Rishad Premji takes over as Wipro chairman

BENGALURU: Rishad Premji took charge as the chairman of Wipro effective Wednesday. He takes over from Azim Premji who retired as chairman on July 30 after an eventful innings at the helm, transforming a small cooking oil company that his father started in 1945 into a $25-billion (Rs 1.8-lakh-crore) global IT powerhouse.Till recently, Rishad was the chief strategy officer leading Wipro’s M&As and was the brain behind Wipro Ventures — a $100-million fund to invest in startups developing technologies and solutions that will complement Wipro’s businesses with next-generation services and products. “Rishad brings to this role new ways of thinking, broad experience, and competence that will lead Wipro to greater heights. He has been an integral part of the leadership team since 2007, and has a deep understanding of the company, its business strategy, its culture and its heritage. He is also completely committed to the values which form the bedrock of Wipro,” Premji senior said at the company’s AGM held in Bengaluru in July.The Premji family continue to have voting rights on the entire 74.3% stake they hold in Wipro. But the family benefits in financial terms from only a maximum of 7% of the stake due to their philanthropic commitments.