In a first, Indian to head Siemens ops in country

Mathur, currently holds charge of CFO, has been with the company for 25 years

German engineering giant Siemens has appointed Sunil Mathur as its new India CEO. The appointment, announced on Friday, reflects a change in tradition as Mathur is the first Indian to hold the top post. He will assume charge from January 1. Mathur, who holds the charge of chief financial officer at present, has been working with Siemens for the past 25 years.

Mathur replaces Armin Bruck, who moves to Siemens’ regional office in Singapore as CEO. The current CEO in Singapore, Lothar Herrmann, has been named the head of Siemens China, replacing Mei-Wei Cheng, who is retiring. “Other large countries like Brazil and China have had local CEO; so the change in India is not surprising,” said an industry source.

Siemens’ association with India dates back to 1867 when the first direct telegraph line between India and London was set up. It was incorporated in India in 1922 and the Indian entity is fourth largest contributor to the group's revenues. Mathur's appointment coincided with the visit of Siemens global CEO Joe Kaeser to India.

Outside Germany, Siemens is separately listed only in India and Pakistan.

Mathur takes charge at a time when the industry is facing a lot of challenges. Profits have been declining and sales and order inflow, too, has reduced. Last year, the company shut down its wind turbine plant in Vadodara and in August, Siemens India sold its postal and parcel and airport logistics technology business to a group company.