Rishad
Premji, elder son of Wipro promoter Azim Premji, has been appointed to
the board of directors of the $7-billion company effective May 1.
The move was widely expected. Azim Premji will be 70 in July this year, and Rishad's elevation to the board clearly indicates he will represent the ownership interest in India's third-largest IT firm. Azim Premji and family own 73.39% of the shares in the company.
Rishad, 38, joined Wipro in 2007 and has since taken on a number of critical roles. In a letter to Wipro employees, Azim Premji said: "These past eight years have given Rishad an in-depth view of the organization and makes him well positioned to guide Wipro and carry the mantle of ownership in the years ahead."
Wipro CEO T K Kurien said Rishad has been a "terrific contributor". "He's extremely hard-working and I have never seen him ever being not part of the team. In a way, while he represents ownership, I think he represents management more. It requires maturity to handle that and he has done that well over the years."
Ashok S Ganguly, independent director and chairman of the Board Governance and Nomination Committee, said Rishad "brings a unique blend of exceptional strategic insights, understanding of the technology landscape and diverse business expertise".
Rishad said it is "an absolute privilege and honour to be invited to the board of Wipro, a company built over the past 70 years on the bedrock of uncompromising integrity and the hard work of thousands of Wiproites".
Rishad did BA in economics from Wesleyan University, US, and MBA from Harvard Business School. He worked with Bain & Co for two years and with GE Capital in the US for four years.
He started in Wipro's banking and financial services vertical, and spearheaded its entry into the mortgage segment. He was given increasingly important responsibilities and currently runs strategy and mergers & acquisitions. He was recently given the additional responsibilities of overseeing the technology office, investor and government relations, Wipro Ventures, a $100-million fund focused on investing in new-age startups building cutting-edge technologies.
Peter Bendor Samuel, CEO of Everest Group, said Rishad's induction to the board had been coming for some time. "With the family owning such a large proportion of Wipro, this makes a lot of sense. If anything, the family is under-represented on the board. Rishad has certainly paid his dues working in a wide variety of roles in Wipro and learning the business," he said.
The move was widely expected. Azim Premji will be 70 in July this year, and Rishad's elevation to the board clearly indicates he will represent the ownership interest in India's third-largest IT firm. Azim Premji and family own 73.39% of the shares in the company.
Rishad, 38, joined Wipro in 2007 and has since taken on a number of critical roles. In a letter to Wipro employees, Azim Premji said: "These past eight years have given Rishad an in-depth view of the organization and makes him well positioned to guide Wipro and carry the mantle of ownership in the years ahead."
Wipro CEO T K Kurien said Rishad has been a "terrific contributor". "He's extremely hard-working and I have never seen him ever being not part of the team. In a way, while he represents ownership, I think he represents management more. It requires maturity to handle that and he has done that well over the years."
Ashok S Ganguly, independent director and chairman of the Board Governance and Nomination Committee, said Rishad "brings a unique blend of exceptional strategic insights, understanding of the technology landscape and diverse business expertise".
Rishad said it is "an absolute privilege and honour to be invited to the board of Wipro, a company built over the past 70 years on the bedrock of uncompromising integrity and the hard work of thousands of Wiproites".
Rishad did BA in economics from Wesleyan University, US, and MBA from Harvard Business School. He worked with Bain & Co for two years and with GE Capital in the US for four years.
He started in Wipro's banking and financial services vertical, and spearheaded its entry into the mortgage segment. He was given increasingly important responsibilities and currently runs strategy and mergers & acquisitions. He was recently given the additional responsibilities of overseeing the technology office, investor and government relations, Wipro Ventures, a $100-million fund focused on investing in new-age startups building cutting-edge technologies.
Peter Bendor Samuel, CEO of Everest Group, said Rishad's induction to the board had been coming for some time. "With the family owning such a large proportion of Wipro, this makes a lot of sense. If anything, the family is under-represented on the board. Rishad has certainly paid his dues working in a wide variety of roles in Wipro and learning the business," he said.
No comments:
Post a Comment