Rajesh Nambiar appointed nasscom president-designate, succeeds Ghosh

With this appointment, Nambiar also resigns from his current position at Cognizant. He was Chairman and Managing Director of Cognizant India

IT industry body national association of software services companies (nasscom) on Wednesday announced the appointment of Rajesh Nambiar as its president-designate.

Nambiar, who resigned as chairman and managing director of Cognizant India, succeeds Debjani Ghosh at nasscom, who completes her tenure in November 2024.

“This is truly an exciting time for the industry, as we focus on the accelerated transition to AI-first companies, making talent our greatest competitive advantage, driving growth, and increasing investments in IP creation and R&D. I am both privileged and honoured to take on this opportunity to collaborate with all stakeholders to enhance the Indian tech sector’s capabilities,” said Nambiar.

Nambiar is an industry veteran having worked and led global teams at TCS, IBM, Ciena and Cognizant. He has been a member of the nasscom Executive Council before being elected as Chairperson in 2023. His leadership and strategic initiatives have been instrumental in positioning India’s tech sector as a global leader.

Debjani Ghosh, president, nasscom, said, “The tech sector is pivotal to India’s growth and nasscom has played a key role in shaping India’s tech leadership globally. Leadership at nasscom is fully empowered to carry forward the charter and I am confident that Rajesh will elevate it to even greater heights. I welcome him and look forward to working with him.”

Nambiar’s appointment comes at a time when the IT services industry has been going through one of its most challenging phase. It has to face dual challenges of a fast changing tech landscape and a slowing global spends on tech services.

 As part of its continuous efforts to institutionalise itself through appropriate structures, systems and processes, nasscom had constituted a search committee to appoint its next president. The committee was steered by Keshav R. Murugesh, Group CEO, WNS and members included Harish Mehta, Som Mittal, Krishnakumar Natarajan and Sindhu Gangadharan.

Keshav R Murugesh, head, Search Committee, nasscom, said, “We are delighted to welcome Rajesh as the president-designate and thank Debjani Ghosh for her phenomenal contribution to the industry. nasscom today stands on the brink of a monumental digital transformation. Our primary focus had been to identify an India evangelist who can not only sustain but also accelerate this transformation. We are confident that Rajesh’s leadership will further propel the tech industry's growth trajectory, expand its footprint in new markets, and strengthen India’s position as a global technology leader, even amid macroeconomic uncertainties.”