Telecom major Bharti Airtel announced that Shashwat Sharma, currently the Chief Operating Officer, will be appointed Managing Director and CEO on January 1, 2026.
On that date, the current MD and CEO, Gopal Vittal, will transition to the role of Executive Vice Chairman.
“In preparation for this role, Sharma is being appointed CEO designate of the Company. As the CEO designate, Shashwat will be responsible for the entire end-to-end consumer business. Gopal Vittal will be responsible for mentoring and grooming Shashwat to take over as MD & CEO of Bharti Airtel Ltd,” said the telecom firm.
“Gopal Vittal has led Bharti Airtel as Managing Director & CEO for the last twelve years. In this period, Airtel has built a winning portfolio of businesses across mobile, B2B, Home Broadband, DTH and digital services. Even in mobile, an intensely competitive space, Airtel has seen its revenue market share grow from 30% to 40%. In addition to strong business performance, Airtel has built a resilient organization, with best-in-class talent, world class digital capabilities, tech enablement and a strong set of values. Customer obsession and digital capabilities embedded in its talent pool secures its future. The capital markets acknowledge this with a five-fold increase in the market capitalisation of the company to well over $100 billion,” said the company in a regulatory filing.
As part of a structured succession process, Vittal will also serve as Vice Chairman of Bharti Airtel Ltd. In this capacity, while continuing to lead the India business, he will take on broader responsibilities across the group. Vittal will join the Board of Airtel Africa Plc as a nominee director to provide strategic guidance. He will also be responsible for driving group synergies in areas such as network strategy, digital and technology, procurement, and talent.
From: financialexpress
Financial News
