Vijay Menon
Freelance writer, author. Previously marketing head, journalist, engineer. Tell your story better.
Bangalore | vijaym@vijaymenon.com
Vijay Menon is a freelance writer and author of Innovation Stories from India Inc (Bloomsbury, 2017). He has over 30 years of experience across technology, journalism, and marketing and can help you tell your story better. Get in touch for articles, blogs, white papers, brand stories, and books.
Vijay has previously worked as vice president of marketing at QuEST and Infosys BPO, as a journalist with 'India Today' and 'Hindu Business Line', and as a nuclear engineer with DAE. He has set up and run marketing, communication, and investor relations programs, built brands, managed rebrands, and is expert at creating on-brand and audience-specific communication.
Vijay holds an M.Tech. from IIT Kanpur, has attended the Duke-Infosys management program, and is a certified creative writer and storyteller.
BOOKS
- Innovation Stories from India Inc: Their Story in Their Words, Bloomsbury, 2017
- Invited contributor, Corporate Communication - a 21st Century Primer, Response Books, 2004
- The Kalpakkam Septet, a collection of short stories. Part of a diploma in creative writing.
BUSINESS WRITING
Vijay has created and produced marketing collateral, articles, press releases, annual reports, white papers, customer and brand stories, speeches, and CEO communication as a marketing and communication professional with Ramco Systems, SSI, Polaris, Infosys BPO, and QuEST, and has written articles and white papers for IBM, Intel, AWS, Netmagic, Aequs, and others as a consultant.
MEDIA ARTICLES
As a journalist in the mid-1990s, Vijay covered science, technology, and business for India Today and Hindu Business Line. As an independent writer, he has published articles in Economic Times, Indian Express, The Hindu, Hindustan Times, and Deccan Herald. Here is a sample of stories published in India Today. The links lead to the magazine website and may or may not be current.
Shooting troubles
A host of young CEOs are rapidly altering their management styles to retain control, while empowering teams of executives to respond quickly to the changing needs of the market.
Picking their fights
Ruling in a few businesses is better than serving in many. As Indian industry can't be globally competitive in all sectors, it has to focus on businesses where the battles will be equal.
Time for a new look
With changing situations and changing needs, some state-of-the-art design concepts to make your office look good and help increase productivity.
Conserving Manpower
Companies go all out to retain job-hopping professionals
Catching Them Young
A new programme aims to give bright students a head start
Riding into controversy
Pesi Shroff's suspension sparks off a turf war
The thrill business
Boom time for amusement park industry as hi-tech equipments attract record crowds
Wheel deal
Vintage and Classic Vehicles Foundation of India organises vintage car rally in Madras
GENERAL WRITING
Vijay enjoys writing about people, places, and general topics. Examples:
The Day with the Masters tour at Kerala Kalamandalam
Over a three-hour walk around the verdant campus, visitors get to sit in on a wide range of classes from dance to music to makeup and costumes.
Eulogy for a grumpy cat
Poocha, a grumpy old semi-stray cat in Bangalore, died. You are missed, my friend.
Europe leisure travel tips for Indians
Based on a 2019 vacation in Switzerland, France, and Italy, here are some tips for the budget-conscious Indian holiday traveller.
A medicine man in Malabar
It’s a beautiful morning and it’s pleasant to be out driving in the country. We’re going to Kollengode to see a bone setter who, I’m told, might have a cure for my troubled knee.
Shadows in the lamplight
In my memories, my father's tharavad in Adakkaputhur in Palakkad district was a sprawling tiled house on acres of farmland. Much has now changed, of course.
Our Sapramanja kattil story
Manja means yellow in Malayalam and and kattil means cot. I don't know what sapra means so if you know, do tell.
In search of a lost song - dhana dhanya sasialatha
There is a song I've been searching for many years. The Bengali original is still popular but the Malayalam version is just a memory.
TALKS
Vijay has been a panellist and speaker at TiE Chennai, NMIMS business school, Bangalore Business Literature Festival, Reputation Today, Rotary Club, COFP, etc.
TESTIMONIALS
Ajit Prabhu, Chairman & CEO, QuEST Global: Vijay helped us build engineering services outsourcing as a category distinct from IT outsourcing and BPO, and helped differentiate QuEST within the category.
Aravind Melligeri, Chairman & CEO, Aequs: The Aequs corporate rebrand was a one-off project without established processes. Your creativity and spontaneous solutions to address issues as they popped up helped make it a success.
Srini Chari, Ph.D, MBA, Managing Partner, Cabot Partners: Vijay helps us create marketing communication for some of the biggest IT companies in the world. He delivers excellent work and provides candid advice that is often very valuable to our clients.
Vijay has previously worked as vice president of marketing at QuEST and Infosys BPO, as a journalist with 'India Today' and 'Hindu Business Line', and as a nuclear engineer with DAE. He has set up and run marketing, communication, and investor relations programs, built brands, managed rebrands, and is expert at creating on-brand and audience-specific communication.
Vijay holds an M.Tech. from IIT Kanpur, has attended the Duke-Infosys management program, and is a certified creative writer and storyteller.
BOOKS
- Innovation Stories from India Inc: Their Story in Their Words, Bloomsbury, 2017
- Invited contributor, Corporate Communication - a 21st Century Primer, Response Books, 2004
- The Kalpakkam Septet, a collection of short stories. Part of a diploma in creative writing.
BUSINESS WRITING
Vijay has created and produced marketing collateral, articles, press releases, annual reports, white papers, customer and brand stories, speeches, and CEO communication as a marketing and communication professional with Ramco Systems, SSI, Polaris, Infosys BPO, and QuEST, and has written articles and white papers for IBM, Intel, AWS, Netmagic, Aequs, and others as a consultant.
MEDIA ARTICLES
As a journalist in the mid-1990s, Vijay covered science, technology, and business for India Today and Hindu Business Line. As an independent writer, he has published articles in Economic Times, Indian Express, The Hindu, Hindustan Times, and Deccan Herald. Here is a sample of stories published in India Today. The links lead to the magazine website and may or may not be current.
Shooting troubles
A host of young CEOs are rapidly altering their management styles to retain control, while empowering teams of executives to respond quickly to the changing needs of the market.
Picking their fights
Ruling in a few businesses is better than serving in many. As Indian industry can't be globally competitive in all sectors, it has to focus on businesses where the battles will be equal.
Time for a new look
With changing situations and changing needs, some state-of-the-art design concepts to make your office look good and help increase productivity.
Conserving Manpower
Companies go all out to retain job-hopping professionals
Catching Them Young
A new programme aims to give bright students a head start
Riding into controversy
Pesi Shroff's suspension sparks off a turf war
The thrill business
Boom time for amusement park industry as hi-tech equipments attract record crowds
Wheel deal
Vintage and Classic Vehicles Foundation of India organises vintage car rally in Madras
GENERAL WRITING
Vijay enjoys writing about people, places, and general topics. Examples:
The Day with the Masters tour at Kerala Kalamandalam
Over a three-hour walk around the verdant campus, visitors get to sit in on a wide range of classes from dance to music to makeup and costumes.
Eulogy for a grumpy cat
Poocha, a grumpy old semi-stray cat in Bangalore, died. You are missed, my friend.
Europe leisure travel tips for Indians
Based on a 2019 vacation in Switzerland, France, and Italy, here are some tips for the budget-conscious Indian holiday traveller.
A medicine man in Malabar
It’s a beautiful morning and it’s pleasant to be out driving in the country. We’re going to Kollengode to see a bone setter who, I’m told, might have a cure for my troubled knee.
Shadows in the lamplight
In my memories, my father's tharavad in Adakkaputhur in Palakkad district was a sprawling tiled house on acres of farmland. Much has now changed, of course.
Our Sapramanja kattil story
Manja means yellow in Malayalam and and kattil means cot. I don't know what sapra means so if you know, do tell.
In search of a lost song - dhana dhanya sasialatha
There is a song I've been searching for many years. The Bengali original is still popular but the Malayalam version is just a memory.
TALKS
Vijay has been a panellist and speaker at TiE Chennai, NMIMS business school, Bangalore Business Literature Festival, Reputation Today, Rotary Club, COFP, etc.
TESTIMONIALS
Ajit Prabhu, Chairman & CEO, QuEST Global: Vijay helped us build engineering services outsourcing as a category distinct from IT outsourcing and BPO, and helped differentiate QuEST within the category.
Aravind Melligeri, Chairman & CEO, Aequs: The Aequs corporate rebrand was a one-off project without established processes. Your creativity and spontaneous solutions to address issues as they popped up helped make it a success.
Srini Chari, Ph.D, MBA, Managing Partner, Cabot Partners: Vijay helps us create marketing communication for some of the biggest IT companies in the world. He delivers excellent work and provides candid advice that is often very valuable to our clients.