Tuesday Aug 25, 2026
Tuesday Aug 25, 2026
Tuesday, 25 August 2026 06:33 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
From left: Adfactors PR Co-founder and Chairman Rajesh Chaturvedi, Adfactors PR Co-founder and Managing Director Madan Bahal, Adfactors PR Chief Executive Officer Nijay N. Nair, SenateSHJ Co-founder and Chair Angela Scaffidi AM, and Adfactors PR Lanka Founding Chief Executive Officer Rezani Aziz
Adfactors PR, India’s largest reputation and critical issues advisory has acquired a majority stake in SenateSHJ, one of Australia’s most successful independent communication consultancies.
The transaction brings together two independent firms with complementary strengths, beliefs, a shared commitment to outstanding work and a common ambition to help their clients navigate reputation, stakeholder issues and change in an increasingly complex environment.
SenateSHJ will retain its identity, client teams under the leadership of Co-founder and Chair Angela Scaffidi AM and Chief Executive Officer Darren Behar. The business will continue to operate from its offices in Sydney and Melbourne. Adfactors PR Chief Executive Officer Nijay N. Nair, who also leads all M&A and global initiatives, will join the SenateSHJ board.
Adfactors PR Co-founder and Managing Director Madan Bahal said, “SenateSHJ is a formidable business with an outstanding reputation, exceptional leadership and proven expertise in solving complex communication challenges. There is a strong alignment in the way our two organisations think about the world, clients, people and the role we can play in shaping the future.
India and Australia are emerging as a strategic business corridor, and we trust the new partnership will help clients in both markets to create new opportunities in the wider Asia Pacific region. We hope to explore more opportunities in the region to create a strong Asia Pacific presence.”
Adfactors PR Co-founder and Chairman Rajesh Chaturvedi said, “We have had the privilege of serving India Inc. for the last 29 years through many cycles in the global and domestic business environment. I am happy that with this new partnership our relationship capital will expand to a significant market like Australia.”
SenateSHJ Co-founder and Chair Angela Scaffidi AM said, “We’re incredibly proud of the business SenateSHJ has become over the past 24 years – our people, the work we do and our relationships with clients. We have built a relationship of deep trust with Adfactors PR over the past decade. We feel a deep connection to the way they think and feel about the world, their people and the work they do with clients. There is strong alignment and great respect. The problems clients bring us increasingly cross borders. Being part of a group with real scale across India, Asia Pacific and beyond means we can help them with more of those problems – without changing what has made this firm what it is.”
Adfactors PR Lanka Founding Chief Executive Officer Rezani Aziz said: “When Adfactors PR first decided to expand outside of India, Sri Lanka was a natural fit. The intent then as now was to build a firm that serves as the gold standard to earn influence and reputation consulting, not just India Inc., but enterprises across Asia. This partnership is a milestone in that journey. For Sri Lankan companies, Australia represents an important market for apparel, tea and rubber, and a long-standing source of investment, education and community ties. Boards here are increasingly making decisions that play out in more than one market at a time, and reputation travels with trade. Being part of a group with depth in South Asia and now Australia, means our clients get counsel that understands how to grow reputation across borders.”
For Adfactors PR, the investment represents a significant expansion of its presence and capabilities in the Asia Pacific region. For SenateSHJ, it provides access to scale and an international network while creating new opportunities to grow its own expertise, intellectual property and impact.
