Nissan appoints Saurabh Vatsa as deputy managing director

Saurabh joins Nissan from Stellantis and will report to managing director Rakesh Srivastava.

Nissan Motor India has announced the appointment of Saurabh Vatsa as deputy managing director effective January 15. Saurabh will report to managing director Rakesh Srivastava and will support in implementing the ongoing transformation roadmap for India as the company gets ready to deliver on the Mid Term Plan (MTP) and drive into our Ambition 2030 goals. This appointment is reflective of the company's transformation plan to meet the opportunities and challenges ahead for the automotive industry in India.

Saurabh joins Nissan from Stellantis where he was a member of the Stellantis leadership team and was spearheading the Citroen brand since its inception in India and was responsible for all aspects of the business as Brand Head. Prior to Stellantis, Saurabh worked with General Motors (GM) for over two decades including long term assignments in South Korea among several key leadership roles within the company.

Saurabh comes with experience across Asian markets along with deep knowledge of the automotive industry having worked within multiple strategic business functions such as, Product Planning, Program Management, Sales Planning, Marketing, Communications and Retail / Commercial Sales. Saurabh is a graduate of Delhi University, with an MBA from the International Management Institute and has completed an executive management program at the London Business School.

Speaking on the appointment, Frank Torres, president, Nissan India Operations said, “We are excited to on-board Saurabh at Nissan Motor India as Deputy Managing Director at this crucial juncture for the company as we head into 2024. His appointment underpins our commitment to invest $600m USD (5300 crores INR) in India as part of the Alliance and introduce more products for the Indian consumer as part of the transformation plan. We are certain, the next phase of growth for Nissan is going to be exciting for all of us as we build on the success of the Nissan Magnite.”

In this new role, he will support the leadership for Nissan’s transformation plan and prepare the company for its next phase as outlined by the company in 2023.