Natarajan Chandrasekaran
CEO & Managing Director
Tata Consultancy Services Limited
Born: June 2, 1963
Natarajan Chandrasekaran ('Chandra') is the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Tata Consultancy Services.
Responsible for formulating the company's global strategy, Chandra has been at helm of several key strategic transitions at TCS. As Chief Operating Officer, he was the architect of the new organization structure unveiled in 2008 which created multiple agile business units within TCS that were focused on industries and markets. He has been behind several strategic new business initiatives at TCS and displayed the ability to mature new ideas.
Chandra personifies TCS’ commitment to customer satisfaction and high quality. Through his experience in a variety of operating roles, he has built a reputation in the IT industry for his exceptional ability to build and grow new business offerings and nurture long-term relationships. Under his leadership, TCS pioneered the creation of a Global Network Delivery Model across five continents and expanded into new markets including Europe, China and Latin America over the last decade. It added new business lines and entered new industry verticals like Media and Information Services and Hi-tech. All of these have since matured into sizeable businesses since then.
Under his guidance and mentorship, the company has refined its corporate sustainability program to focus on education, environment and wellness. The firm has created healthcare solutions for charitable hospitals to help them to improve the level of patient care more effectively and use their resources to treat more patients who cannot afford healthcare. Through his active support of major marathons in New York, Amsterdam, Chicago, Boston and Mumbai, he has spread a message of health awareness across 225,000 TCS employees globally as well as the communities the firm operates in.
Chandra represents TCS on several global and local forums. He is the chairman of the National Association of Software & Service Companies (NASSCOM) for 2012-2013. He joined TCS in 1987 after completing his Masters in Computer Applications from Regional Engineering College, Trichy, Tamil Nadu in 1986 and a Bachelor of Science in Applied Science from the Coimbatore Institute of Technology, Tamil Nadu. The SRM University has conferred the Degree of Doctor of Literature (2010) on Chandra for his pioneering and outstanding contributions to the industry.
Chandra has received several awards and recognition in the business community in 2011. He was judged as the 'Business Leader of the Year' by India’s NDTV. He was named the Dataquest IT Person of the Year and awarded the 'Business Leader of the Year' by All India Management Association. He was named the country’s 'Best CEO' by FinanceAsia magazine for the third consecutive year and ranked the 'Best CEO' by the Institutional Investors. Chandra was also named the 'E & Y Entrepreneur of the Year - Manager' for 2011. He was also awarded the Medal of the City of Amsterdam - 'Frans Banninck Coqc' medal in recognition of his endeavour to promote trade and economic relations between Amsterdam and India.
Beyond the office, Chandra is an avid photographer and a passionate long-distance runner and has completed marathons in Mumbai, New York, Prague, Stockholm, Vienna, Chicago and Berlin.
Chandra lives in Mumbai.
