Engineering and construction major Larsen & Toubro (L&T) on Friday announced that SN Subrahmanyan will be its new CEO and MD with effect from July 1.
AM Naik, who has been serving as Chairman since 2003, will become the non-executive Chairman for three years from October 1.
Subrahmanyan, who joined L&T in 1984, is currently the Deputy Managing Director and President of the company. He has a degree in civil engineering and is a post-graduate in business management.
“Subrahmanyan is a top-notch professional of outstanding ability and commitment. Across the last ten years, and especially after he was identified as the likely successor three years ago, I have been personally mentoring and grooming him for the enlarged responsibilities of the CEO….,” Naik said in a company statement.
Smooth process
In a brief telephonic conversation with BusinessLine , Subrahmanyan said succession planning in L&T has been a well-thought process. The company will move along lines that have already been planned, he said.
“In business, one has to be open about new ideas but at the movement, it is business as usual at L&T,” he added. The Indian multinational has interests in technology, engineering, construction, manufacturing and financial services, and has revenue of over $16 billion.
Subrahmanyan said that the company would prioritise defence, water-treatment and distribution, lift-irrigation schemes, smart cities and digital businesses.
At the same time, it would continue to focus on the infrastructure and realty businesses as they have been growth drivers for the last few years, he added.
Naik to mentor leadership
The company, in a statement, said the board, taking into account the need for seamless transition of leadership in an organisation of the scale and complexity of L&T, has requested Naik to mentor the company’s executive management in the capacity of Non-Executive Chairman.
Subodh Bhargava, Chairman of the Nomination and Remuneration Committee of the board, described Naik as the very soul of L&T, and someone who had given his whole life to the company.
The statement notes that Naik has served the company for over 52 years and was appointed CEO in 1999.
His stewardship has seen an upsurge in L&T’s shareholder value, with market capitalisation rising from ₹4,400 crore in 1999 to ₹1,58,000 crore in 2017.