Leading auto component manufacturing conglomerate ANAND Group has announced a significant governance and key management restructuring, in keeping with the high standards of corporate governance and succession planning the group is well known for. The Group Supervisory Board has ratified and approved the following appointments after thorough deliberations and reviews conducted over the past one year. These changes and appointments will take effect on the 15th of January 2021. Founded in 1961, the ANAND Group will celebrate its Diamond Jubilee next year. Today, the Group has 19 companies, 12 joint ventures, 7 technical collaborations, 14,000 people and 59 locations across India with a turnover of approximately ₹ 10, 000 crores (US$1.3 Billion), making it one of the largest and most respected powerhouses in the auto component domain.
Anjali Singh, Executive Chairperson of the group, and its Group Supervisory Board, will be appointed Chairperson of a re-constituted ANAND Executive Board. Additionally, Anjali will also take over as Chairperson of Spicer India, a joint venture between ANAND and Dana Incorporated, USA. She will continue to serve as Executive Chairperson of the group’s flagship company, Gabriel India, a leader in ride-control systems. As part of a new structure, two group Co-Chief Operating Officers, the group’s Chief Financial Officer, the group’s Chief Technology Officer and the group’s Chief Human Resource Officer will report directly to her. Anjali will continue in her role as a member of the Executive Committee of the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association (ACMA), and Co-Chairperson of the Northern Region, as well as Chairperson of ‘Pillar 4’ Strategic Partnerships. She will also continue on the Confederation of Indian Industry’s (CII) International Council for 2020-2021.
Jaisal Singh, Director, Group Supervisory Board, will, in addition, be appointed Vice-Chairman of a re-constituted ANAND Executive Board. Singh will also be appointed Co-Chairman of Mando Automotive India, a joint venture between ANAND and Mando Corporation, part of the Halla Group, Republic of Korea. Further to this, the group’s Chief Compliance Officer will report directly to him, and Singh will also Chair the group’s Strategic Growth Council, including Mergers & Acquisitions. He will be appointed Chairman of SUJÁN Enterprises, and continue in his elected role as Vice-President, Member of the Executive Committee, and Board of Directors of Relais & Chateaux. Singh will also continue as a Member of the Government of Rajasthan’s Standing Committee for Wildlife as well as the State Board for Wildlife, chaired by the Chief Minister of Rajasthan.
After an excellent tenure as the group’s Chief Executive Officer for 11 years, and a sterling 44-year career at ANAND, Deepak Chopra will retire as Group CEO on the 15th of January 2021. Chopra will join the Group Supervisory Board, and will Chair the Board’s Operations Committee, as well as serve as a member of the Personnel Committee. He will also have an advisory role in partnership relations and legal affairs. Further to this, Chopra will be appointed Co-Chairman Joyson ANAND Abhishek Safety Systems, a joint venture with Joyson Safety Systems, USA. In addition, he will Chair the group’s Ethics Committee. Chopra will have a role of mentoring certain key management. He shall also oversee the group’s philanthropic wing, the SNS Foundation.
Mahendra K. Goyal, Group President, will assume charge as one of two Co-Chief Operating Officers of the group, and as a member of the re-constituted ANAND Executive Board. He will continue as Managing Director of Spicer India, a joint venture between ANAND and Dana Incorporated, USA. Mahendra will be directly responsible and accountable to the ANAND Executive Board for the following group companies: Mando Automotive India, Spicer India, ANAND iPower, MAHLE ANAND Filter Systems and MAHLE ANAND Thermal Systems, ANAND’s joint venture companies with MAHLE GmbH, Germany. In addition, he will continue to be responsible and accountable for the group’s Aftermarket.
Manoj Kolhatkar, Group President, will assume charge as one of two Co-Chief Operating Officers of the group, and as a member of the re-constituted ANAND Executive Board. He shall continue as Managing Director of the group’s flagship, Gabriel India. Kolhatkar will be directly responsible and accountable to the ANAND Executive Board for the following group companies: Gabriel India, Faurecia Clean Mobility – a joint venture between ANAND and Faurecia Clean Mobility France, Valeo Friction Materials India – ANAND’s joint venture with Valeo France, both joint venture companies with CY Myutec, Korea, namely, ANAND CY Myutec Automotive and CY Myutec ANAND, as well as Anchemco and Ansysco. In addition, he will continue to head Business Development, and Materials for the group.
Jagdish Kumar, Group President, shall continue in his role as the group’s Chief Financial Officer and will be a member of the re-constituted ANAND Executive Board. He will remain Chairman of Henkel ANAND India, a joint venture between ANAND and Henkel AG & Co. KGaA, Germany, as well as a Director of Joyson ANAND Abhishek Safety Systems, a joint venture with Joyson Safety Systems, USA; he will be responsible and accountable to the ANAND Executive Board for both these companies. Group Legal, Corporate Strategy, IT, as well as Corporate Communications shall report to Kumar, who will also continue in his position as Managing Director of ANAND Automotive.
Sunil Kaul, Group President, will be appointed the group’s Chief Technology Officer, and a member of the re-constituted ANAND Executive Board. He shall continue as Chairman of the Board of Haldex India, a joint venture between ANAND and Haldex AB, Sweden, for which he will be responsible and accountable to the ANAND Executive Board. Kaul will also be responsible for the group’s Emerging Automotive Technology, start-ups, and the Excellence-in-Manufacturing, Innovation, Quality Culture, and Sustainability initiatives.
S. Sarathi, Group President, will be appointed Chief Compliance Officer, and a member of the re-constituted ANAND Executive Board. He will continue as Joint Managing Director of Mando Automotive India, a joint venture between ANAND and Mando Corporation, part of the Halla Group, Republic of Korea. As part of the new matrix structure within the ANAND Executive Board, he will be responsible for two group companies: Faurecia Clean Mobility and Valeo Friction Materials India to support the respective Group Co-COO in charge of those companies. For his role as the group’s Chief Compliance Officer, he will report directly to Jaisal Singh, Vice Chairman of the ANAND Executive Board.
Sumit Bhatnagar, Group President, will be redesignated the group’s Chief Human Resource Officer and will be a member of the re-constituted ANAND Executive Board. He will continue to head the group’s internal university, ‘ANAND U’. As part of the new matrix structure within the ANAND Executive Board he will be responsible for three group companies, MAHLE ANAND Thermal Systems, ANAND CY Myutec Automotive, and CY Myutec ANAND to support the respective Group Co-COO in charge of those companies. In his role as Chief Human Resource Officer, as well as for his role as the corporate head of Infrastructure, he will report directly to Anjali Singh, Executive Chairperson of the group.
Group Supervisory Board
• Anjali Singh, Executive Chairperson
• Jaisal Singh
• Rohit Arora (Independent)
• Lorenzo Piaget (Independent)
• Tejpreet Singh Chopra (Independent)
• Deepak Chopra
The group expressed its thanks to Aditya Narayan, who will retire from the GSB, for his contribution.