Board of Advisors

Sunit is head of Hunt Partners’ Private Equity and Board Advisory practices across Asia. He is an advisor to several Indian business houses and MNCs on matters of People Strategy and Governance. He has co-authored the India Board Report, India’s foremost research paper on Corporate Governance in conjunction with the CII, PWC and AZB. 

Throughout his career, Sunit has believed in equity and inclusion. It is this verve that prompted him to co-found Third Sector Partners (TSP), a not-for-profit Executive Search firm dedicated to the Development Sector. Services are delivered by a team of highest calibre professionals, who’s understanding of the sector is unparalleled, enabling an experience on par with best-in-class global Search firms.  Sunit has also played a seminal role in the formation of Katalyst, an NGO which focuses on empowering women for equality in opportunity and leadership. Inspired by his grand-father, Sunit is a champion for women’s empowerment. He believes that investing in a girl’s education is the most effective way of empowering women economically.

In Sunit’s words, “There are many sections of the community which are not getting their due. Lack of fairness is a big issue and I believe that equity across minorities is imperative for development. In our own small way, through TSP and Katalyst, we are garnering support and benefits for minorities to enable everyone to participate on a level playing field.” 

Sunit has a business degree in Marketing Management from the Wharton School, and a degree in Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania, USA. He serves on the global board of United Way (MAC), the world’s largest philanthropic organization.

Shital Kakkar Mehra, an advisor and board member at Third Sector Partners, is India’s leading Executive Presence Coach for CEOs. With over 22 years of experience, Shital has personally trained over 70,000 professionals across Asia, including numerous CEOs from leading multi-national and progressive domestic companies. Her reputation as a cutting-edge expert comes from her depth of knowledge and the unique way she blends the Indian corporate ethos, with global best-in-class practices. 

An acclaimed public speaker and best-selling author, Shital is an active philanthropist who believes in women empowerment and gender equality at the workplace. Along with her role at Third Sector Partners, Shital is also the Co-Founder of Katalyst, an NGO for underprivileged girls and Founder of GoBarefoot, a professional networking platform for development professionals.

Shital has been instrumental in shaping the vision and mission of Third Sector Partners, one of the only not for profit executive search firms in the world. The entire profit garnered by the firm is poured into Shital’s passion project Katalyst, wherein she has played a major role in fostering a synergised curriculum aimed at maximising the potential in underprivileged girls. 

Her focus on philanthropy and development sector enablement has helped Third Sector Partners carve a niche in the executive search arena and Shital plays an active role in the management of the organisation and the capacity development of the team members. 

Shital’s books, Business Etiquette: A Guide for the Indian Professional and Executive Presence: The POISE formula for Leadership, depict her expertise in corporate culture. She is a Bachelors in Sociology from Mumbai University and an all-India gold medallist in Hospitality Administration. 

As an Advisor and Management Consultant at Third Sector Partners, Mr. Vijay Mahajan brings over 49 years of experience and executive search expertise to the board. After spending decades in the industry, Mr. Mahajan was keen on contributing to the growth and empowerment of the development sector. He joined Third Sector Partners at the inception of the organisation and has been instrumental in scaling up TSP, as well as the firm’s sister concern and NGO Katalyst.

Mr. Mahajan is focused on creating an enabling environment for the development sector and his work at TSP is aimed at ensuring that organisations in the development sector find the most optimal leadership possible. Education is one of his core focus areas and Mr. Mahajan has been a visiting faculty at the country’s prestigious IIMs and other institutes of national repute. He has also been a speaker at the conferences of ISTD & National HRD Network. 

Mr. Mahajan is also an Independent Director and Advisor to a number of companies in the NBFC, Education, Healthcare, Energy and Engineering sectors. He was the Head of Group Corporate HR of AFL, one of the large service sector groups in India (revenue of $ 200 MM). He previously worked for engineering giants such as Escorts and Larsen & Toubro. He is a specialist in HR Systems, Assessment & Selection, Compensation Planning and Organizational Restructuring and has also done considerable work in the area of training & development. 

Mr. Mahajan has been a member of the Executive Board of the National HRD Network and the National Council of the Indian Society for Training and Development for over 15 years. Mentoring and coaching are some of his deeper interests and he has played an important role in shaping the careers of several young entrepreneurs. He has a Bachelors’ degree in Engineering (1973) and has the distinction of being a topper at the Punjab University.