Hero appoints Vikram Kasbekar as new CTO

Hero has revamped its leadership team and has appointed Vikram Kasbekar as the new chief technology officer (CTO), and Rajat Bhargava as the head of the newly created ‘emerging mobility’ business unit. They will both continue to report to Dr Pawan Munjal, chairman, Hero MotoCorp. 

Rajat currently heads corporate strategy and performance transformation and is also head of global business. Vikram, currently the executive director of operations (plants) at Hero, will be in charge of the company’s research and development facilities – the Centre of Innovation and Technology (CIT) in Jaipur and the Hero Tech Centre Germany GmbH.

Vikram Kasbekar will replace Markus Braunsperger, who will be relocating to Europe after the completion of his five-year tenure. Markus, who led CIT from its days of inception, has been credited with giving shape to the research and development setup at Hero MotoCorp, forming a global team of engineers and automotive experts drawn from different parts of the world.

Under Markus, Hero successfully launched close to 40 new models and variants, including a series of premium two-wheelers like the XPulse range motorcycles, and the Destini 125 and Maestro Edge 125 scooters. He also led the company to a smooth transition from BS3 to BS4 earlier and to BS6 now, as Hero MotoCorp became the first manufacturer in India to receive the BS6 certification for a two-wheeler from the International Centre for Automotive Technology (ICAT). He also played a key role in setting up Hero Tech Centre Germany and giving Hero MotoSports a major boost.

Vikram, who has been with Hero MotoCorp for over a decade and half, brings years of varied technology and engineering experience in manufacturing and large-scale plant operations, supply chain and new model development.