Aerathe Rajeev Nair

Senior Program Manager, Product & Design
Lollypop Design Studio

I build the systems that let design organisations deliver predictably, at scale, without friction, through change, with precision, in sync and with quality.

11+ years leading cross-functional execution across digital product delivery, design & research operations, broadcast media and GTM execution.

110+Product initiatives governed
50+Product initiatives delivered
55% → 70%Billable utilisation
20% → 4.7%Unplanned project overruns

Clients I've managed

  • JK Cement
  • BCG
  • Pepsi
  • boAt
  • SonyLIV
  • ACT Fibernet
  • Axis Bank
  • Reliance
  • Cultfit
  • IndiaMART
  • GreenSM
  • Sucafina
  • Praan Health
  • Tattva
  • MoneyPlanned
  • RF Poker
  • KVB
  • Jaro Education
  • BBQ Nation

Selected work

Products & experiences I've delivered

My role at Lollypop

I lead program management for a global design studio.

Lollypop Design Studio is a global UX and research agency. I lead program management, connecting business demand, design capacity and delivery execution across a portfolio of client engagements.

What I lead

11
Project Managers led
35+
Concurrent engagements

The studio I run delivery across

250+
Product designers
7
Delivery centres

How I lead, from studio to engagement

01 · Organisation Portfolio operations & commercial governance
  • Align demand with capacityConnect pipeline demand, resource availability and skill mix to inform staffing and prioritisation.
  • Make portfolio health visibleSurface delivery health, utilisation, risks and trade-offs through portfolio reporting that enables faster leadership decisions.
  • Connect delivery with business operationsCoordinate estimates, scoping, commercial changes and cross-functional workflows with Finance and other business stakeholders.
02 · Team People, capacity & operating discipline
  • Develop Project ManagersCoach 11 PMs on estimation, planning, scope management and stakeholder communication.
  • Balance capacity and prioritiesAlign resource allocation and team capabilities with competing demands and delivery commitments.
  • Establish clear accountabilityStandardise ways of working, governance cadences and escalation paths across the PM function.
03 · Engagement Scope, alignment & delivery assurance
  • Turn business needs into delivery plansTranslate requirements into clear scope, estimates, milestones and delivery expectations.
  • Align cross-functional teamsBring design, product, engineering and business stakeholders together around feasibility, dependencies and priorities.
  • Intervene before delivery slipsSurface risks early, manage scope changes and lead recovery when engagements go off track.

Case studies

Program mandates I've led, end to end

How I solve problems

Problems I've solved, and how

Diagnose the root problemInvolve stakeholdersDecide on evidencePilot before rollout

1 / 9

About

I build the conditions for good teams to do their best work.

Aerathe Rajeev Nair smiling, in a sunlit wooden room

My career has taken me from ad sales in Goa through SaaS, marketing operations and broadcast media to digital product delivery. I joined Lollypop Design Studio in 2022, where I found the intersection of design, people, business and operations that now defines my work.

At Lollypop, I progressed from Project Manager to leading the program management function. Along the way, my focus expanded from delivering individual engagements to improving how teams plan, collaborate, manage capacity and deliver across a portfolio.

The scale changed. The principle stayed the same: give people clarity, remove unnecessary friction and build systems that help good work happen.

  1. Ad salesGoa
  2. SaaS and marketing operationsOnboarding, campaigns
  3. Broadcast media24×7 content operation
  4. Lollypop Design Studio2022 to now: Project Manager to Program Lead

Field notes

Thought pieces from running design programs

View all articles

Outside work

I free-dive, and I film people, places and moments that intrigue me.

The same instincts carry into my work: noticing what others miss, staying calm under pressure, and paying attention to the human in the frame.

Free-diving film · 1:26Watch on Instagram
More on Instagram · @oceansaerathe

Contact

Let’s talk about complex programs, operating models and better ways of working.

LinkedIn Download resume