Vinod Dasari Joins Eicher Motors As Royal Enfield CEO

Vinod Dasari, former chief executive officer at Ashok Leyland Ltd., has been appointed CEO of Eicher Motors’ Royal Enfield arm.

Dasari has been appointed CEO of Royal Enfield and whole-time director of the company with effect from April 1 for five years, according to a stock exchange filing. The appointment is subject to shareholders’ approval. Royal Enfield, the iconic brand of motorcycles owned by Eicher Motors Ltd., did not have a CEO prior to this.

“Vinod K Dasari is among the top few CEOs in India with a proven track record of managing complex businesses globally,” a statement by Eicher Motors said.

Dasari had stepped down from his post at Ashok Leyland at the end of March after working nearly 14 years at the truckmaker—first as a chief operating officer and then as CEO and managing director. The decision was “purely personal” to pursue other interests, he had said.

Under Dasari’s leadership, India’s second-largest medium and heavy commercial vehicles maker improved profitability significantly and also turned debt free.

Other Appointments

Eicher Motors also announced Vinod Aggarwal as the managing director and CEO of VE Commercial Vehicles Ltd., its joint venture with Sweden’s AB Volvo.

Aggarwal has been with Eicher for more than 35 years, having served as the chief financial officer from 2005 to 2009.

Ashok Leyland Under Vinod Dasari

Under Vinod Dasari’s leadership, the units sold by the truckmaker more than doubled in the last eight years.

The company’s compounded annual standalone revenue grew over 16 percent in the last five years with profit at an annualised rate coming in at 56 percent during the same period.

On the debt front, the company’s borrowings came down from a peak level of nearly Rs 4,700 crores to nil by March-end. Ashok Leyland's cost-cutting plans and lower working-capital requirements coupled with divestment of its non-core assets led to a fall in debt levels and improved profitability.