Tata Tele CEO quits

In a departure that could lead to a revamp at Tata Teleservices, the company today announced that its American-born Chief Executive Officer Darry Green has quit. The departure of the high-profile executive comes at a time when the company is trying hard to expand its share in the CDMA market.

Tata Tele said that it had decided on a new CEO, but said the name would be announced at an opportune time. According to sources close to the development, Tata Sons Vice-President Mukund Govind Rajan may be considered for the position. A Tata Tele spokesperson said no decision had been taken on his candidature, saying, "these are rumours spread by our rivals". Rajan was not available for comment.

Last year, another foreign executive "" Greg Young, chief technical officer, Tata Tele "" had left the company.

Prior to joining Tata Tele in June 2005, Green was the chief executive officer of Vodafone in Japan. In his two years at the helm of the Mumbai-headquartered firm, the company's subscriber base nearly quadrupled from 4.5 million to 16.7 million.

In comparison, market leader Reliance Communications has a subscriber base of nearly 26 million, compared with over 12 million two years ago. Green is joining Manpower Inc as its executive vice-president based in Japan later this month.

According to the company, Green had tendered his resignation for personal reasons.Sources suggested that Green quit following his continued differences with the Tata Tele brass over some issues of strategy. While Green could not be contacted, the Tata Tele spokesperson said, "He has left only because of personal reasons. He had certain health problems. The exit was completely intimated and planned."