Indian IT services giant Wipro has announced the promotion of six employees to senior vice-president roles and 25 others to vice-president roles in a bid to address senior-level attrition and bolster its internal leadership. According to Reuters, two internal memos obtained by the news agency revealed the move comes in the wake of significant departures from Wipro’s senior ranks over the past year, including notable figures such as Finance Chief Jatin Dalal, Chief Growth Officer Stephanie Trautman, and Digital and Cloud Head Barath Narayanan.
Industry analysts perceive these promotions as a strategic effort by Wipro to retain talent and curb attrition rates, a sentiment echoed by Sundar Eshwar, an executive at staffing firm Xpheno. Data from Xpheno indicates a decline in attrition across assistant vice-president (AVP), vice-president (VP), and senior vice-president (SVP) roles in India’s IT and consulting sector, down to 11 per cent in fiscal 2024.
Wipro has confirmed the promotions, pointing out its commitment to nurturing internal leadership. However, analysts note a decrease in the number of senior promotions compared to previous cycles, suggesting a correlation with the company’s performance, which is expected to show a decline in revenue for the fiscal year.
CEO Thierry Delaporte leads Wipro through this transitional period, with the company likely to be the only one among India’s top four IT firms experiencing a revenue downturn. Analysts speculate that the reduced number of promotions may allow Wipro to focus on hiring specialised talent in the coming years.
Key executives elevated to senior vice-president roles include Chief Delivery Officer Ajit Mahale, healthcare portfolio leader Anuj Kumar, Capco CFO Benjamin Simon, Canada country head Kim Watson, Europe Cloud sales head Srinivasaa HG, and the head of its Cloud arm’s strategy and execution, Satish K.