Cognizant names former Infosys president Ravi Kumar as CEO

Cognizant on Thursday (January 12) announced that its Board of Directors has named Ravi Kumar S as CEO and a member of the Board, effective immediately.

Kumar succeeds Brian Humphries in both roles. Humphries will remain with the company as a special advisor until March 15, Cognizant said in a media release.

He joins Cognizant after a 20-year career at Infosys, where he held various leadership roles, most recently serving as President from January 2016 through October 2022. He has over 20 years of experience in the technology consulting space, incubating new practice lines, driving large transformational programmes, and developing new business models across industry segments.

Also read: Cognizant logs $18.5 bn in full-year 2021 revenue; returns to double-digit annual revenue growth

In this role, he led the Infosys Global Services Organization across all global industry segments, driving digital transformation services, consulting services, technology services, engineering services, data & analytics, cloud and infrastructure, and enterprise package applications service lines.

The company also announced that Stephen J. Rohleder, a member of Cognizant’s Board since March 2022, has been elected Chair of the Board.

Former Chair Michael Patsalos-Fox will remain on the Board as an independent director. Rohleder joined the Board in March 2022 as part of the Board’s ongoing Board refreshment process; during the last three years, the Board has added three new independent directors.

Rohleder brings decades of experience overseeing operations, developing strategy, counselling clients, and growing teams in the technology space, gained from his 35-year tenure in senior roles with Accenture, where he served as Group Chief Executive, North America, Group Chief Executive, Health and Public Service and Chief Operating Officer, as well as his roles as Chairman and CEO of GTY Technology Holdings.

Cognizant had previously announced that Kumar would join the company as President, Cognizant Americas. In connection with the CEO transition, Cognizant also announced that Surya Gummadi has been named President, Cognizant Americas. Gummadi, a 24-year veteran of Cognizant, had held the role on an interim basis since July 2022 and previously served as SVP of Cognizant’s Health Sciences business segment.

“The Board is focused on positioning Cognizant to reaccelerate growth and drive shareholder value,” said Chair of the Board Rohleder.

“I am honoured to join Cognizant, a company I have long admired for its dedicated client focus and its track record of innovation,” Kumar said.

“I look forward to working with Steve, the rest of the Board, and the leadership team to capture the many opportunities ahead. I have watched Cognizant fundamentally transform its business, expanding its digital portfolio and capabilities, strengthening client relationships and partnerships, and meaningfully enhancing operational discipline. Cognizant is well-positioned for growth, and I’m excited to unlock the Company’s significant potential for our employees, clients, investors, and other stakeholders,” Kumar added.