CP Gurnani, MD & CEO, Tech Mahindra Conferred SKOCH-CAII CEO’s Choice ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ 2021

by Suman Gupta

Winners decided through peer evaluation and domain expert consultation –
a token of gratitude from a nation to its professionals

Mumbai, November, 2021: Tech Mahindra Ltd. a leading provider of digital transformation, consulting, and business re-engineering services and solutions, proudly announces that Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, CP Gurnani has been conferred with the prestigious maiden CEO’s Choice ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ 2021 jointly instituted by SKOCH Group and CEO’s Association for Inclusive India (CAII).  Starting with the theme of Digital India, these awards recognize and document the contributions of professionals from the corporate sector towards the building of a new India.

Sameer Kochhar, Chairman SKOCH Group and Secretary-General, CAII, said, “Digital India has been forty years in the making and I am fortunate to have a ringside view of Gurnani’s numerous contributions to it. India could not afford mainframes and it was his work with NIC that made HCL mini-computers, the first scale deployed multi-user systems ubiquitous in the government projects at the time. Even today, he continues to lead Digital India’s growth story from the forefront with strategic projects on various smart cities, GSTN and so on,”

The first CEO’s Choice ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ – the nation’s highest independent civilian honour – was conferred on CP Gurnani, on 30th October 2021 in New Delhi. Mr. CP Gurnani is awarded in recognition of his lifetime contributions to India’s digital landscape across several jobs. Besides his pioneering work in HCL, Mr. Gurnani led Tech Mahindra’s transformation journey into becoming a global digital powerhouse. He is also credited with one of the biggest turnarounds of Indian corporate history – the acquisition and merger of Satyam – and his passion for nurturing a digital future-ready talent pool.

On the occasion, Dr. Anish Shah, Non-Executive Director, Tech Mahindra & Managing Director, and CEO, Mahindra & Mahindra, said, “The first thing you will notice about CP is his infectious energy. In various interactions with CP, I have always been struck by his ability to move quickly and his uncanny knack for prioritizing and focusing on what is important. Apart from his business acumen, CP’s passion in the field of education reflects in various honorary positions he holds in marquee educational institutions. Through Tech Mahindra Foundation as well as his own NGO, he has contributed to society through various initiatives such as reskilling, child education, and helping underprivileged children. SKOCH awards salute people that go the extra mile to make India a better nation and acknowledge an extraordinary achievement in contributing to society. My heartfelt congratulations to CP on joining this illustrious league.”

Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog, said, “It’s a great pleasure and honor for me to give the award to Mr. Gurnani. I have been a great admirer of his. If anybody in this country deserves the lifetime award, it is Mr. Gurnani for his outstanding service. Tech Mahindra is what it is because of his unique contribution to the company. He is unique, full of energy, vibrancy and dynamism. And he gets youthful by the year.”

Karan Bajwa, Chairman, CAII & VP, Asia Pacific Google Cloud, said, “My association with CP is over two decades. He is someone who leads from the front and retains his famous killer selling spirit and inspires his team in doing that with never saying ‘No’ attitude. CP respects relations and invests deeply in them. I congratulate CP on this very well-deserved honor and wish you all the best in your journey.”

Kulmeet Bawa, President CAII & President and MD, SAP India, said, “It is an honor to interact with CP every time and I don’t think there could have been anyone better to actually get conferred with this award than Mr. CP Gurnani.

An accomplished business leader with several leading industry positions, Gurnani is known as a people person, who has significantly contributed towards realizing the Digital India dream. An ardent supporter of Individual Social Responsibility, Gurnani is a recipient of many prestigious awards including The Ernst and Young ‘Entrepreneur of the Year, CNBC Asia’s India Business Leader of the Year, Business Standard ‘CEO of the Year’, Best CEO of the Year’ at the Forbes India Leadership, among others.

Instituted in 2003, SKOCH Award salutes people, projects, and institutions that go the extra mile to make India a better nation. The SKOCH Award covers the best of efforts in digital, financial, and social inclusion, including, governance, inclusive growth, excellence in technology and applications, corporate leadership, corporate governance, and empowerment, among others.