Mahindra & Mahindra has roped in two senior executives from Tata and Renault to further strengthen its design team reportedly
Pratap Bose jumping ship from Tata Motors to Mahindra was all over the headlines and it looks like the scouting continues. Now, another senior executive from Tata Motors’ design team has quit joining the rival squad. Ajay Saran Sharma and Pankaj Dhamane from Renault are expected to report to duties at Mahindra & Mahindra’s office from Monday onwards.
The homegrown UV specialist is certainly trying to consolidate its design resources for the betterment of the future and thus roping in high profile executives. Besides the aforementioned trio, Asha Kharga has joined in as chief customer and brand officer while Neha Anand has also signed up as the head of digital marketing and communication.
Bose is said to help in revamping the brand’s local design team while expanding the resources in the United Kingdom. He is reported to be taking engineers from M&M’s research and development facility unit in Chennai to the UK. Mahindra’s Global Design organization will comprise the Coventry-based Mahindra Advanced Design Europe (M.A.D.E) and the already existing Mahindra India Design Studio (M.I.D.S).
Bose will be responsible for both the divisions while overseeing the design activities across different products including Born EVs, LCVs under 3.5 ton, large commercial vehicles, France-based Peugeot scooters, farm machines, last-mile mobility drivers, etc. He will report to Rajesh Jejurikar, executive director, auto and farm sectors, M&M.
The organizational restructuring of the design division could not have come at a better time for Mahindra as it is planning a huge product assault. It is focussing on introducing three dozen new vehicles across different sectors. Over the next five years, Mahindra is aiming to bring in as many as nine new passenger UVs (mostly SUVs).
The assortment of new products will be harbingered by the Mahindra XUV700, which will go on sale later this year while the new-gen Scorpio will arrive in the final quarter of this FY. The second-gen XUV500 bound for early 2024, a coupe SUV based on XUV Aero concept, five-door Thar, new-gen XUV300, Bolero and a host of EVs are in the pipeline.