New Delhi, July 10 -- As enterprises accelerate AI adoption and modernise their technology stacks, leadership changes are increasingly reflecting new priorities around engineering, cybersecurity, data and AI governance. While the first week of July was relatively quiet for traditional CIO appointments, several organisations strengthened their technology leadership with new CTOs, Chief Data Officers, Chief AI Officers and product leaders. Here's a roundup of the most notable moves.
PhonePe gets a new CTO, Rahul Chari's role expands
PhonePe has reorganised its technology leadership as it expands beyond digital payments into lending, insurance, wealth management and other financial services. The company promoted Srijon Biswas to Chief Technology Officer (CTO), where he will lead the engineering organisation and oversee execution across PhonePe's growing technology platform.
At the same time, co-founder Rahul Chari has assumed the expanded role of Chief Product and Technology Officer (CPTO). In addition to product and technology strategy, Chari will oversee trust and safety, data science, analytics and customer experience, signalling a clearer separation between long-term technology vision and engineering execution.
Hexaware creates Chief Platform Officer role
IT services company Hexaware Technologies has appointed Srinivasan Panchapakesan as President and Chief Platform Officer, a newly created role to lead its platform-led AI strategy. He will oversee the development and integration of Hexaware's AI and cloud platforms, including Amaze, RapidX, Tensai and Agentverse, creating a unified architecture to support enterprise AI deployments across AWS, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud. Panchapakesan brings more than 35 years of industry experience, including over 27 years at Hexaware. Most recently, he served as Senior Corporate Vice President and Global Delivery Head for Digital & Software, where he played a key role in building the company's AI platforms.
Tata Communications strengthens AI-ready infrastructure leadership
Tata Communications announced two senior technology appointments as it sharpens its focus on AI-ready enterprise infrastructure. Rupesh Chokshi has joined as Executive Vice President, Global Business Head - Network Services and Chief Technology Officer (CTO). He will lead the company's network services business while driving technology strategy across AI-ready connectivity and digital infrastructure.
The company also appointed Vivek Srivastava as Executive Vice President and Business Head - Cloud and Cybersecurity Services. Bringing nearly three decades of cybersecurity and cloud experience, Srivastava will lead Tata Communications' enterprise cloud and cyber portfolio as organisations increasingly seek integrated AI, cloud and security solutions.
Meta appoints its first Chief Data Officer
Meta has named former Chief Marketing Officer Alex Schultz as its first-ever Chief Data Officer (CDO), creating a dedicated executive role to oversee enterprise-wide data strategy and governance.The appointment highlights the growing strategic importance of trusted data as AI becomes central to product development, advertising and business operations. Schultz will help strengthen how Meta manages data assets across its platforms while supporting AI-driven decision-making.
IRIS Software Group creates first Chief Data & AI Officer role
IRIS Software Group has appointed Surya Sagi as its first Chief Data and AI Officer, underscoring the company's growing investment in enterprise AI. Sagi will lead data strategy, AI governance and platform development while helping customers move from isolated AI pilots to production-scale deployments. His appointment reflects the growing convergence of data management and AI leadership within enterprise software companies.
Infojini appoints Chief AI Officer
Digital transformation firm Infojini has appointed Chakrapani K as Senior Vice President and Chief AI Officer (CAIO). Based in Hyderabad, he will lead the company's enterprise AI strategy, governance framework and AI product roadmap while driving the adoption of generative AI across customer engagements and internal operations. The appointment reflects the increasing mainstream adoption of dedicated AI leadership roles across technology services companies.
Fortinet appoints a new head of APAC
Fortinet announced the appointment of Luca Simonelli as Senior Vice President, Asia Pacific (APAC). Based in Singapore, Luca will lead Fortinet's Asia Pacific sales organisation, overseeing the company's businesses across Japan, North Asia and South Asia (Southeast Asia, India & SAARC, Australia and New Zealand). He will be responsible for further driving regional strategy, strengthening customer and partner relationships, and accelerating Fortinet's continued growth across the region. Luca brings more than 30 years of international technology leadership experience spanning cybersecurity, networking, SASE, cloud security, and managed services. Most recently, he served in a senior leadership role at GCX Managed Services.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from TechCircle.