IT major Wipro, in just the last week, has seen two top level exits under its new CEO, Srini Pallia. The change in leadership, is expected to trigger some more exits in the organisation, talent brought in by the ex-CEO, Thierry Delaporte are more likely to exit. 

In the last week, Anis Chenchah, President-Asia Pacific, India, Middle East and Africa (APMEA), and Chief Operating Officer (COO) Amit Choudhary, quit the company. Both Chenchah and Choudhary, were Ex-Capgemini executives who joined after Delaporte assumed the role of CEO, after quitting from his stint at Capgemini. 

Under Delaporte’s leadership, over a dozen executives were hired from peer organisations, including Delaporte’s ex employer Capgemini. Given Delaporte’s exit before his term ended, analysts note there is a possibility more exits may happen. 

Pareekh Jain, CEO at Pareekh Consulting and EIIRTrend said, “Whenever there is a leadership transition, senior level management also changes, so the same thing is happening at Wipro. Most of Thierry’s hires, made in the last two-three years, especially the external hires, might decide to move out, if they do not like working in the new setup.” 

Not just the executives brought in by Delaporte, other senior-level leaders might exit too, as change in leadership, always means change in direction and strategies. Executives who would find their role different than expected under the new structure, might decide to quit, he added. The same trend was also seen in Cognizant and Tech Mahindra following leadership change. 

Even before Pallia assumed the role of CEO, Wipro was seeing constant senior-level executives. Under Delaporte, numerous executives left Wipro, as, they did not get accustomed to the changes made by Delaporte, in a bid to transform the company, as analysts had noted earlier. Delaporte has been critiqued by industry experts for the frequent departure of executives under his reign, and this was one issue, that the new CEO was expected to get under control. 

Even as senior level exodus has continued after Pallia, analysts note, this could only be a short term issue, as, the company is now actively promoting internal candidates to the roles being opened. Chenchah’s replacement Vinay Firake, for example, has been with Wipro for 25 years. This move is incentivising executives, as, they are seeing more opportunities within the organisation, noted Jain. 

Related Topics