Sudarshan Bala

(Global) Head, Funnel-Business and New Markets @ Traveloka

About

Who: ✦ Engineering and MBA graduate, with 13.5 years experience in end-to-end marketing, user growth / conversion optimisation, branding, product launches, marketing measurement, and consumer analytics in both B2B and B2C settings. ✦ Enjoys solving fuzzy business growth challenges, with roles that enable autonomy & responsibility of commercial outcomes using marketing/demand growth levers. ✦ Thrives in environments that value curiosity and experimentation, with room to drive impact grounded in marketing analytics and consumer insights. ✦ Continually learning about coaching and developing teams to maximise each individual's potential. ✦ Cares deeply about social impact of the work we do, with experience and mindset gained from NGO work. What: ✦ $1b+ portfolio with up to $xx mn budget management experience, including new business scale ups (such as grocery delivery, last mile delivery solutions, shopping marketplace, subscription program, F&B dine-out, gamification program) and P&L ownership responsibilities. ✦ Managed high performance teams of 10+ direct reports and led 40+ people in cross-functional setups across global, regional units. ✦ Led globally diverse teams across 12+ nationalities. ✦ Experience marketing to consumers across APAC (SEA, South Asia- India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, North Asia- South Korea, Japan. ANZ- Australia), Middle East (KSA, UAE), North America (USA) markets and delivering impact for brands / clients of varying sizes. ✦ Managed effective agency / media partner relationships and led joint marketing plans with strategic partner brands (across Financial Services/Banks, F&B, eCommerce). ✦ Continued contribution to thought leadership on MarTech, Growth, Marketing Science topics at regional conferences (Marketing Exchange Forum, MarTech Summit, Unlocked Asia, eTail Asia, Technology for Marketing Asia, eCommerce Expo).

Country

Singapore

City

Singapore

Industry

Internet

Skill

Director level, Key Performance Indicators, Project Management, Management, Organizational Leadership, Customer Experience, Direct Response Marketing, Creative Ideation, P&L optimisation, B2C e-commerce, Global E-Commerce, Online Marketplace, Growth Strategies, Incrementality measurement, Brand uplift testing, Geo testing, Cross-Channel Marketing, Cross media measurement, Marketing measurement, Martech

Experience

(Global) Head, Funnel-Business and New Markets

Traveloka

2025-1 - Present · 1 yr 9 mos

Singapore

• P&L ownership • Country leadership • Growth via Metas, Affiliate partnerships

Fractional Marketing

Various Companies

2024-10 - 2025-1 · 4 mos

Asia

• Provided fractional consulting services on consumer journey planning, calendar development, and commercial growth strategy for SMEs in Asia. • Conducted campaign optimization and growth team training, specializing in education and deep tech industries.

(Regional) Marketing Director

Carousell Group

2023-5 - 2024-5 · 1 yr 1 mo

Singapore

• Headed entire platform regional marketing COE as the leader across Brand, CRM, In-app, Martech, and Performance marketing with cross-functional collaboration - categories ranging from low to mid AOV categories such as fashion, toys and furniture, to higher AOV categories- mobiles phones, luxury goods, and even cars. • Developed revenue optimization attribution model and cohort model based on LTV/CAC for performance marketing investment planning. • Introduced measurement roadmap with MTA, Incrementality testing, and MMM for effective decision-making.

Director of Marketing (APAC) | Verticals

foodpanda

2022-1 - 2023-5 · 1 yr 5 mos

Singapore

• Developed and executed marketing strategies for various verticals including food delivery, pick-up, wallets, subscription programs, and more. • Managed partnerships, PR, pricing, and app-merchandising initiatives to drive growth and engagement. • Collaborated with cross-functional teams to achieve sustainable scaling and revenue growth in the APAC region.

Head of Marketing (APAC) | New Verticals/products

foodpanda

2020-6 - 2021-12 · 1 yr 7 mos

Singapore

• Launched 5+ new products and verticals across APAC with a nimble and smart team of growth hackers. • Shaped product roadmaps, defined marketing strategies, and used demand generation levers to go-to-market and amaze customers. • Collaborated with country and global teams to bring customer value propositions to life.

Senior Manager, Global Brand Marketing Strategy (Agoda)

Booking Holdings (NASDAQ: BKNG)

2019-1 - 2020-5 · 1 yr 5 mos

Bangkok Metropolitan Area, Thailand

• Developed and launched the successful “Less Hassle, More Travel” branding platform for key markets globally. • Led a team of media, analytics, and campaign managers to execute branding strategy across various consumer touchpoints. • Collaborated with data science squad to create a brand measurement approach tied to consumer demand.

MBA Practicum, Strategy Consulting

Bain & Company

2018-9 - 2018-12 · 4 mos

London, United Kingdom

• Led a team in developing a financial viability and sustainability strategy for an African social enterprise. • Achieved a 25% candidate application selectivity for the consulting project. • Received a request for follow-up strategy work based on client satisfaction with the '19 execution.

MBA Practicum, Strategy Consulting

Kearney

2018-9 - 2018-12 · 4 mos

London, United Kingdom

• Delivered on a revenue growth strategy for a UK gin start-up. • Adjudged best performing consulting project across cohort by ex-McKinsey partner, and current A.T. Kearney UK consultants and managers.

MBA Internship, Competitive Intelligence and Strategy

Fung Group

2018-4 - 2018-8 · 5 mos

Hong Kong

• Conducted market landscaping and business modeling for retail segments, providing strategic recommendations to C-level executives. • Led a special project on digitization, implementing AI/ML tech to drive efficiencies in market intelligence collection processes. • Collaborated on due diligence and engagement recommendations for addressable opportunities in business development.

Marketing Consultant

Ogilvy

2016-3 - 2017-4 · 1 yr 2 mos

Bangalore

• Led a top-tier team in creating exceptional digital user experiences for clients through journey mapping and user engagement metrics optimization. • Implemented customer segments based personalization strategies to enhance client satisfaction and drive business growth.

Digital Manager

Omnicom Media Asia Pacific

2013-12 - 2015-9 · 1 yr 10 mos

Singapore

• Led digital analytics and media planning efforts, driving digital innovation and online store growth. • Implemented attribution modeling for digital ROI measurement, optimizing campaign performance. • Developed and coached a team, enhancing communication and collaboration skills.

Education

London Business School

Strategy

2018 - 2018

• Semester abroad for MBA • Focus on highly selective live strategy capstone projects with/for Bain and A.T Kearney clients

HKUST Business School

Strategy, Marketing

2017 - 2018 · 1 yr

Selected Community Roles:♻️ • VP, General Management Club • Raised 50K HKD with 6 team members for Hong Kong's Operation Santa Claus MBA Challenge (http://osc.scmp.com/mbachallenge) Selected Awards:🎖️ • Beta Gamma Sigma award • Merit Scholarship Award for MBA study • Academic Excellence Award, Dean's list • Best Q&A, Presenter Award at Illinois MBA Strategy Case competition, USA • Finalist at T-Union Entrepreneurship Competition, Taiwan • Best Elevator Pitch Award in HKUST internal case competition, Hong Kong

National University of Singapore

Electrical Engineering

2006 - 2010 · 4 yrs

Selected Awards:🎖️ • NUS Alumni Relations Award • Finalist, Research and Innovation Awards Selected Community roles:♻️ • VP, NUSSU International Relations Committee • Marketing, NUS Centre for Arts • Youth mentor, NUS BP Mentoring Club