Iona Fonseca, Human Resources Executive at Infectious Advertising since July 2023, was Executive Assistant at Rediffusion Mumbai for close to 26 years. She is no more.
We invited Infectious’ Nisha Singhania and ADK Global’s Neville Medhora, both of whom had worked with her at Rediffusion, to pen a few lines in remembrance.
‘An irreplaceable loss professionally and personally’
Quiet, unassuming and a thorough professional is what she comes across if you’ve just met her. However once you get to know her a little better you realise she’s witty, fun, sensitive, caring, can make instant connections with people and can get anything done.
I’ve had the privilege of working with Iona twice and both times have been an absolute delight. She joined us as HR manager at Infectious a couple of months back and was instrumental in putting together a lot of policies.
She is going to be an irreplaceable loss both professionally and personally.
You go girl. Am sure you’ll be making the Gods smile up there.
- Nisha Singhania, CEO and Managing Partner, Infectious Advertising
‘Her contribution was not just to work, but also to our emotional and mental well being’
Io’s passing elicited a universal outpouring of grief from generations of Rediffites. Her popularity cut through departments and levels alike. Her impact on all of us was immense and our heart goes out to her husband Sachin and the rest of the Fonseca family.
My first impression of Iona was that she was a tough cookie, intimidating and proudly possessive of the agency and the people she worked with. While all of this was true, she also had another softer and quirkier side. Her wit and sense of timing was impeccable. She never bothered to temper it, she said it like it was, to juniors or seniors. She knew exactly what was needed to keep the agency well oiled and functioning smoothly.
Everyone came to Io when they had a problem, whether it was a process issue or a personality clash or just missing a WIP meeting deadline. Io calmly doled out advice and compassion. Her lunch sessions were mini pow-wows with diverse groups exchanging food, gossip, catching up on the work others were doing and just fostering the Rediff vibe which was so prevalent in those days.
Her contribution was not just to work, but also to the emotional and mental well being of all of us. She never forgot a birthday or anniversary and would get cheesed off if you forgot hers!
Rest in peace Fonseca, we will miss you
And her reply probably would be, “Medhora… get your act together.”
- Neville Medhora, Chief Transformation Officer – APAC, ADK Global
Feedback: [email protected]
