Gaurav Kharod has been appointed as the regional vice president for Intelsat's Asia Pacific (APAC) region. Intelsat is the owner of one of the largest integrated satellite and terrestrial networks in the world and a pioneer in inflight connectivity (IFC). Kharod is a former managing sales director for South Asia and India at the Intelsat office in India.
Terry Bleakley, who formerly served as the APAC team's manager, will be replaced by Kharod in these duties. On April 1, Bleakley will move into a part-time senior adviser position at Intelsat and continue to support significant development prospects in the area.
"Intelsat is on an ambitious growth trajectory in the APAC market, and Gaurav brings with him the expertise that will help us achieve these goals," said Senior Vice President, Global Sales, Network and Media, Jean-Philippe Gillet. "I look forward to achieving many milestones under Gaurav's leadership in the region."
In his previous position, Kharod oversaw the Media business sales team, which he used to direct the company's regional strategy. For Intelsat's high throughput satellite (HTS) IS-33e, Kharod also designed a successful entry method. This produced a growth plan for all of Intelsat's business divisions, including Media, Networks, FlexMaritime, and Commercial Aviation, so that they could completely penetrate the Indian and South Asian markets.
Prior to working for Intelsat, Kharod had executive positions at Hughes India, Viasat Inc., and Conax AS, all of which were in the satellite sector. His background includes skills in sales, product management, company development, regulatory issues, and policy matters.
As part of his academic education in Gujarat, India, Kharod possesses a bachelor's degree in electronics engineering as well as an MBA.