The news comes after Kumar's resignation for 'personal reasons' from Tata Communications on Friday last week. In a BSE regulatory filing on 2 July, Tata Communications said: "Vinod Kumar has submitted his resignation as the managing director and group CEO of the company, and as a director of the company and its associated companies for personal reasons. The Board of directors has taken on record his resignation, and his resignation will be effective from the close of business hours on 5 July, 2019. The board has initiated steps to identify his successor and expects to finalise a suitable candidate at the earliest."
Kumar, who has most recently managing director and Group CEO of Tata Communications, will join the executive committee from that date and report to Vodafone Group chief executive Nick Read. He succeeds Vodafone Group CEO Rest of World, Vivek Badrinath, who has been acting as interim CEO of Vodafone Business since March 2019.
“Vinod is a very experienced business leader with a breadth of experience from across the globe. He is a great addition to Vodafone and the executive committee,” said Nick Read, chief executive of Vodafone Group.
“I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Vivek for his support this year in acting as interim CEO.”
Kumar has a long career in the telecommunications industry. He joined Tata Communications as chief operating in 2004, joined the company’s Board in 2007, and since 2011 has been managing director and CEO. During his career he also held roles at Asia Netcom, WorldCom, Global One and Sprint International.
Commenting on his appointment, Kumar said: “I am very excited to join the vibrant team at Vodafone Business. The global reach, the pervasive network and the brand loyalty that Vodafone has created makes it an ideal partner for any organisation's digital transformation, regardless of size or industry.”
