Facebook Directors’ Panel Discussion at the Indian School of Business – August 29th, 2011

The hustle-bustle died down; there was a sudden silence; their presence was being felt already. They exchanged a few modest looks amongst themselves, and seated themselves smiling all along! A quick round of introduction by the Vice President of the Women In Business Club at ISB, Ms. Saumya Joshi! And the discussion began! The moderator – Mr Salman Siddiqui, President of the Business Technology Club at ISB, started on a light note asking whether any of the three guests had a Google Plus account! The lecture theatre resonated with laughs for the next few moments! With three continents at the table, the guest panel included Ms. Kelly Graziadei, who looks after Brand Agency Strategy and Account Management at Facebook in Bay Area, California, Ms. Kirthiga Reddy, Director of Inline Operations and Head of Office at Facebook in India, and Ms. Gail Power, Director of Online Sales and Operations at Facebook in Europe.

The discussion warmed up with the Directors emphasizing that facebook is not just a social network, but a social graph of people’s online lives, resonating with Mark Zuckerberg’s description of facebook as a social utility. They also went on to stress how facebook is altering life, as we know it today, every single day. “Did you remember the Like button was introduced about a year ago?” noted Kirthiga. The audience was definitely surprised. After all, it feels like it’s the way of life now. I’ve even heard students on campus comment laughingly that Microsoft Outlook should also have a “Like” button.

Next, Kelly talked about how facebook is continually thriving to enhance users’ social experience, with efforts like Pandora that allow you to share your choice of music with friends, and how the use of sponsored stories is improving shopping experience for both, facebook users and advertisers.

Kirthiga, then, went on to stress facebook’s matra of user engagement, and pointed out the impact of applications built around this mantra, quoting Zynga (the online game developer with games on facebook) as an example. Next, she commented on the importance of mobile applications, especially for emerging markets like India, and the shift of advertising from traditional media like TV to social networking media. She stressed Kelly’s example of sponsored stories, where recommendations come from known contacts, as powerful tools of brand-building.

Next, Gail discussed the difference between facebook’s approach to advertising, in comparison to Google. She took the example of sponsored story forward, and mentioned Neilson’s survey that indicates four-fold purchase intent when recommendations come from friends.

In the end, all the three speakers addressed the Women in Business club members, and took turns to highlight the importance of cultural fit in organizations, pursuing career aspirations fearlessly and belief in own capabilities. The guests were then applauded by an audience that left the venue intellectually satiated and stimulated. With the same humble smiles over their faces, the guests then proceeded for a cup of coffee with the club members.