Zomato group CEO, Deepinder Goyal, has resigned as the Group CEO of Eternal Limited, the parent company of food delivery platform. Goyal announced the leadership change to shareholders in a letter to shareholders, which he also published on a social media platform X.
The new Group CEO will be Albinder Dhindsa, currently the Chief Executive Officer of the quick commerce unit of Eternal, Blinkit.
Goyal in his letter mentioned that now the company will be run by Dhindsa in its day to day affairs, make business decisions and get priorities executed at the group level. Goyal will still be very much associated with the company as the Vice Chairman of the board of directors.
When asked why he decided to make the decision, Goyal stated that more recently in the previous months, he has become more attracted to new concepts that entail a greater degree of risk and exploration. He thinks that these concepts would be better pursued beyond the framework of a listed public company such as Eternal which must stick to the disciplines and direction of the current business strategy.
Goyal explained that even though he thinks that he personally is able to keep running Eternal and pursuing new opportunities at the same time, demands and commitments that would follow a CEO of a publicly traded company in India is such that it demands full and full attention.
He opined that legal, regulatory, and shareholder obligations require exclusive attention, and there is little opportunity to experiment and be out of the risk profile of the company.
He promised shareholders that the change of leadership would not have any impact on the growth and momentum of Eternal. Rather, he indicated that the change makes the company a stronger institution in that there is a sense of focus and accountability in leadership.
Goyal also mentioned that leaving the CEO job would provide him with the opportunity to pursue new ideas without causing distractions and conflict to the core business of Eternal.
The announcement is timely to the company. Eternal, as of late, has recorded a growth in profit in a sequential manner by the third quarter due, primarily, to high demand in quick delivery services via Blinkit. The performance shows the increased significance of quick commerce segment in the group, and it is a strategic decision to appoint Dhindsa as Group CEO.
Goyal himself affirmed that he would still remain in close contact with the leadership team of Eternal, comprising of Chief Financial Officer Akshant Goyal and Albinder Dhindsa.
Although he will not be directly engaged in the day-to-day operations, he will focus on long-term strategy, the culture of the company, leadership development, ethics, and corporate governance. These are regions he observed that he had been spending the majority of his time in the past few months.
During the transition, Goyal also announced another important thing regarding employee stock options. He indicated that all the ESOPs he has not vested will be refunded to the pool of the company.
This move, he said, is to ensure that Eternal keeps on providing its next generation of leaders with still valuable wealth creation opportunities. It will also contribute to the enhancement of long-term employee retention that would not dilute shareholders further.
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In summary of his decision, the 42 year old entrepreneur stated that the move will enable Eternal stay well within its objectives, besides granting him room to explore ideas that are outside the risk framework of the company in the present.
He has been vocal in his trust in the leadership team and has reiterated his belief in the long-term vision of the company, although he is entering a new stage of his career.
