The ICCO NextGen Board was first constituted in 2022 with the winner of the ICCO NextGen PR World Cup Winners of 2021. Following a successful stint, the board was reconstituted with a new group of PR professionals among the winners and participants of the competition in 2022, who expressed interest in devoting time and energy in coming up with solutions for the industry at large.
The group closely works with the main ICCO PR board members, to identify possible opportunities and challenges faced by young professionals of the industry around the globe. The active aim of this group is to identify best practices across geographies and come up with standardised solutions.
Look out at the space for regular updates from the group.
Karishma Hingorani, Co-chair
Karishma is a seasoned and award-winning Account Director and ex-journalist with over nine years of extensive experience in strategic communications, content development, and client management across diverse industries. She is currently an Account Director at Edelman, having previously worked at Weber Shandwick, Dubai Tourism, ITP Media Group among other leading organisations. She was also featured on Campaign Middle East 30 Under 30 PR Faces to Watch 2024 and was the PRCA ICCO MENA Winner 2023. Among other accolades, she has been a PRCA Rising Star & MEPRA Young Communicator Shortlist, as well as one of the Top 50/150 Scholars selected for The Marketing Society Cohort 2024 in the UAE.
Karishma’s expertise spans the entire communications spectrum, from strategic consultancy and crisis management to content development, media relations and digital transformation. With a Master’s in English Literature by Research from the National University of Singapore and a Bachelor’s in Media and Communications with a specialization in Advertising and Public Relations from Manipal University, Dubai, Karishma brings a robust academic foundation to her practical experience. In addition, Karishma is the creator and host of KarishmaKonnect, a podcast/vodcast where she engages with global thought leaders across various industries, sharing insights on current trends and emerging opportunities.
Aditya Vasan Singla, Co-Chair
Aditya Vasan Singla is a Principal at Astrum – India’s first specialist reputation management advisory that uses science to understand and shape public opinion.
Aditya brings nearly a decade of diverse experience in strategy and management consulting, primarily focusing on ESG Strategy, Institutionalisation, Transformation, and Communications.
He has dedicated most of his professional career to management consulting firms such as PwC and ERM, where he played a pivotal role in enhancing clients’ ESG performance, systems, and processes.
He has collaborated with reputable clients across the pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, real estate, consumer goods, private equity, and luxury apparel sectors to improve ESG capacity and adaptability. Aditya excels in developing institutional frameworks for organisational restructuring and collaborates closely with senior management to integrate ESG strategy into business as usual and initiate ESG transformation.
Before his consulting career, Aditya worked with the Hon’ble Minister Shri Piyush Goyal (Minister of Commerce), serving on the Minister’s personal staff. In this role, he was involved in policy development, political strategy, and communications, gaining exposure to over four ministries, including Finance and Railways.
Aditya holds an M.A. in Economics and Geography from the University of Aberdeen and an M.Sc. in Environmental Economics and Climate Change from the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Srishti Sharma, Next Gen Board Member
Srishti is an integrated communications strategist with close to a decade of experience in the industry, across media and digital domains. She now leads the Social Impact Practice at ON PURPOSE. She’s worked on award-winning campaigns for multinationals helping them build recognition for the brand and issues that were not well understood. She has extensive experience in strategising, building & implementing long-term social and behaviour change communication campaigns across public health, climate, gender, and education.
Throughout her career, she has worked with multilateral organizations including UNICEF, USAID, Rockefeller Foundation, ADB, McArthur Foundation, Gates Foundation, GIZ, and many multinationals across issues like Climate action, Mental health, GEDI, SRHR, Rural energy access, Learning & Skilling, etc. She specialises in category creation and has helped establish the need for Air Purifiers by highlighting the perils of indoor air pollution for Philips, and articulated the need for Senior Care in India for Antara, A Max group company, among others. Srishti has been recognised as Young PR Professional of the Year at IPRCCA, 30 under 30 PR Professional of the Year Award by PRmoment.in and Godrej, and is AIPR Level 2 – accredited, issued by PRCAI 2022 and has a Certification in Climate Leadership and a Masterclass programme on ESG by CII.
Rumyana Tancheva, Next Gen Board Member
Rumyana has 15+ years of experience in integrated marketing communications, including corporate and consumer PR, employer brand internal and external campaigns, strategy consulting, crisis management, digital marketing and PR, CSR campaigns, media relations, influencer marketing campaigns, client services and account management. She has very good team and client relations skills and is actively supporting team collaboration and project execution with effectiveness in processes.
Rumyana has been working with clients from ICT/tech, FMCG, telco, aviation and pharma industries: A1, Viber, P&G and CSR, Pierre Fabre, Coca-Cola, Agropolychim, Lufthansa Technic Sofia, Philips TV, GATE Institute, Lidl, Dimitar Madjarov, Econt, VIVACOM, Zagorka, Shell, Lavena, Actavis, Fortex, VMware, Arc Academy, AVON, Subway, Biologique Recherche, BOSCH Engineering Centre, Lachezar Tsotsorkov Foundation, Sound of Money conference.
Rumyana has Bachelor degree in Public relations, Mass communication department, New Bulgarian University.
Zahra Zakriya, Next Gen Board Member
With a career spanning five years of experience in media and public relations, Zahra is a Senior Associate at Weber Shandwick in the UAE. She brings expertise in consumer and corporate communication, content creation, media, and influencer relations. Her sector of expertise includes education, healthcare, consumer products, and corporate and internal communication.
She has worked with clients such as PepsiCo, Cadillac, Mattel, Al Futtaim, and Dyson, among others. Several campaigns she contributed to have won multiple awards at MEPRA and PRCA in 2022, 2023, and 2024.
She was featured on Campaign Middle East 30 Under 30 PR Faces to Watch 2024 and was the PRCA ICCO MENA Winner 2023 having also participated in 2022. Additionally, she was shortlisted for PRCA Intern of the Year and selected as one of the Top 50/150 Scholars for The Marketing Society Cohort 2025 in the UAE.
Zahra holds a bachelor’s degree in Media, PR, and Advertising from Middlesex University, Dubai. During her time at university, she was able to gain great speaking and presentation skills when working on campaigns for Adidas, Toroverdo, and Global Goals.
The ICCO Next Gen PR Report 2023-2024 is a pioneering initiative, driven by the ICCO Next Gen Board, to explore the key drivers, opportunities, and challenges faced by young professionals in the PR industry. This report provides valuable insights into how the next generation is shaping the future of PR, addressing critical concerns around career development, emerging trends, and the evolving needs of the workforce.
How to Get Involved
To know more about the ICCO NextGen Board members and connect with them for a quick chat, you can write to office@iccopr.com
If you have any bright ideas which you feel will help current and future PR professionals, please write to us on the alias above.