Tata Sons appoints Roopa Purushothaman as chief economist and head, policy advocacy; Banmali Agrawala appointed President, Tata Sons; Aarthi Subramanian is new group chief digital officer

August 24, 2017: Tata Sons appoints Roopa Purushothaman as chief economist and head, policy advocacy

Mumbai: Tata Sons today announced the appointment of Roopa Purushothaman as chief economist and head of policy advocacy. In her role, Ms Purushothaman will drive macro-economic research as well as all policy and advocacy initiatives as relevant to the businesses of the Tata group. She will join the group with effect from September 1, 2017.

Ms Purushothaman joins Tata Sons from Everstone Capital, where she was leading the research function. Before that, she was with Goldman Sachs International as vice president and global economist. She has worked in New York, London and Mumbai. In her longstanding career, Ms Purushothaman has published research papers covering a wide range of topics, including the path-breaking research on BRIC countries. 

N Chandrasekaran, Executive Chairman of Tata Sons, said, “I am very delighted to have Roopa as part of the team at Tata Sons. Roopa’s deep knowledge on economic matters and trends, public policy and advocacy will be extremely valuable. Her passion and engagement in the social sector will help her widely contribute to the community initiative”.

Ms Purushothaman said, “The Tata group is a one-of-a-kind institution that plays a pivotal and multifaceted role in India’s economic development. To be a part of this group, during this period in India’s growth story, is truly a unique opportunity. I look forward to getting to work and deepening our collective understanding of macro patterns and demographic dynamics as they play out over the coming years”.

Ms Purushothaman is a graduate from Yale University, and has a post-graduate degree from the London School of Economics. She is also the founder of Avasara Leadership Institute, a non-profit educational institution focusing on accelerating academic and leadership outcomes for high potential adolescent girls in India.

August 23, 2017: Banmali Agrawala appointed President, Tata Sons

Mumbai: Tata Sons today announced the appointment of Banmali Agrawala as President, Infrastructure, Defence and Aerospace. He will report to the Executive Chairman, N Chandrasekaran, in his new role.

“The Tata group has a significant footprint in the infrastructure, defence and aerospace sectors. Banmali’s global experience in these industries will be very beneficial as we build scale and aspire for the next phase of growth. As part of the Tata Sons leadership team, his knowledge in several areas, including leadership development, digital infrastructure, innovation and technology, will be very beneficial to the Tata group,” Mr Chandrasekaran said.

“I am delighted to be back as part of the Tata group and contribute towards the phenomenal opportunities that the Tata group has in the core infrastructure-related sectors, in India as well as globally. I was privileged to be part of GE for close to six years and have learnt a lot at GE. I look forward to taking all my learnings and experience from GE onto my new role at Tata Sons,” Mr Agrawala said.

Mr Agrawala will assume his new role on October 1, 2017. Prior to this, he was President and CEO of GE South Asia, a position he held since February 2013. Earlier, Mr Agrawala was the executive director on the Board of Tata Power.

July 13, 2017: Tata Sons announces appointment of new group chief digital officer

Mumbai: Tata Sons today announced the appointment of Aarthi Subramanian as the Tata group’s chief digital officer. Ms Subramanian will report to N Chandrasekaran, Executive Chairman of Tata Sons, in her new role.

A professional with over 26 years of experience in the global technology sector, Ms Subramanian started her career with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and worked in diverse roles in India, Sweden, the US and Canada, thereby gaining rich experience in consulting engagements and executing large-scale technology projects as well as in operations and programme management. 

She is currently executive director at TCS, responsible for driving the company’s digital foray, excellence in customer engagement and delivery governance. She has also been responsible for leading key initiatives such as digital, agile and operational excellence in TCS. Ms Subramanian will continue to serve on the Board of TCS as a non-executive director.

Mr Chandrasekaran, Executive Chairman, Tata Sons, said, “Aarthi has a great track record of successfully leading large teams to achieve excellence in customer service delivery and she has been a strong advocate of proactive value addition for customers. As the group chief digital officer, she will play a key role in driving digital adoption across group companies as well as the group’s digital initiatives. Having worked with Aarthi for many years, I know that her experience and commitment will be very valuable in building a Tata group that is ready to rise in the digital economy”.

“I am delighted to have the opportunity to work under Chandra’s leadership again. The Tata group is a unique institution with great strengths and it will be my endeavour to help the group capture many new economic opportunities that are emerging from the digital economy,” said Ms Subramanian.

Ms Subramanian is a graduate of computer science from the National Institute of Technology, Warangal, India, and holds a master’s degree in Engineering Management from University of Kansas, US.

She will up take up the new role in August 2017.