Pharmaceutical company Cipla has hired Kiran Pai as head of Digital Marketing. He will be responsible for the company's online marketing initiatives. Note that he has been active in this role since March last year. Prior to Cipla, Pai worked as the Managing Director at Publicis Healthcare Communications Group for over 4 years, and was responsible for providing creative and media solutions for healthcare bands. He had also founded Watermelon Healthcare Communications, which was acquired by Publicis after 7 years. He has also worked in brand management for healthcare companies with Abbott for over 3 years . Cipla’s hiring a digital marketing head comes at a time when the pharmaceutical industry in India is looking to go online. In November, the Drug Consultative Committee (DCC) recommended the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSO) to regulate the sale of medicines on online pharmacies, for which a national portal would be created to monitor drug sale. In June, a number of online pharmacies companies had also come together to form the Indian Internet Pharmacy Association (IIPA) in order to create a level playing field between online and offline drug sellers, although this did not include Cipla.
