PM Sinha chalks out post-retirement plans

Pummy Kaul in New Delhi

Outgoing PepsiCo India chief Mr Priya Mohan ‘Suman’ Sinha is busy chalking out post-retirement plans once he bids adieu to Pepsi—the company that he has been heading for the last eight years—in March 2002. For starters, the current gameplan is that he will be on the board of about five companies.

While Wipro Ltd, the Bangalore-based global consulting and software services company and Lafarge, have officially announced Mr Sinha’s appointment as members of their respective boards of directors, two more companies including ICICI Bank Ltd and Electrolux are expected to announce his induction into their respective boards soon.

Electrolux India managing director Mr Ram Ramsundar, when contacted, said that the company would be reconstituting the board of directors in the next two-three months and that Mr Sinha is a highly respected professional.

Mr Sinha who has spent his years at Pepsi strategising the soft drink major’s gameplan, in his post-retirement era, however, plans to dedicatedly pursue another passion: academic pursuits.‘‘I would like to give back to society by sharing my huge and practical experiences of the Indian market with students,’’ Mr Sinha told The Financial Express in an informal chat.

On an official note, apart from continuing to be on the board of the management institute, MDI-Gurgaon, Mr Sinha will be actively teaching at various business schools. One distinct possibility: be a visiting guest faculty at the Indian Business School, Hyderabad. He will also be involved with NGOs including the Azim Premji Foundation.

Promoted by Mr Azim Premji, chairman, Wipro Corporation, the Azim Premji Foundation aims at making a tangible impact on key social issues by working in active partnership with the government and other relevant sections of the society. Talking passionately about the NGO, Mr Sinha said,‘‘it essentially works on universalisation of elementary education by enrollment and integration of every out-of-school child into formal school.’’

Mr Sinha will officially hand over charge to his successor Mr Rajeev Bakshi, former managing director, Cadbury South Africa and former head of Cadbury India in March 2002.