WIPRO: CEO Delaporte quits, Srinivas Pallia takes over

Indian origin Srinivas Pallia’s appointment as Wipro’s new MD and CEO is expected to have a positive impact on the multinational IT company’s stocks, industry watchers feel. Pallia was appointed “effective immediately” for a period of five years, following Thierry Delaporte’s exit from the position on Saturday. Pallia will be based in New Jersey and report to Wipro chairman Rishad Premji.

The new CEO-MD’s appointment comes less than a fortnight before Wipro’s scheduled declaration of its fourth quarter and full-year income for 2023-24 on April 19. Over the past year, the software company has been in the headlines following exits of several senior executives including chief growth officer Stephanie Trautman and CFO Jatin Dalal. Wipro had also seen a decline of around 12 per cent in consolidated net profit, at Rs 2,694.2 crore, in the third quarter of 2023, although price of the company’s shares rose around 31 per cent over the past year.

“He (Pallia) succeeds Thierry Delaporte, who, after spearheading a significant transformation at Wipro for the last four years, is stepping down to pursue passions outside the workplace,” the company said.

Srinivas Pallia, or Srini Pallia as he is widely known, has “a career spanning over three decades and a deep and broad background across Wipro’s various geographies, functions, service lines, and business units, Srini brings a wealth of knowledge and insight to his role”, his official LinkedIn profile informs, adding: “His unwavering commitment to client satisfaction, his relentless focus on delivering results, and his extensive first-hand experience of significant technological changes and industry transformations further enhance Wipro’s position.”

“Having joined Wipro in 1992, Srini has held numerous leadership roles, including President of Wipro’s Consumer Business Unit and Global Head of Business Application Services. Most recently, he served as the CEO for Americas 1, Wipro’s largest and fastest-growing market. In this role, Srini led a wide range of industry sectors and was responsible for establishing their vision, as well as shaping and implementing growth strategies,” Pallia’s LinkedIn profile adds.

“Srini holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering, and a master’s in management studies from Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. He graduated from Harvard Business School’s Leading Global Businesses executive program, and the Advanced Leadership Program at McGill Executive Institute. An avid hiker, Srini lives in New Jersey with his family,” the social media page further states.

According to a Wipro release, Pallia brings to his new role an extensive institutional and industry knowledge, as well as a strong track record of leadership through some of the most significant technological shifts the industry has seen. Pallia on his part said Wipro was among those rare companies that combined profit with purpose, adding he was “truly honoured to have been chosen to lead this iconic institution”.

On Delaporte, Wipro said the former CEO would be relieved with effect from the closing of business hours on May 31, 2024.

“The Board of Directors has approved the appointment of Srinivas Pallia as the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of the company with effect from April 7, 2024, for a period of five years, subject to the approval of shareholders and the Central Government as may be applicable,” Wipro informed in a BSE filing on Saturday,

Indian software giant Wipro is a $11.3 billion global information technology, consulting and business process services company with over 245,000 employees in 65 countries across six continents.