Binny Mathews joins Accenture

Binny Mathews quits IT major, Infosys to join rival firm Accenture, as Chief Procurement Officer and head of the company’s Procurement Plus (P+) capability, effective from 3 January. An Infosys veteran for 15 years, Mathews, was the former Senior Vice President and Group Head of Procurement at Infosys. At Accenture, he is expected to steer the company’s global procurement spending strategies, which include transforming the company’s supply chain into a sustainable, diverse value chain, and 360° supplier partnerships. Mathews will be responsible for Accenture’s global leadership reflecting strategic buying, sustainability, transparency, agility, and inclusivity and advancements in collaborating with their global suppliers across their worldwide marketplace. His responsibilities entail enhancing the company’s power innovation, growth and business continuity, and ensuring global strategy based on local demand. Before joining Infosys, his professional career earmarked leadership positions at the Tata Group and FreeMarkets (now SAP Ariba). At Marico, he developed innovative and data-driven approaches related to sustainable procurement. Mathews has been on the board of Infosys Portland and is an existing member of the Advisory Board for the Green Supply Chain Management (GSCM) MBA programme at the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Udaipur. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Science (B.Sc.) and an MBA qualification. It is ironic that whilst IT giant Infosys, is currently in the midst of a poaching war against the other IT major, Cognizant, it has lost yet another seasoned senior executive in Mathews. Infosys had sent a strong communication to its rival firm Cognizant, accusing the firm of unethical poaching techniques.

AkzoNobel appoints Rajiv Rajgopal as new BU Director

Paint manufacturer AkzoNobel appoints Rajiv Rajgopal as the new Business Unit Director, South Asia for decorative paints, effective January 2024. He will concurrently continue his role as the chairman and managing director of AkzoNobel India Ltd and has a consolidated designation as the BU Director -South Asia, Decorative Paints, Chairman and Managing Director, AkzoNobel India Limited. Rajgopal’s new post is a part of AkzoNobel's re-building of its organisational structure for its paints business in South Asia. The company has designated India as the regional headquarters, aiming to accelerate the company's growth and enhance its market in the region. He took charge as MD in November 2018, having joined AkzoNobel in 2013 as Director of Sales and Marketing, Decorative Paints. In AkzoNobel India, he has played multiple leadership roles, including Regional Director, Performance Coatings, Middle East and Africa in January 2017, and also served on the boards of several AkzoNobel group companies in the Middle East and Africa. With a career spanning diverse industries, before joining AkzoNobel, he had a stint as CEO of Broadband & Data at Airtel India and worked with Hindustan Unilever and BP/ Castrol India in sales, marketing and business leadership roles. He has a Chemical Engineering degree from the University of Mumbai and an MMS in Marketing from SP Jain.

iD Fresh Food ropes in Marico’s Diwaker

Rajat Diwaker joins Bengaluru-based fresh food brand iD Fresh Food as the India CEO, as part of the company’s growth strategy, in accelerating its local-to-global strategy. To strengthen its global leadership team, the company is in the process of appointing dedicated business heads and CEOs for each of its international markets. Diwaker replaces co-founder P C Musthafa, who led iD Fresh for nearly two decades and will move on as the Global CEO. An FMCG industry stalwart, Diwakar has 20+ years of industry experience, and was the former Managing Director of Marico Bangladesh Ltd., before his appointment with iD Fresh. Diwaker is expected to steer iD Fresh’s efforts towards sustainable business growth and innovation, portfolio expansion, widening distribution, and expanding its manufacturing footprint. He is also a director on the board of the Foreign Investors Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) Bangladesh. He began his career with Pidilite Industries, moving on to GE. He fulfilled his stint with PepsiCo across two innings from 2007 to 2010 and from 2014-2019. In the interim, he played multiple roles including that of Associate Director, Food, Health and Beauty at Disney Consumer Products (The Walt Disney Company). His last stint before joining iD Fresh Foods was that of the Managing Director with Marico Bangladesh Limited and previously as Marico’s Division Head, South. He is an alumnus of the Institute of Management Technology (IMT), Ghaziab

Bayer Zydus Pharma promotes Shweta Rai as MD-CDH, South Asia

Shweta Rai takes over as the Managing Director, Bayer Zydus Pharma and Country Division Head (CDH) of Bayer’s Pharma Business, South Asia, effective January 2024, and is expected to leverage emerging growth opportunities in the region. Shweta replaces Manoj Saxena, who takes charge as the Country Division Head of Bayer’s pharmaceuticals division and as Senior Bayer Representative, Bayer Group for its Australia and New Zealand clusters. Shweta brings 22 years of her illustrious career to the table, having joined Bayer in 2019. She has professed her expertise across cardiology, diabetes, women’s health care, virology, immunology, anti-infectives, vaccines, and neurology, including orthopaedics and pain management. Her strong track record covers leading strategic and diverse teams across the pharmaceutical and medical device sectors. She kick-started her career as a Brand Manager with Pfizer, moving on to Senior Business Manager at IQVIA. Before joining Bayer, she was Director-Marketing of Johnson & Johnson. She has also had previous stints as an Associate Director with MSD (Merck Sharp & Dohme). She has received recognition as one of "India’s Businesswomen Leaders Below 40” by The Hindu publication group and is considered among the top ‘Women Leaders in the Health Care Industry by OPPI. She is also a recipient of the 2019 prestigious "SIESCOMS Women Achiever Award" on International Women’s Day. She has been featured in "A-List" India, which testifies her as one of the top 500 marketing influencers in India. She is an alumnus of Miranda House, Delhi University, and the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Calcutta

Former Infosys’s veteran joins Tech Mahindra as CPO

Richard Lobo, former Infosys Executive Vice President, joins Tech Mahindra as Chief People Officer (CPO), in a global role that forms part of Tech Mahindra’s ongoing leadership restructuring under their new CEO, Mohit Joshi. Lobo, an Infosys veteran, brings 25 years of experience across HR transformation, employee experience, diversity and inclusion, having worked with the IT services giant for over 22+ years. Lobo, a former colleague of Mohit Joshi, resigned from Infosys in August 2023 and worked as an HR Consultant and Strategic Advisor at edtech unicorn BYJU. Lobo began his career journey with Godrej & Boyce Mfg. Co as Asst Manager - Sales & Marketing. As a strategic advisor on Human Resources to startups, his work spans organisational change and transformation, scaling people processes, sustainable growth, and guiding leadership for an unparalleled working environment based on human first principles. He has been collaborating with the CII and NAASCOM in furthering indus- try-government partnerships. Lobo is an alumnus of the Xavier Institute of Management (XIM Bhubaneswar) and Manipal Institute of Technology (BE, Mechanical Engineering).

EY’s Chirag Agrawal is Head of Corporate Finance, Deloitte South Asia

Chirag Agrawal takes over as the new Head of Corporate Finance / Investment Banking, Deloitte South Asia. The financial wiz has 20+ years of Investment Banking experience on strategic mergers and acquisitions, and capital raisings (debt and equity) across public and private markets. He announced his new professional transition via a LinkedIn post early January 2024. Agrawal, a former Partner (Investment Banking) at the big four firm Ernst & Young (EY) has had previous stints with Credit Suisse (Senior Banker), Jefferies (Managing Director), Goldman Sachs (Associate), Deutsche Bank (Associate), JM Morgan Stanley (Analyst) and KPMG (Analyst). In the interim, he was Group CFO, with Energy Start-Up (2018-2019). Chirag is an alumnus of The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) and Delhi University. Deloitte has been aggressively hiring under Romal Shetty, Consulting Partner at Deloitte India, who came on board as CEO of Deloitte South Asia, for a four-year term since April 1, 2023.

Savitri Jindal records higher 2023 net worth surge than Ambani

In 2023, Savitri Jindal, Chairperson of the OP Jindal Group’s wealth grew meteorically, enhancing her net worth to around USD 9.6 billion (INR 80,000 crore approx.). While the Chairperson of Reliance Industries Ltd., Mukesh Ambani maintained his top position among India's wealthiest, Savitri Jindal's dramatic rise drew substantial attention as she became the fifth-wealthiest Indian with a net worth of $25.3 billion. Savitri Jindal’s net worth stands at USD 28.3 billion (INR 2.35 lakh crore), and as per the 2023 Forbes list of India's 100 Richest, she ranked fourth with $24 billion net worth, up by 46%. Mukesh Ambani, whose net worth is highest among Asians, registered a rise of USD 5 billion in 2023 in comparison to Savitri Jindal’s USD 9.6 billion, with a total wealth of $92.3 billion, as cited in the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Savitri Jindal broke records when she outgrew Reliance Industries (RIL) Chairman, Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani, India’s richest businessmen, in terms of wealth surge. Gautam Adani, the second-richest Indian behind Ambani, saw a decline in his net worth by $35.4 billion to $85.1 billion. Savitri Jindal was the Chairperson Emerita of O.P. Jindal Group and is the President of Maharaja Agrasen Medical College, Agroha. A politician, she was the Minister of State for Revenue and Disaster Management, Consolidation, Rehabilitation, and Housing and also the Minister of State for Urban Local Bodies and Housing in Haryana Vidhan Sabha from Hisar constituency. She began her journey from a small town in Assam, and over the period has become the beacon of inspiration for future generations to come.

Sudipta Mukherjee takes charge as MD of TEXMACO Rail

Sudipta Mukherjee has been promoted as the new Managing Director of TEX-MACO Rail & Engineering Ltd., effective from January 1, 2024. His current role now assimilates as Managing Director and Director at Texmaco, including his position as the Chairman-Barrackpore at Industrial Training Institute. TEXMACO is a premier multi-unit engineering and infrastructure company, and Mukherjee was the company’s former Deputy Managing Director. He is expected to deploy his strategic acumen and dedication to the company's success and growth. In previous job roles, he was the Executive Director at Titagarh Rail Systems Ltd and Deputy Managing Director at Adventz.

Mukherjee is an alumnus of the University of Calcutta and the Indian Institute of Social Welfare & Business Management. TEXMACO is a premier multi-unit engineering and infrastructure company, that operates six manufacturing units spanning 6.78 million sq. ft. It manufactures rolling stock including wagons, locomotive shells, castings, hydromechanical equipment, bridges, and other steel structures. It has been a leading freight car manufacturer for 80+ years.