Mahindra & Mahindra today announced the appointment of Dr. Pawan Goenka to the Board of the company as Executive Director, the first ED appointment to the Board since 1992. He will now be designated Executive Director and President (Automotive & Farm Equipment Sectors). Commenting on this appointment, Mr. Anand Mahindra, Chairman, Mahindra Group said, “Pawan has played an integral role in transforming the Group’s automotive product development capabilities, and has provided growth and strategic direction to both automotive and tractor businesses. I am confident that he will add tremendous value to the Board by providing fresh insights and invaluable guidance on key issues facing the Company.”
“I am truly honoured and delighted to join the Mahindra Board. I am fortunate to have been guided by one of the most respected Boards in the country, and have worked with an excellent team in my twenty years at Mahindra. I look forward to the future with a greater sense of responsibility, and will strive to contribute my best to meet the long term aspirations of all stakeholders” said Dr. Pawan Goenka, Executive Director and President (Automotive & Farm Equipment Sectors).
Dr. Goenka joined M&M in 1993 as General Manager R&D and made the company’s Auto Sector R&D into a potent product development organization. He was responsible for the development of several new products including the iconic Scorpio SUV. He became Executive Vice President-Product Development in September 2001 and, was promoted to the position of Chief Operating Officer of the Automotive Sector in April 2003. In September 2005 he was appointed President (Automotive Sector) and in April 2010 he became President (Automotive and Farm Equipment Sectors). The appointment as Executive Director and President (Automotive & Farm Equipment Sectors) will come into effect from September 23, 2013.
Biography of Dr. Goenka
Dr. Goenka is a Mechanical Engineer with a B. Tech in Mechanical Engineering from IIT Kanpur and a Ph. D. from Cornell University, USA. He has also done the Advanced Management Programme (AMP) at the Harvard Business School, USA. He joined the Company in October 1993 as General Manager R&D, after 14 years of experience at General Motors, USA, in various capacities in R&D. Under his leadership M&M R&D launched a slew of new products, such as PikUp, Marshal, Armada 98, Bolero, Load King etc. His most acknowledged contribution, both within the Company and outside, is his leadership of the Scorpio project, which brought laurels to M&M both in India and abroad.
Currently, Dr. Goenka is the Chairman of the Ssangyong Motor Company, Mahindra Vehicle Manufacturers, Mahindra USA, Mahindra Reva, Mahindra Heavy Engines, Mahindra South Africa and Swaraj Automotives, and serves on the Boards of many companies within the Mahindra Group including Mahindra Finance, Mahindra Engineering Services, Mahindra First Choice Wheels, Mahindra Two Wheelers and Mumbai Mantra.
Dr. Goenka has also been very active in the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) India, Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) and Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM). He was President of SAE from 2005 to 2007, President of the Governing Council of ARAI from 2007 to 2009 and President of SIAM from 2009 to 2011.
Currently he is the Chairman of the Council of International Business of SIAM and Governing Council Member of the National Automotive Testing and R&D Infrastructure (NATRIP) and IIIT-Hyderabad. He also serves on the National Executive Council of CII and on the Board of the National Skills Development Corporation (NSDC), in addition to being a Fellow of SAE International and the Indian National Academy of Engineers.
Dr. Goenka has had a brilliant professional career with many national and international awards to his credit. He received the Outstanding International Advisor Award from SAE in 1997, the Charles L. McCuen Achievement Award for the years 1991 & 1995 from General Motors, the Burt L. Newkirk Award from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers for the year 1987, the Extraordinary Accomplishment Award from General Motors in 1986 and the Distinguished Alumni Award from I.I.T. Kanpur in 2004.
In January 2011, Pawan was honoured with the Automotive Man of the Year award at the NDTV Car & Bike Awards. In December 2011, he was featured as Autocar Professional’s Man of the Year 2011 and was conferred the ‘CV Man of the Year’ award at the annual Apollo CV Awards 2012 in recognition of his extensive contribution within the automotive industry in India and globally. He received the Engineering Excellence Award 2012 from the SAE India Foundation.
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