Ashwin Garg, Associate Brand Director, North AmericaBounty, Procter and Gamble
From being passionate about branding, to co-hosting one of the most successful cricket podcasts in the world, to playing the tabla, Ashwin has learnt to not be too hard on himself and wishes for people to do the same.
Podcast
Overview
Ashwin Garg, Associate Brand Director, North America Bounty, P&G, on sticking with a company for over a decade and why he did not choose to do an MBA
It is rare to find a millennial who has stuck to an organization for over a decade. Ashwin Garg, Associate Brand Director, North America Bounty, P&G, tells us that he’s probably just marginally a millennial.
At the young age of 15, Ashwin toyed with the idea of studying at United World College and left for British Columbia once he got accepted. He credits a lot of his learnings to the two years spent there, amongst 200 people from over 60 countries. He then went on to study at McGill, post which he joined Procter & Gamble and has been with them ever since.
From being passionate about branding, to co-hosting one of the most successful cricket podcasts in the world, to playing the tabla, Ashwin has learnt to not be too hard on himself and wishes for people to do the same.
On sticking with one company for so long
“Almost everyone I know, the vast majority, have moved companies every 3-5 years. That seems to be the new normal. Twenty-thirty years ago, people prided themselves on staying in one organization for thirty years,” he observes.
Yet, it is not just an emotional reason that has kept him with P&G. Ashwin credits his long term association with P&G to two things – one, he constantly got opportunities to evolve. As soon as he felt that he was starting to plateau, he was moved to a different role or responsibility. He went from the regional division in Canada that focused on execution such as in-market planning and selling, to the headquarters that work end-to-end on everything. He has never faced a dearth of challenges and that is what keeps him going.
Second, he loves the culture of the Company – his peers, leaders, team. “I feel excited to wake up every morning and go to work,” which is more than many people can say.
On the Edges & Sledges Podcast
Ashwin, along with his brother and a friend, also runs one of the most popular cricket podcasts in the world called ‘Edges & Sledges’. Cricket is something that Ashwin relates days in India with – a connection with his grandmother and brother that he likes to preserve. His brother and him travel to watch matches together, the last being the 2019 World Cup in the UK.
They started the podcast in a video format at first, but soon moved to audio. They realized early on that the market for an audio-only format was picking up in most countries, and reaped the benefits of the first mover advantage. They now rank as the number one cricket podcasts in many countries and have well-known cricketers on their show.
Why he didn’t do an MBA
“I don’t feel the need for it now. About 5 years ago, when I was 6-7 years into the Company, would have been the right time to make this call. I spoke to a lot of my managers and leaders. But I’m now at that point in my career where I feel that having led several large and diverse teams has set me up better than an MBA would. I think 5 years earlier, if I had wanted to jump industries, an MBA would have been helpful then. Today, I don’t think I’d learn much more or that the networking would help me more than my time at P&G.”
On the strongest influence in his life
Apart from being inspired by his family and friends, Ashwin distinctly remembers a teacher who created a tremendous impact on him. Ashwin had always wanted to study the sciences, being very interested in physics and engineering. However, as part of the curriculum at Pearson College, he had to choose a social science subject in Grade 11. He chose economics and his teacher entirely changed his future plans. He remembers that moment of clarity when he was sure that this was what he was going to study in college.
Profile
- Vasant Valley School
- United World College, Pearson College, British Colombia
- McGill University
- Associate Director, Procter and Gamble, Cincinnati
- Procter and Gamble
- Edges and Sledges – Podcast
- Accomplished musician
