was an exciting high point for everyone in India, and especially for my colleagues and me at what was recently Sampark Public Relations and is now Ketchum Sampark. A momentous event brought together all Indians for a spectacular celebration, and a major merger brought together Sampark Public Relations with Ketchum. Each offers some important lessons in similar ways.
The month started with a victory that the whole nation had been waiting to rejoice for 28 years — the winning of the Cricket World Cup. Emotions ran high as we sweated many close matches leading up to the final of this prestigious cricket event, and they provided some lessons that are as true in business as they are in sports. One lesson is not to despair if the most senior people of an organization have a bad day with a client, similar to the way that some of our top players had a bad day in some matches. It’s important to have faith in the whole team and trust your bench of junior people to come through for others, just as our bench did. Another lesson offered by India’s Cricket World Cup win is to always remain positive and patient in the face of a crisis, no matter how severe it is, because doing so is the best way to begin to find the best solution. When our team was going through rough times in the competition, they stayed cool and collected, and they were eventually able to regroup, find a way to overcome their adversity, and continue advancing. 
The second victory in April that came for my colleagues and I was a dream come true when we became members of the Ketchum family on April 12. In the same way that our cricket team endured throughout the Cricket World Cup, we stayed confident that our capabilities would be recognized worldwide and allow us to expand on a global scale, and our cup was the partnership. We’re thrilled with our new partnership and can’t wait to know and work with our new colleagues. The single most exciting thing about joining forces with Ketchum is that it our work can be taken to a global stage through Ketchum’s network of more than 100 offices and affiliates in over 65 countries around the world. What’s more, in addition to our external client service, internally, the partnership offers us an incredible opportunity for a new exchange of ideas and best practices to guide our work.
Public relations is still young in India and undergoing many rapid changes, much as India as a whole is. Our joining with Ketchum positions us at the forefront of public relations agencies in India, allowing us to navigate today’s rapid changes with the local knowledge and personalization of an Indian agency but with the global breadth and depth of an international agency. It’s a victory as sweet as India’s World Cup win and one that offers similar lessons.
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