P&G India appoints LV Vaidyanathan as CEO

Procter & Gamble announced today that LV Vaidyanathan will take over as the chief executive officer for its operations in India from July 1, 2022. Vaidyanathan is an alumnus of IIM Ahmedabad who started his journey with P&G in 1995 as an intern and joined the India Sales team straight from campus in 1996. He has more than 26 years of experience across diverse geographies and cultures like India and ASEAN countries including Singapore, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. He is currently leading the P&G business in Indonesia as CEO where he has been responsible for industry-leading growth and value creation for the company. Under his leadership, the Indonesian business has transformed to become value accretive for the parent company and has overtaken a formidable competitor in the market by turning around the share gap in the last 4 years. He has also served as the chairman of Indonesia Chapter of US ASEAN Business Council.

LV Vaidyanathan will take over from Madhusudan Gopalan, who is going to take on an important leadership role within P&G as senior vice president – grooming & Oral Care, P&G Japan & Korea. During his four-year tenure at the helm of P&G India, Madhusudan led the transformation of the business and find its winning formula to consistently deliver sustainable top and bottom-line growth. Madhusudan has been heavily invested in developing young Indian talent and grooming Indian talent for international roles within the company. Under his leadership, the company launched its ‘P&G Suraksha India’ program towards COVID relief where it contributed towards vaccine doses, oxygen concentrators, masks, and sanitizers for the protection of frontline workers and underprivileged communities. He has been instrumental in sharpening the company’s focus on environmental sustainability and P&G recently became one of the first FMCG companies in the country to achieve ‘plastic packaging waste neutrality’.

Magesvaran Suranjan, P&G President, Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Africa: “I want to thank Madhusudan for his outstanding leadership of the India organization over the last four years and the transformation of the business to delivering consistent balanced growth and value creation. I am thrilled with LV Vaidyanathan’s appointment as the India CEO, who has been an integral part of the P&G growth story for well over two decades. He is an outstanding leader, and the India business will immensely benefit from his leadership and skills. The moves for both Madhusudan and LV are testament to the strength of Indian talent and India’s importance as a talent factory for P&G globally.”

Madhusudan Gopalan: “It has been a great honour to lead the P&G business in India, my home country where I started my P&G career. The four-year journey has been an enriching and rewarding one and I’m proud of what we have achieved together as the India team. I am delighted with the appointment of LV Vaidyanathan as my successor, one of India’s home-grown talents . I am confident that he will continue to lead the P&G India business to greater heights and in turn, incrementally contribute to the overall growth for the parent company.”

LV Vaidyanathan: “It is a moment of great pride for me to come back to India and spearhead the P&G business. I am looking forward to being back in the market, learning more about the Indian consumers and serving their needs. We will raise the bar on all aspects of our superiority strategy– product, package, brand communication, retail execution, and value. I can’t wait to get started and I am looking forward to working with our incredibly talented team in India.”