Diageo India has appointed Chinmay Sharma as Chief Human Resources Officer and a member of its Executive Committee, marking a key leadership change in the company’s people strategy.
The appointment was announced by the company in a LinkedIn post, according to Storyboard18. Sharma succeeds Shilpa Vaid, who has moved into a new role as Regional HR Director for APAC and Global Travel at Diageo.
Sharma brings more than two decades of global human resources experience across multinational companies, with expertise spanning talent strategy, organisational transformation and leadership capability building.
In its announcement, Diageo said Sharma’s international experience would support the company’s evolving talent agenda in India.
“We are delighted to welcome Chinmay Sharma as Chief Human Resources Officer, Diageo India, and a member of the Executive Committee,” the company said in the post cited by Storyboard18. “With over 20 years of global HR experience across leading multinationals including GSK, Philip Morris International and Procter & Gamble, Chinmay brings deep expertise in talent strategy, organisational transformation and capability building.”
Leadership experience across global organisations
Before joining Diageo India, Sharma served as HR Business Leader for Performance Emerging Markets at GSK, based in London. In that role, he led people strategy across several high-growth markets.
Earlier in his career, Sharma held the position of Chief Human Resources Officer and Executive Vice President – Human Resources at GSK India, where he oversaw the company’s HR strategy and organisational transformation initiatives.
He also spent nearly nine years at Philip Morris International, working in senior HR leadership roles across markets including Malaysia, Hong Kong and Switzerland.
Sharma began his professional career with Procter & Gamble, gaining early experience in global HR operations and talent management.
Across these roles, he has built expertise in cross-border leadership development, organisational effectiveness and large-scale cultural change programmes.
Leadership transition at Diageo India
Sharma takes over the HR leadership role from Shilpa Vaid, who has moved into a broader regional position within the company.
Diageo acknowledged Vaid’s contributions to the Indian business and thanked her for her leadership during her tenure, according to Storyboard18.
The transition comes as Diageo continues to strengthen its leadership bench in India, one of the company’s key growth markets.
Strengthening the people agenda
For multinational companies operating in complex consumer markets such as India, HR leadership plays a critical role in shaping organisational culture, managing talent pipelines and navigating workforce transformation.
Sharma’s appointment reflects the growing emphasis global corporations are placing on strategic HR leadership to drive capability building, workforce agility and long-term organisational resilience.
As Diageo expands its presence in emerging markets and adapts to evolving workforce expectations, Sharma will lead the company’s people agenda in India while contributing to executive decision-making as a member of the leadership team.