Lead Marketing

Role Title

Lead – India-side Marketing, NPCI International

Function

Marketing

Reporting To

Head of Marketing, NPCI International

Location

Mumbai

Experience Required

10–12 years in the marketing function

Role Purpose

The India-side Marketing Lead will be responsible
for developing and driving the India-market strategy to build awareness,
consideration, and positive intent for UPI usage across countries where it is
enabled.

The role has two important dimensions:

1. Consumer / Traveller marketing:

Building awareness and preference for UPI
acceptance among Indian outbound travellers during their discovery, research,
booking, and trip-planning journey.

2. Ecosystem Stakeholder Management:

Driving strategic engagement with Indian banks,
UPI-enabled apps, and allied ecosystem partners so that they actively
participate in amplifying the proposition, embedding it into their own customer
communication journeys, and helping scale awareness and usage.

This role therefore requires a strong marketer who
can combine digital-first consumer marketing expertise with partner-facing
relationship management, alliance building, and account stewardship.

Key Responsibilities

A. India-side Consumer Marketing

• Develop
  and execute the India-side marketing strategy to build awareness of UPI
  acceptance across international markets where it is live.
  
• Identify
  the most relevant consumer touchpoints in the outbound travel journey and
  design interventions that influence travellers during destination
  discovery, trip research, planning, and booking stages.
  
• Create
  integrated campaigns across digital, content, social, influencer, and
  performance-led channels to drive awareness, consideration, and positive
  disposition toward using UPI abroad.
  
• Build
  a strong understanding of traveller intent pathways and use those insights
  to shape high-relevance marketing programs.
  
• Drive
  high-impact pre-departure and transit-point activations across relevant
  physical touchpoints such as airports and other travel-linked avenues.
  
• Ensure
  that campaigns communicate the proposition in a simple, credible, and
  compelling manner for Indian travellers.
  

B. Stakeholder and Ecosystem
Engagement

• Build
  and manage strong working relationships with key ecosystem stakeholders
  including Indian banks, UPI-enabled apps, and other relevant distribution
  or engagement partners.
  
• Conceptualize
  and drive co-marketing opportunities with banks and app partners so the
  UPI international proposition is embedded into relevant consumer
  communication ecosystems.
  
• Serve
  as the marketing interface for key partner accounts, with the ability to
  align multiple stakeholders around common campaign priorities and
  execution plans.
  
• Ensure
  partner engagement is managed with rigor, responsiveness, and strategic
  account stewardship.
  

C. Strategy, Planning, and Execution

• Translate
  business priorities into actionable marketing plans with clear campaign
  objectives, target audiences, channel mix, and success metrics.
  
• Work
  closely with internal cross-functional teams including business,
  partnerships, product, and external agencies to deliver integrated
  execution.
  
• Monitor
  campaign and partner program effectiveness, derive insights, and
  continuously optimize for stronger outcomes.
  
• Maintain
  strong execution discipline across timelines, stakeholder coordination,
  budgets, and reporting.
  

Candidate Profile

The ideal candidate is a well-rounded marketing
professional with strong digital marketing capability and proven experience in
managing strategic business relationships and partner-led growth programs.

The candidate should be equally comfortable:

• thinking
  like a consumer marketer, and
  
• operating
  like a relationship manager for high-value ecosystem partners.
  

They should understand how Indian consumers behave
during digital discovery and decision-making journeys, while also being able to
build credibility with banks, fintechs, and app ecosystem stakeholders.

Desired Experience

• 10–12
  years of relevant experience in the marketing function.
  
• Proven
  exposure to integrated campaign planning and execution across digital and
  on-ground channels.
  
• Demonstrated
  experience in building and managing external stakeholder relationships,
  partner alliances, or strategic accounts.
  
• Experience
  in fintech, digital payments, banking, consumer internet, travel-tech,
  telecom, or adjacent sectors will be preferred.
  

Technical / Marketing Skills
Required

• Digital
  marketing strategy and execution
  
• Consumer
  journey planning and audience mapping
  
• Performance
  marketing and digital media understanding
  
• Influencer
  and creator campaign planning
  
• Partnership
  marketing and alliance-led amplification
  
• Ground
  activation and experiential marketing
  
• Campaign
  analytics, reporting, and optimization
  
• Agency
  management
  

Soft Skills Required

• Strong
  communication and presentation skills
  
• Strategic
  thinking with execution excellence
  
• Ability
  to influence without authority
  
• High
  ownership and accountability
  
• Strong
  interpersonal skills and maturity in stakeholder handling
  

Preferred Industry Backgrounds

Ideal candidates may be identified from the
following sectors:

1. Fintech and Digital Payments

Candidates with exposure to payment ecosystems, app
marketing, and partner-led growth.
Example companies: PhonePe, Google Pay, Paytm, BHIM, CRED, Navi, Amazon
Pay, Razorpay, Pine Labs, BharatPe, MobiKwik, PayU, Cashfree

2. Banking and Financial Services

Useful for candidates with strong understanding of
bank-led distribution, customer communication, and ecosystem collaboration.

Example companies: HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Axis
Bank, SBI, Kotak Mahindra Bank, IndusInd Bank, Yes Bank, AU Small Finance Bank

3. Travel-tech / OTA / Travel
Ecosystem

Useful for candidates with strong understanding of
outbound traveller discovery, booking journeys, and pre-travel interventions.

Example companies: MakeMyTrip, Goibibo, ixigo,
Yatra, EaseMyTrip, Cleartrip, Thomas Cook India, SOTC