Mahindra & Mahindra names Rohit Thakur group CHRO; Ruzbeh Irani to retire

Mahindra & Mahindra has announced a senior leadership transition within its human resources function as part of its succession planning, with Ruzbeh Irani set to retire as president – group human resources on April 1, 2026, and Rohit Thakur appointed group chief human resources officer from April 2, 2026.

The company said Irani will step down upon reaching the age of superannuation, bringing to a close a nearly two-decade tenure with the Mahindra Group. As a member of the Group Executive Board, Irani played a central role in shaping Mahindra’s people philosophy, leadership development framework and values-led culture, anchored in the group’s “Rise” purpose.

During his time at Mahindra, Irani held several senior leadership roles, including president – group communications & ethics and chief brand officer, before assuming the group HR mandate. His responsibilities extended beyond human resources to include corporate communications, ethics, corporate social responsibility and corporate services, giving him a broad remit across culture, reputation and people strategy.

Before joining Mahindra in 2007, Irani spent over two decades with Hindustan Unilever and Unilever, where he worked across India, Africa, Central Asia and the Middle East in senior marketing, customer development and general management roles, the company said.

Internal successor named

Succeeding Irani, Rohit Thakur will take over as group CHRO and will also join Mahindra’s senior management personnel, ensuring continuity in the group’s people and leadership agenda.

Thakur currently serves as CHRO for Mahindra’s Auto and Farm Sectors, where he leads HR strategy across manufacturing, engineering and global operations for one of the group’s largest businesses. In that role, he has been responsible for talent management, leadership development and workforce strategy supporting the sector’s transformation and growth priorities.

Mahindra said Thakur brings over three decades of HR leadership experience, with expertise spanning technology, financial services, manufacturing and education-led organisations. Prior to joining Mahindra, he served as CHRO at Paytm and LEAD School, where he worked on scaling organisations through culture-building and learning-led growth.

Earlier in his career, Thakur held senior HR leadership roles at Accenture India, Microsoft India and GE, working across India and the United States and leading large-scale global HR programmes, including organisation design, mergers and acquisitions integration and leadership development.

An alumnus of XLRI Jamshedpur, Thakur holds a commerce degree from Shri Ram College of Commerce, Delhi. He began his HR career with organisations such as Eicher Group and Bausch & Lomb, building experience in industrial relations, manufacturing HR and people development.

Focus on succession and continuity

The leadership transition underscores Mahindra’s emphasis on internal talent development and long-term succession planning, as the group navigates evolving workforce expectations while continuing to scale its businesses across sectors and geographies.