Virtusa appoints former Cognizant executive Santosh Thomas as CEO

Santosh Thomas joins Virtusa during a time of significant growth and follows the recent appointment of Sander van‘t Noordende

The US-based IT services firm Virtusa appointed former Cognizant executive Santosh Thomas as its new chief executive officer (CEO) on June 9.

Thomas will be succeeding the company’s founder, Kris Canekeratne, who announced his transition from the business in May, according to an official statement.

Before Virtusa, Santosh served as President of Global Growth Markets at Cognizant where he played a critical role in scaling Cognizant’s non-US business to $4 billion. In his new role, Santosh will help Virtusa drive growth in key markets and continue to be recognized as an employer of choice. Thomas had joined Cognizant in 1999 and held various senior leadership positions before he quit in September.

Santosh joins Virtusa during a time of significant growth and follows the recent appointment of Sander van‘t Noordende, a seasoned business leader, to the position of Chairman of the Board of Directors.

“I am deeply honored to join Virtusa at this exciting time for our employees, clients and partners. Virtusa has a great brand reputation, an impressive roster of strategic partners, and is well positioned for sustained growth,” Thomas said in the statement.

“When I founded Virtusa 25 years ago I had a vision to build a global powerhouse in digital engineering services. And we did just that. I leave with the confidence that the company and its leadership team have never been stronger and its opportunities have never been greater. I welcome Santosh Thomas to the CEO role and wish him the best in his efforts to lead Virtusa through its next phase of growth,” said Canekeratne in the statement.