Spotlight: CXO movements this week (Jan 3-9)

Indian and global enterprises continue to rejig their technology and security leadership as digital scale, AI adoption, and cyber resilience become boardroom priorities. From e-commerce and manufacturing to aerospace and data infrastructure, companies are appointing seasoned leaders to sharpen execution, governance and growth. Here are the latest key CXO movements.

Cashify appoints Raghvendra Singh as CTO

Online electronics marketplace Cashify has appointed Raghvendra Singh as its chief technology officer (CTO), effective January 1, 2026. Singh will oversee the company’s end-to-end technology strategy, covering platform architecture, engineering, infrastructure and security.
A Cashify veteran with over a decade at the company, Singh has played a key role in building and scaling its consumer platforms and internal systems. The appointment comes as Cashify looks to deepen technology capabilities amid plans to expand beyond smartphones and scale its offline retail footprint to over 300 stores. The company expects 30–35% growth in the coming year.

GE Aerospace names Shilpa Gupta as CTO – India

GE Aerospace has appointed Shilpa Gupta as chief technology officer for India and site leader of the John F. Welch Technology Centre (JFWTC) in Bengaluru. In her new role, Gupta will lead engineering, research and digital technology teams in India, supporting the company’s global aerospace businesses.
Gupta joins from GE Vernova, where she led Gas Power engineering operations in India and served as JFWTC site leader. At GE Aerospace, she succeeds Alok Nanda, who has moved into a global role as general manager of services engineering. Gupta will oversee engineering capability development, research programmes and collaboration with global teams across commercial aircraft engines and services.

Škoda Auto Volkswagen India appoints Karishhma Kumar as CIO

Škoda Auto Volkswagen India has appointed Karishhma Kumar as its new chief information officer (CIO). Kumar will focus on strengthening core technology platforms, improving execution reliability and enabling scale across the group’s multi-brand, manufacturing-led operations.
With over two decades of experience, Kumar has led large digital transformation programmes across IT, automotive, insurance, FMCG and industrial sectors in India and the Asia-Pacific region. Most recently, she headed the IT service line at Beiersdorf’s India hub. Her appointment follows leadership changes announced by the group in May 2025 across its Skoda and Volkswagen brands in India.

NetApp appoints Premalakshmi Ramakrishnan as MD & VP – India and SAARC

Data infrastructure company NetApp has appointed Premalakshmi Ramakrishnan as managing director and area vice president for India and the SAARC region. She will lead NetApp’s regional sales strategy, with a focus on expanding customer and partner ecosystems.
Ramakrishnan joins from Oracle, where she was vice president and head of Oracle Cloud Infrastructure in India. She has previously held leadership roles at Accenture, Cisco and Schneider Electric (APC). NetApp said her appointment aligns with its focus on helping enterprises modernise IT infrastructure and scale AI-driven workloads.

Naina Bhattacharya appointed CISO at Coats

UK-based industrial thread manufacturer Coats has appointed Naina Bhattacharya as chief information security officer (CISO). She will lead the company’s global cybersecurity strategy, covering governance, resilience and risk management, while enabling secure digital transformation.
Bhattacharya joins from Danone, where she led a multi-year global cybersecurity transformation and also served as a diversity and inclusion co-sponsor across IT and data teams. Earlier, she held senior cybersecurity leadership roles at EY and Deloitte, and began her career at Sun Microsystems and Infosys.

Aditya Birla Capital appoints Vishal Khavnekar as Vertical Head – IS Audit

Aditya Birla Capital has appointed Vishal Khavnekar as vertical head – information system audit, strengthening its technology risk and assurance leadership.
Khavnekar will lead IT and technology audits across cybersecurity, cloud, data protection, digital platforms and business continuity. He joins from YES Bank, where he served as group EVP and head of IS audit. His earlier roles include senior positions at LTIMindtree, Larsen & Toubro Infotech, Reliance Industries and Vodafone.

PGP Glass appoints Santosh Rai as Global CDIO

Packaging manufacturer PGP Glass has appointed Santosh Rai as its global chief digital and information officer (CDIO). Rai will drive the company’s global digital transformation agenda, including IT modernisation, data governance and enterprise-wide technology enablement.
Prior to this, Rai was CIO at Asahi India Glass, and has held senior technology roles at Vardhman Textiles, International Tractors, VE Commercial Vehicles and Volkswagen India. His appointment signals PGP Glass’s push to use digital technologies to improve operational efficiency and global scale.

 Indus Towers appoints Prashant Goyal as Head of Information Security

Indus Towers has appointed Prashant Goyal as head of information security. In this role, he will lead enterprise-wide cybersecurity strategy, including governance, risk and compliance, audits and regulatory adherence such as the DPDP Act.
Goyal joins from organisations including IndiGo, SBI Cards and ANI Technologies (Ola), where he led large-scale security operations across cloud, data centre and regulated environments. At Indus Towers, he will focus on strengthening cyber resilience through DevSecOps, advanced monitoring and third-party risk management.

Emids names Sathiyan Kutty as Chief AI Officer

Emids, a digital engineering and AI-led technology services firm focused on healthcare and life sciences, has appointed Sathiyan (Seth) Kutty as its Chief AI Officer. In his new role, Kutty will lead the company’s AI and data strategy, helping healthcare providers, payers, life sciences, and healthtech clients move from pilot AI initiatives to enterprise-scale, outcome-driven deployments. Kutty brings over 20 years of experience across analytics, AI, and enterprise technology, with prior leadership roles at Kaiser Permanente, Tesla, VMware and Intuit. He holds an engineering and computing degree from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.