40 Under 40 2020: Agnisha Ghosh, 3M

Agnisha Ghosh

Asia integrated marketing 
3M 
Singapore

It is common for experienced industry leaders to mentor rookie colleagues. What is less common, however, is the other way round – something 3M calls a ‘reverse mentoring program’. But if there is someone who has a thing or two to teach her seniors, it is Agnisha Ghosh.

3M seems to think so too; the multinational corporation has selected Ghosh to be its first mentor from Asia for the reverse mentoring program, in which she is paired with a senior leader to drive discussions on the mindset and values of the next generation, current social trends, technology, and other issues.

This is not the first time that Ghosh has broken conventions. Growing up as—in her words—“the most inquisitive child in my class”, she was also the first woman in her family to obtain a master’s degree and to immigrate to a foreign country to build a career.

Starting her professional journey in agencies including Ogilvy, the intrepid marketer moved to her first client-side role a few years ago and was awarded a ‘Star Performer Award’ within six months. While she progressed from a national position to a regional one, Ghosh still goes the extra mile to fill in any resource gaps, such as volunteering to expand her scope to customer journey mapping.

Joining 3M in 2019, Ghosh led her first digital marketing campaign for the brand to drive its road-safety solutions among government officials and contractors via online channels. Creating a digital model for the traditionally run B2B businesses in 3M was a feat of transformation. Ghosh’s campaign ended up hitting 400% return on marketing investment (MROI) and netting 3M’s internal global marketing award for 2019.

Mabel Low, 3M’s area marketing and sales centre leader in Asia, calls Ghosh a “veteran on digital strategies”. She recalls that, as the Covid-19 pandemic intensified pressure for quick turnarounds, Ghosh “reduced the lead time of developing a campaign from three months to three weeks” to cater to urgent customer needs.

A hungry learner herself, Ghosh is generous with sharing her expertise; she is mentoring two 3M employees on digital marketing and is a frequent speaker at various industry events and panel discussions.