FCA India has announced that Dr Partha Datta will assume the role of President and Managing Director. Dr Datta, an American citizen of Indian origin, joined FCA in 1999 as an engineer.

Over the past 20 years, he has worked across international industrial and commercial operations, governance, business development projects, engineering and vehicle integration. During his tenure at FCA, Dr Datta was also the Director of Technical Centres in Chennai and Pune, as well as the Head of Product Engineering in China.

In his most recent role as Head of North American Vehicle Integration & Validation, Dr Datta led a workforce of over 1,500 employees, and the integration development activities for over 30 vehicle lines. He was responsible for all validation activities across all Jeep, Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Dodge and RAM models sold in North America.

Massimiliano Trantini, Chief Operating Officer, FCA Asia Pacific, announced the appointment today. “I am very pleased to appoint Partha to his new role in India. He is an accomplished executive with a passion for driving innovation.

“With his extensive product development experience and intimate understanding of the local market, Partha is the perfect candidate to take over the India operation, particularly given our plans to continue localizing new models and exporting Jeep vehicles to right-hand-drive markets around the world” said Mr. Trantini. 

Dr. Datta succeeds Kevin Flynn, who has been appointed to the role of President and Chief Executive Officer at FCA Australia.