Top CEO in India: Leaders of the Biggest Companies

The highest rank for a corporate professional is Chief Executive Office which we formally abbreviate as CEO. The top CEO in India receives a ten-digit salary. As the highest position holder in an organisation, a CEO is responsible for executing plans, business strategies, and policies of an organisation. Overall, a CEO is the one who ensures the success of a business organisation. Moreover, a chief executive officer monitors the company’s various functions, including operations, finance, marketing, sales, advertisement, information technology, and much more. 

In this writeup, we have pointed out and complied the Top CEO in India, which are opportunistic, visionary, and thought leaders in the corporate industry in India. 

Mukesh Ambani (Reliance Industries Ltd.)

64 years old, Mr. Mukesh Ambani is the richest person in Asia for many years. Elder son of one of India’s most inspiring business personalities Mr. Dhirubhai Ambani, Mukesh is now leading Reliance Industries Ltd. This top CEO in India holds 44.7% of the stakes in the company. He is carrying forward his father’s legacy and has an absolute place in the list of top Indian CEOs in the world. 

Gopal Vittal (Bharti Airtel)

25th batch alumnus of IIM Calcutta, Gopal Vittal is the MD (Managing Director) and CEO of Bharti Airtel (India & South Asia). He runs a multinational Indian telecom company offering its services in 20 countries. Previously, he worked for Hindustan Unilever Limited, where “Project Bharat’ was his biggest achievement. From joining Bharti Airtel as a marketing head, Gopal Vittal has achieved the highest position in the company and is a definite addition to the list of top CEO in India. 

CP Gurnani (Tech Mahindra)

Managing director and CEO of Tech Mahindra, CP Gurnani, has a spanning career of 40 years and is in third place in our list of Top CEO in India. Before Tech Mahindra, he handled several vital positions in organizations like Hewlett Packard and HCL Corporation. Moreover, he has completed the stint of NASSCOM chairman during 2016-17. Under the leadership of Mr. Gurnani, Tech Mahindra has become one of the leading IT solution providers in India. Therefore, he is also one of the highest-paid CEOs in India. 

S N Subrahmanyam (Larsen and Tourbo)

S N Subramanyam was appointed as MD and CEO of the world’s 14th and India’ most prominent construction organisation, Larsen & Turbo, in 2017. Before this, he was serving the company as vice president. Mr Subramanyam is an obvious addition to the top ten CEOs in India, and his leadership is the foremost reason behind the company’s position today. He belongs to Chennai and holds a degree in civil engineering as well as a post-graduation in business management. Therefore, he started his professional journey as a project planning engineer with L&T in 1984. 

Kalanithi Maran (Sun Group)

Our next top CEO in India is Kalanithi Maran, the CEO of  Sun TV Network. He runs one of India’s most extensive regional television networks, having access to over 95 million households in India. Apart from that, his organisation also deals with radio broadcasting, direct-to-home network and print publications. Kalanithi Maran is the son of Murasoli Maran, a well-known Indian politician and union minister, and the grandson of M.Karunanidhi, former chief minister of Tamil Nadu. 

Pawan Munjal (Hero MotoCorp)

Dr Pawan Munjal, the CEO and chairman of Hero Motocorp, is one of the prime corporate leaders and the top CEO in India. He is known as the foremost reason behind the exceptional growth, technological advancement and socio-economic progress of the Hero MotoCorp,  which retained the title of the world’s largest motorbike manufacturer company for 19 consecutive years since 2001. Apart from the company’s extensive growth, Dr Munjal is also responsible for the company’s global footprint expansion across 40 countries. 

Salil Parekh (Infosys)

An alumnus of IIT Bombay, Salil S Parekh has taken charge of CEO and managing director of Infosys in 2018. Before joining India’s second-largest IT company and being one of the highest-paid CEOs in India, he was serving at Capgemini, a French IT service provider. Salil was also a member of the group executive board of the company. He has a global experience of more than 30 years in the IT service sector, and his expertise is driving digital transformation for the company and managing acquisitions successfully. Mr Parekh is an IIT Bombay graduate in Aeronautical Engineering and has master degrees in Computer Science and Mechanical Engineering from Cornell University. 

Satya Nadella (Microsoft India)

Another top CEO in India is Satya Nadela, who has been Microsoft’s chairman and chief executive officer since 2014. He had joined Mircosoft in 1994, within a few years, he was recognized as a leader who could accelerate the growth of the business. During Microsoft Cloud’s Vice President stint, Mr Nadella transformed the cloud infrastructure and service business. Having his roots in Hyderabad, Nadella has lived in Wahington for years. He owns a Master’s degree in Computer Science from the University of Wisconsin and an MBA from Chicago. Undoubtedly, he is one of the top Indian CEOs in the world. 

Bottom Line 

Besides being the in-charge of their organisation’s business health, these top CEO in India are examples of inspiration for many budding entrepreneurs, business people, and corporate professionals. These brilliant minds have transformed their respective companies and significantly contributed to achieving the company’s identity today.