Saturday, June 07, 2014: Micromax aims to leverage Kapoor’s vast experience ‘in building India’s biggest telecom services brand’
Micromax is not leaving any stone unturned to make its mark in the Indian market. After launching a slew of devices in all price ranges, the company is now picking up best of the industry talent. After Samsung India’s ex chief Vineet Taneja, Micromax has now hired ex Bharti Airtel CEO Sanjay Kapoor as the new chairman.
Micromax aims to leverage Kapoor’s vast experience ‘in building India’s biggest telecom services brand’. Making an announcement about the new chairman, Rahul Sharma, co-founder of Micromax Informatics Limited said, “We are glad to have Sanjay to be a part of Micromax’s promoter group and on our board as the new Chairman. Sanjay is one of the most respected professionals in the Indian corporate world and has been instrumental in building some of the most successful technology brands in the country over the past three decades. I am confident that he will be able to provide required strategic direction to take our billion dollar business to the next level of growth and expansion.”
He further added, “Sanjay’s strategic and inspirational leadership skills will certainly provide strong impetus to Micromax as we pursue our aim to be the first Indian hardware brand driving success globally. He will be instrumental in building synergies for our existing international businesses and spearhead our foray into other international markets in the near future.”
Commenting on his appointment, Sanjay Kapoor, Chairman, Micromax Informatics Limited said, “I am excited as an entrepreneur to be a part of the promoter group and as a professional to lead the Micromax board & management. I look forward to adding value to all stakeholders leveraging my strengths in building scale, developing brands and understanding consumers. There is a tremendous potential for Micromax, a vibrant youth brand that has led the democratization of technology for masses, offering affordable innovations to the consumers.”
Prior to this appointment, Kapoor was the chief executive officer for India and South Asia of Airtel (March 2010 till May 2013). He was one of the key leaders in building Bharti Airtel from being one of the many players in the industry to making it as the number one telecom player in India, during his tenure with the company from July 1998 to May 2013. He has also been a board and executive committee member of GSMA, (the global forum bringing together nearly 800 global mobile operators); board member of Indus Towers (world’s largest telecom tower company with a portfolio of more than 1 lakh towers). Presently, Kapoor is an active member on the board of Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd and PVR Limited.
Prior to joining the Bharti Group, he worked with Xerox India as director-operations support. He spent 14 years with the global document management company, handling a range of key portfolios, ranging from sales and marketing to general management functions. He began his professional career as an Executive Trainee with Jay Engineering Works Ltd., the manufacturers of Usha fans and sewing machines, in 1983. Kapoor holds a Bachelor’s degree in Commerce (Hons.) from Delhi University, an MBA from Cranfield School of Management (UK) and is a Graduate of The Wharton Advanced Management Program.
