Hindustan Uinlever CFO PB Balaji quits; to join Tata Motors

Hindustan Unilever Chief Financial Officer P B Balaji today resigned from the company and will join Tata Motors as group CFO.

Balaji (46), who was also the Executive Director (Finance and IT), was associated with HUL for the last 24 years and has worked in various positions.

"PB Balaji, Executive Director, Finance and IT and CFO, has tendered his resignation from the board of the company to explore an opportunity outside the company," HUL said in a statement.

Tata Motors in a statement said that Balaji has been appointed as its group Chief Financial Officer.

Balaji, whose mandate includes driving financial performance and bring greater rigour to operations and investment decisions across different entities, will take charge at the auto major from November, the auto major said.
 

He will replace C Ramakrishnan who retires at the end of his term on September 30. Ramakrishnan was elevated as Tata Motors group CFO in July 2015.

"Balaji's deep knowledge in all areas across finance and his global experience will be very valuable for the Tata Motors Group. He will be a great addition to the management team," Tata Motors Chairman N Chandrasekaran said.

Tata Motors Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director Guenter Butschek said Balaji will play a very important role in the company's transformation journey.

The appointment would help in the company's renewed focus on topline, market share growth, major cost reduction initiatives and efficiency improvements to deliver better financial performance and profitability in the future, he added.

A global finance professional, Balaji started his career with Unilever in 1995 and worked in different corporate finance roles across Asia, Switzerland, the UK and India, Tata Motors said.

Since 2014, he has been heading the finance function as the Chief Financial Officer of Hindustan Unilever. Prior to that, he was the Chief Accountant of the Unilever Group in London.

Balaji is a graduate of Indian Institute of Technology, Chennai and has a post-graduate management degree from Indian Institute of Management, Kolkata.