Rajesh Gopinathan has decided to step down as the Managing Director & CEO of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) six years after taking over the job when N Chandrasekaran was elevated as the Chairman of Tata Sons.

While the reason for Gopinathan’s sudden exit is not immediately clear, the company said that he wanted to pursue his other interests.

Video Credit: By special arrangement from TCS

Gopinathan was with TCS for over 22 years and was the Chief Financial Officer before taking on the top job. Industry experts said that Gopinathan’s exit is surprising because he was hand-picked by Chandrasekaran to lead the Tata group’s crown jewel.

“Gopinathan steered TCS through some difficult times over the last few years and had set up a strategy to take advantage of the growing digital opportunities,” said an expert.

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Gopinathan will continue with the company till September 15, 2023 to provide transition and support to his successor.

The TCS Board has nominated K Krithivasan as the CEO Designate with effect from March 16, 2023. Krithivasan will go through a transition with Gopinathan and will be appointed as the Managing Director & CEO in the next financial year.

N Chandrasekaran, Chairman, TCS, 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 6 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.”

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Rajesh Gopinathan, MD & CEO, TCS, said; “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 $70Bn increase in market capitalization.”

“I have been harboring 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,” he added.

Krithivasan is presently President and Global Head of the banking, financial services, and insurance (BFSI) business group at Tata Consultancy Services. Krithivasan has been part of the global technology sector for over 34 years, having joined Tata Consultancy Services in 1989. During his long tenure at TCS, he has held various leadership roles in delivery, customer relationship management, large program management and sales.

Krithivasan is also a member of the Board of Directors of TCS Iberoamerica, TCS Ireland and the supervisory board of TCS Technology Solutions AG. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Madras and a Master’s Degree in Industrial and Management Engineering from IIT Kanpur.

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