Tata Motors sees two more top-level exits

New Delhi: A month after the exit of Tata Motors Ltd senior vice-president of passenger vehicle business unit, two more top-level executives have put in their papers, the company’s corporate steering committee (CSC) said in a message to employees.

The new executives to join the departure list are Venkatram Mamillapalle, head of purchases, and Rajesh Bagga, head of human resources and legal.

The two executives “have decided to pursue career opportunities outside Tata Motors. We have accepted their requests and while we work through their next steps, they shall continue to head their individual portfolio of activities in this period”, said a person who has seen the office message.

CSC includes Tata Sons chairman Cyrus Mistry.

Ankush Arora, senior vice-president (commercial-passenger vehicle business) at Tata Motors, had quit last month.

The exits come ahead of two crucial product launches in July. The firm plans to introduce the Zest in the small car segment and the Bolt sedan.

Both Mamillapalle and Arora were brought in from General Motors’ Korea operations by the late Tata Motors’ managing director Karl Slym. After Slym’s death in January, Mistry formed CSC to provide oversight of strategy and key aspects of the firm’s operations.

Arora, Mamillapalle and Bagga were a part of this committee.

CSC had been expected to carry forward a spruce-up plan devised by Slym. Sales at the company have suffered due to a lack of regular product launches and issues related to quality. During 2013-14, sales of Tata Motors’ passenger vehicles declined 36.78% while its commercial vehicle sales fell 28.54%.

A Tata Motors spokesperson said the exits will not affect the firm’s plans as it has a robust system in place while acknowledging that the executives had “important roles and we value their contribution”.

Tata Motors