Amid slowing sales and falling market share, Vinay Pathak, VP and Business Head for Small Commercial Vehicle at Tata Motors, has resigned.
A Tata Motors veteran who earlier was the CEO of its Bus JV Tata Marcopolo and the head of Product Planning and Program Management exited the company after spending over three decades there.
Tata Motors spokesperson confirmed the development and said, “Vinay Pathak has chosen to pursue a career outside of Tata Motors.
As the Vice President and Business Head of the Small Commercial Vehicles and Pickups Unit (SCV & PU) at Tata Motors, Pathak led the company's small commercial vehicle lineup, including the Ace, Intra, and Yodha ranges.
Pathak oversaw business of over Rs 12000 crore per annum and a segment that does volumes of over 1.5 lakh units annually.
This is the latest in a succession of leadership exits from the company over the last year and a half. Earlier exits include Rohit Srivastava, Head of Buses, Rudrarup Mitra, Head of ILCV trucks, and most recently, Anurag Mehrotra, Head of International Business. Autocar Professional reported the move.
The company immediately implemented a structure to manage this transition seamlessly. Three different executives will split the responsibility of sales and marketing, vehicle integration, and product development and report to Girish Wagh, the company's ED and president of the commercial vehicle business.
The company is working to fill Pathak’s post but did not share the details.
The exit comes at a time when the company’s small commercial vehicle business is losing ground to rivals in the mini truck segment and pick-up truck market.
Tata Motors plans to launch a new sub-one tonne truck called Coral internally to offer an alternative to growing Last Mile Mobility providers, who have relied on three wheelers in the market.
Autocar Professional had also reported the exit of Ashish Tandon – a Senior GM overseeing the small commercial vehicle business. Both Pathak and Tandon were both critical for the launch of Coral but their exit may unsettle the SCV operation, which is already facing stress.