(He/Him)
Raj lives by the motto: Work Hard, Play Hard, and he lives it well.
By the time Raj was 22, he’d lived on five continents and traveled extensively to a sixth. He first learned Swahili, then Bengali and finally English (so don’t judge his occasional spelling and grammatical mistakes too harshly). Also by 22, he had trained in the British Territorial Army, Air Cadets. Perhaps more importantly, he worked as a snowmaker and bartender so that he could live the ski-bum life. This involved taking on a handful of other entrepreneurial, yet sometimes “questionable” (read: collecting and selling golf balls and creating fake IDs) jobs. Though he mostly excelled at throwing parties at Kingston University in London, he somehow managed to obtain dual Bachelor of Science degrees in Economics and Geography.
WORK HARD…
Travel is in his DNA, so it’s not surprising that he co-founded his first company, Spunlogic, while traveling in 1998. The web design and development firm became one of Atlanta’s largest privately-held digital agencies before it was acquired in 2008 by Halyard Capital to form Engauge, which was then acquired by Publicis Groupe and merged with Moxie to create the largest digital agency in the Southeast.
More recently, Raj served as Chief Delivery and Innovation officer for Ansira, one of the largest global independent technology and marketing agencies with over 1,700 employees. Raj came to Ansira through the 2019 acquisition of BrightWave, a leading eCRM and cross-channel agency, where he was president. During his tenure there, he helped build an incredibly high-performance team and culture that was sought after by leading brands. He also previously served as CEO for the social advertising tech company BLiNQ Media to provide new vision and rebuild its technology teams before merging the business unit within Tegna. Somewhere in there, he earned his Executive MBA at Georgia State University.
Raj’s leadership style focuses on building strong cultures and teams that strive to tackle complex problems with innovative solutions for some of the best brands in the world. Through his unique agency endeavors, Raj has become known for his hands-on approach, calm manner and his ability to infuse fun into any situation.
He enjoys mentoring fellow entrepreneurs as well as investing in a number of technology startups. Additionally, he participates as a board member and advisor for a number of non-profit groups, including 48in48 and the Atlanta BeltLine Partnership (ABLP).
PLAY HARD…
Raj continues to travel extensively and has taken three, 6+ month-long sabbaticals to properly “play hard.” Whether it’s an around-the-world ticket, an RV trip through the Pacific Northwest, or a staycation, he believes the time completely away from work allows him to re-focus on the important things in life – family, friends, and adventure. When he returns he finds he can approach new projects with a fresh perspective and open-minded viewpoint to tackle new ideas and problems.
Raj is always looking to explore new places, or at least blow off some steam snowboarding. He equally loves joy rides through the mountains in his Taycan and rugged off-road challenges in his Rubicon. His favorite nightly ritual is enjoying a bottle of wine or bourbon with friends. Preferably around an open fire.
Raj and his wife, Tovah, have three young children, a dog, and have called Atlanta home for over 20 years.
P.S. He hasn’t yet made it to the final continent of Antarctica but he did make it within 500 miles when crossing the Drake Passage in 2009.
