Adi Godrej steps down from Godrej Consumer Products’ board

Adi Godrej had passed on the reins of GCPL to his daughter Nisaba in 2017.

Adi Godrej, the Chairman of the Godrej Group, has decided to step down from the board of directors of Godrej Consumer Products Ltd (GCPL), the company informed on August 4. The 79-year-old patriarch will continue to be the Chairman Emeritus of the company.

Commenting on the announcement, Adi Godrej, said, “It has been a privilege to serve Godrej Consumer Products. I am grateful to our Board for their continued guidance; to all our team members for their passion for Godrej and helping build a company that we can all be proud of; and to our customers, business partners, shareholders, investors, and communities, for their deep partnership over the years. The foundations of our company are very strong, and I am very confident that Nisa and our leadership team will continue to build forward and create even more sustainable, long-term value for all our stakeholders.”

Adi Godrej had passed on the reins of GCPL to his daughter Nisaba in 2017. GCPL is the consumer goods arm of Godrej Group which has a presence across real estate, appliances, agriculture etc. Godrej had joined the 124 year-old-family business in 1963.

“On behalf of our team at Godrej Consumer Products and our Board, I want to thank my father for his vision and guidance that has helped shape and transform our company. The values that he has taught us, combined with his disciplined, results driven, and humble approach, will always be the core of our DNA. Our leadership team will continue to draw from this as we drive Godrej Consumer Products forward with a strong sense of purpose and ambition,” said Nisaba Godrej, Chairperson and Managing Director, Godrej Consumer Products.

The company also announced its CFO succession plan. Sameer Shah, GCPL’s current Head of Finance and Investor Relations, will take over as the Chief Financial Officer of the company as its current CFO V Srinivasan has resigned to pursue other opportunities.

Shah has worked at GCPL for 15 years. He has held a number of key leadership roles including being the Chief Financial Officer of its largest business, the India & SAARC cluster. He has also led diverse priorities across GCPL’s global portfolio – investor relations, financial controlling, ERP implementation, global financial planning and analytics and integrating inorganic businesses like Africa. Before joining GCPL, Shah worked at PepsiCo and General Mills.

A Chartered Accountant by profession, Sameer has also specialised in Treasury Management from The Institute of Chartered Financial Analysts.