In a sudden and shocking leadership change in Indias’ largest IT services company, Rajesh Gopinathan, managing director & CEO of TCS, has tendered his resignation after a successful six-year stint. K Krithivasan has been appointed as the Chief Executive Officer-designate, effective from March 16, 2023

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The street has been taken by surprise by this development as just last year, in March 2022, Rajesh was reappointed as MD and CEO for a period of five years which ends only in Feb 2027. The reasons for the sudden exit are personal as his statement reads below, the immediate reaction on the stock could be negative is what analysts have to say as the street grapples and digests this development.

The leadership change in this case is likely to be a smooth transition, as Gopinathan will continue with the company till September 15, 2023, to provide transition and support to his successorKrithivasan. And true to the tradition of TCS, the new CEO is also an insider. Krithivasan is presently President and Global Head of the Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance (BFSI) Business Group at TCS. BFSI is the largest vertical for TCS and contributes around 32 percent to its overall revenues. Krithivasan is also a TCS insider and has been part of the global technology sector for over 34 years, having joined TCS in 1989. During his tenure at TCS, he has held leadership roles in delivery, customer relationship management, large program management and sales.

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Gopinathansaid in a press statement ; “I have thoroughly enjoyed my exciting 22-year tenure at TCS. It has been a pleasure working closely with Chandra, who has mentored me through this entire period. The last six years of leading this iconic organisation have been most enriching and fulfilling, adding over $10 billion in incremental revenues and over $70 billion increase in market capitalisation.”

Rajesh went on to add, “I have been harbouring a few ideas on what I want to do in the next phase of my life. After deep reflection and in discussion with the Chairman and the Board, we decided that the end of this fiscal year is a good time for me to step aside and pursue those interests. Having worked with Krithi over the last two decades, I am confident that he is best positioned to take TCS to greater heights along with the leadership team. I will be working closely with Krithi to give him all the support that he needs.”

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N Chandrasekaran, Chairman, TCS, who was his predecessor, said; “I have had the pleasure of working with Rajesh for the past 25 years. During this period, Rajesh has always distinguished himself with exemplary performance in various roles, including his former role as the Chief Financial Officer. Over the last six years, Rajesh has provided strong leadership as the MD & CEO and has laid the foundation for the next phase of TCS’ growth with significant investments in cloud, agile and automation to help clients accelerate their transformation. I am deeply appreciative of Rajesh’s enormous contribution to TCS. I wish him the very best for the future.”

Shares of Tata Consultancy Services Ltd ended at Rs 3,184.75, down by Rs 14.00, or 0.44 percent on the BSE.

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(Edited by : Pradeep John)

First Published:Mar 16, 2023 8:03 PM IST