LinkedIn India’s Director of Marketing Solutions Virginia Sharma resigns

• Virginia Sharma took to LinkedIn to bid adieu to her colleagues and commemorate what the past six years have been like.
• However, like all of us, LinkedIn's former Marketing Director did not expect the huge wave of economic and social slowdown that Coronavirus brought to our country. She started having cold feet shortly after resigning.
• Now, Sharma has set three ‘interstitial’ goals in her mind to get through this tough time and help people around her, here is what they are.

LinkedIn India’s Director of Marketing Solutions Virginia Sharma has resigned from her post.

Sharma took to LinkedIn to bid adieu to her colleagues and commemorate what the past six years working with the platform has been like.

She said, “After almost six exceptional and life changing years at Linkedin I have found my moment to move to my #nextplay. This decision was largely driven by the strength of the business I have been part of over the last four years. Linkedin India is one of the fastest growing markets in the world and our Marketing Solutions business is overachieving across segments. I am incredibly proud of and grateful to the team we have built during this time – people who are some of the best digital sales and marketing professionals in the industry, and I leave the business in great shape and in great hands. I am looking forward to bringing all of this experience to my next play, which will be announced early May. I will continue to be based in Gurgaon, India and remain in the digital media and advertising fraternity, so not going very far at all!”

When Sharma had made the decision to move on from LinkedIn earlier this year, she said that she had a very different plan in mind for her time off. She was going to be hosting a Contentment Retreat in Colombo for working women. She had also decided to travel to Israel to meet tech startups as part of her doctorate research and to visit Bhutan for a mini break before starting her new role.

However, like all of us, LinkedIn's former Marketing Director did not expect the huge wave of economic and social slowdown that Coronavirus brought to our country. She started having cold feet shortly after resigning.

She reminded herself what her purpose of taking a detour was. In this time of house arrest, Sharma hopes to support her community, especially the most vulnerable.

In her blog named ‘My career interstitial,’ she wrote, “When the gravity and reality of the COVID-19 pandemic hit and we started working from home and social distancing, I felt rudderless for a while. I even had cold feet. "Everything was going well, what have I done?!" And then I reminded myself of my purpose, which is to level the playing field, especially for the forgotten and the neglected. Anchoring on my purpose helped me refocus my time and energy. I realized that I don’t need to leave my home to pursue my purpose and this gives me a lot to look forward to over the coming weeks, a window I call my career ‘interstitial’.”

Sharma has now set three clear ‘interstitial’ goals in her mind to get through this tough time and help people around her.

She is planning to volunteer in her housing community to check in with senior citizens, support her building staff, and pass on her wisdom to entrepreneurs and career-starters who are also facing the headwinds of an impending recession. Last but not least, help raise awareness about mental health during these depressing days.

On why she thinks it is important to spread positivity today more than ever, she wrote, “As some of us experienced firsthand during the recession, in the face of loneliness, job loss and financial insecurity, many people turned to alcohol, drugs and violence to cope. There is no stigma associated with the flu, but mental health is still not talked about openly. When I experienced an anxiety attack in 2013, I contacted a counselor, who was able to really help me recover and I came out even stronger. There is no shame in seeking help.”

She further said that she feels fortunate that she has mental, physical, emotional and financial capacity to help close the gap but she also wants to use her time wisely.

Sharma closed her goodbye post by saying, “As we say in advertising, never waste a good interstitial, make sure it is a service not an interruption for the audience!”