Dr. Monica Nayyar Patnaik is a seasoned management professional with 31 years of experience and serves as Director of Eastern Media Limited, Sambad Group—Odisha’s No. 1 media house. Its portfolio includes the Odia daily Sambad, Radio Choklate 104 FM, Kanak News, Sambad Digital, and Ama Odisha. She holds national leadership roles as a governing body member of FICCI-Media & Entertainment Committee, AROI, and the Managing Committee of IAA India.

An alumnus of Delhi Public School (RK Puram) and Hindu College, she pursued post-graduation in Molecular Biology at Delhi University with fellowships from IISc Bangalore. She holds a PhD in Management from KIIT University and completed a leadership course from the University of Oxford. A former soft skills trainer for IBM and Infosys, Dr. Patnaik is a regular speaker at national media fora and a yoga and dance enthusiast.