Coforge named Akhil Gupta as its chairperson. Gupta is the former vice chairman of Bharti Enterprises. The appointment takes effect on September 29.
The company said Gupta joins the board as a non-executive independent director. The board then appointed him chairperson. His term is five years.
Vivek Sharma, a non-executive director, has been serving as interim chairperson. He will hand over the role when Gupta takes charge.
Coforge’s global search
Sharma said the board ran a global search with executive search firm Egon Zehnder. The aim was to find a candidate with strong governance experience, professional expertise and strategic perspective. He said he had shared these criteria earlier at an investor meeting.
The search began with a list of 60 candidates. Sharma said the list was narrowed over time. Gupta was the unanimous choice of the Nomination and Remuneration Committee and the full board.
Sharma thanked fellow board members for working across weekends and time zones. He said all NRC and board processes were followed during the assessment.
Akhil Gupta’s career
Gupta was with Bharti Enterprises from its early years and, according to Coforge, played a key role in its growth. He retired as vice chairman.
He is chairman of 360 ONE WAM and Bharti Life Insurance. He also sits on the boards of Zepto, Snapdeal, Eutelsat Communications and Lodha Developers. Gupta is a Chartered Accountant with more than 40 years of experience. He completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School in 2002, as per the filing.
His awards include the EY Entrepreneur of the Year Award. The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India has given him its Lifetime Achievement Award and its Global Achiever Award. He has also received the ET Telecom Lifetime Achievement Award and the Tele.Net award for contribution to infrastructure and telecom development.
Gupta’s industry roles
According to the filing, Gupta is president of the Telecom Sector Skill Council. He is a former chairman of the Digital Infrastructure Providers Association. He is a member of the Confederation of Indian Industry’s national committee on telecom and broadband. He is also a member of its task force on insolvency and bankruptcy.
He has served on the advisory committee for service providers at the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India. He has also been a member of a sub-committee of the Insolvency Law Committee of the Government of India.
“We are very excited to have Akhil Gupta join us as the Chairperson at a very important time for the industry and the firm. Gupta was instrumental in Bharti Enterprises successfully navigating multiple business shifts during his watch and association with Bharti Enterprises. As our industry, in turn, navigates the AI-led era and as Coforge pivots towards making the promise of AI real for enterprises, we welcome Gupta as he steps onto the Board. We are excited at the immense opportunities ahead of us and thrilled to have a person of his calibre and governance experience join us as the Chairperson of the Board,” Sudhir Singh, CEO and Executive Director, Coforge, said.
About Coforge
Coforge is an engineering services company that describes itself as AI-native. It says it uses AI and industry-specific expertise to build systems for enterprise clients. The company combines AI agents with its workforce, including forward-deployed engineers, in hybrid pod-based delivery teams.
It says its focus is on secure and governed AI solutions, and on measurable business results such as lower operating costs, faster cycle times and higher conversion rates. Coforge has its registered office in Gurugram, Haryana, and its operations base in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh.
Coforge share price today
Coforge’s share price declined by 0.95% as of early trade on September 29. The company’s share price decreased 9.59% in the last month. However, Coforge’s share price increased 16.1% in the last year.