Hero MotoCorp has executed a comprehensive leadership reset by appointing five senior executives from non-two-wheeler backgrounds to drive its strategic shift toward electric vehicles, premium motorcycles, and global exports. According to reports from The Economic Times, the Delhi-based company added these new leaders over the last year, including a chief executive officer from outside the two-wheeler industry. This marks Hero's biggest reset of senior leadership since Pawan Munjal stepped down as CEO in May 2023 to become executive chairman, as the company repositions its growth priorities.
The new leadership includes Harshavardhan Chitale as CEO, who joined from lighting solutions brand Signify in January after an 11-year stint at the firm. As reported by The Economic Times, the new strategy officer Srihari Mulgund joins from consulting firm EY-Parthenon, where he worked on the electric vehicle value chain. Sachin Agarwal was appointed as chief technology officer in May, joining from the Volvo-Eicher joint venture VE Commercial Vehicles Ltd after a 14-year stint at the firm. The company also appointed Kausalya Nandakumar as chief business officer for emerging mobility in July 2025, joining from Mahindra and Mahindra's EV unit, and Latika Taneja as head of corporate affairs in August from Shell with previous experience at Mastercard.
According to data from the Federation of Automobile Dealers Association (Fada) and Society of Automobile Manufacturers (Siam), Hero's strategic pivot has delivered significant results. As reported by The Economic Times, Hero's EV sales rose 196% to 144,330 units in FY2026, while exports grew 39% year-on-year to 402,744 units. The company's premium motorcycle range above 125cc engine capacity saw 2% growth to 73,739 units, with overall sales growing 7% to reach 6.06 million units. These strong growth numbers demonstrate the effectiveness of Hero's diversification strategy beyond its traditional mass-market motorcycle dominance.
According to Amit Dakshini, senior leader of Automotive at Alvarez & Marsal India, these automotive hires from outside the sector represent strategic moves to import key capabilities rather than broader talent searches. As reported by The Economic Times, experts note that the unorthodox hiring strategy reflects Hero's attempt to bring capabilities and perspectives from outside the traditional two-wheeler industry. Amit Kaushik from Mobidx Ai described the leadership choices as pointing to a deliberate effort to bring diverse, cross-industry capabilities into the organization, appearing less like routine leadership reshuffle and more like capability-building for future growth phases.
Compared to Hero, competitors maintain more stable internal leadership structures. As reported by The Economic Times, TVS chief executive K.N. Radhakrishnan has been with the firm for over two decades, having been elevated to chief executive in 2018 after becoming president in 2008. Bajaj Auto's managing director Rajiv Bajaj has been with the firm for over two decades, while joint managing director Rakesh Sharma has spent over 18 years. The heads of EV divisions at both companies, Aniruddha Haldar at TVS and Eric Vas at Bajaj Auto, have been with their firms for more than 14 years, highlighting the contrast in Hero's external hiring approach.
