Apple names Indian-origin Kevan Parekh as new CFO
New Delhi, Aug 27: iPhone maker Apple has named Kevan Parekh as its new chief financial officer in a move that adds to the growing roster of Indian-origin executives at C-suites of global firms.
Parekh, 52, will take over the baton from Apple veteran Luca Maestri, who will transition from his role on January 1, 2025.
Maestri will continue to lead the Corporate Services teams, including information systems and technology, information security, and real estate and development, reporting to Apple CEO Tim Cook.
"As part of a planned succession, Kevan Parekh, Apple's Vice President of Financial Planning and Analysis, will become Chief Financial Officer and join the executive team," the Cupertino, California, headquartered Apple said in a statement.
Apple CEO Tim Cook said Parekh's sharp intellect, wise judgment, and financial brilliance make him the perfect choice to be Apple's next CFO.
"For more than a decade, Kevan has been an indispensable member of Apple's finance leadership team, and he understands the company inside and out," Cook said.
Parekh has been at Apple for 11 years and currently leads Financial Planning and Analysis, G&A and Benefits Finance, Investor Relations, and Market Research.
Prior to this role, Parekh led Worldwide Sales, Retail, and Marketing Finance.
He began his tenure by leading the financial support of Apple's Product Marketing, Internet Sales and Services, and Engineering teams.
Before joining Apple, Parekh held various senior leadership roles at Thomson Reuters and General Motors, where he also had extensive global experience.
Parekh is an electrical engineer with a Bachelor of Science from the University of Michigan and an MBA from the University of Chicago.
Maestri said he is looking forward to the next stage of his time at Apple, and expressed confidence over Parekh's transition to the CFO role.
"...and I have enormous confidence in Kevan as he prepares to take the reins as CFO. He is truly exceptional, has a deep love for Apple and its mission, and he embodies the leadership, judgment, and values that are so important to this role," Maestri said.
Reports suggest that over the past months, Parekh has been prepared for the CFO role by Maestri.
Over the past years, many Indian-origin executives have been named to the C-Suite positions of global companies - the ever-expanding list includes Microsoft Chief Satya Nadella; Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai; Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen; Tesla chief financial officer Vaibhav Taneja, among others.
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Delhi CM Rekha Gupta accuses Mamata Banerjee of stalling SIR; TMC hits back
Kolkata (PTI): Alleging that her West Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee had approached the Supreme Court to stall the SIR exercise to prevent the identification of infiltrators, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Sunday claimed that the people of the state have made up their minds to dislodge the Trinamool Congress from power.
The TMC countered strongly, urging Gupta to "look into her own backyard" and accused her of making absurd allegations against the TMC government without checking facts.
Addressing participants at the 'Nari Sankalp Yatra' organised by the BJP's women's wing at Science City auditorium here, Gupta alleged that the "hands-off" and appeasement policies of the TMC government had allowed thousands of infiltrators to enter the state in recent years.
She claimed that this had put a strain on basic rights such as access to water, electricity, ration, education, livelihood and the right to vote for genuine citizens.
"She wants to perpetuate this and hence is trying to stall the SIR exercise, which aims at identifying and deporting infiltrators. Imagine a chief minister going to the apex court to argue against an exercise meant to ensure free and fair polls," Gupta said.
The BJP leader alleged that appeasement politics had reached an "alarming level" under the TMC regime.
Raising concerns over women's safety, she claimed that women in the state were not secure despite having a woman chief minister.
Referring to the rape-murder of a woman doctor at RG Kar Hospital, Gupta alleged that the state government had failed to respond adequately to such crimes.
She also referred to the alleged rape of a woman medic in Durgapur and another law student on a Kolkata college campus, claiming that criminals had been emboldened to commit brutalities against women.
She alleged that in crimes against women, overall crime incidents and child marriages, West Bengal remained among the top -- "a slur on a state which once led intellectual and social movements and set examples for the rest of the country," she said.
Criticising the state government's welfare initiatives, she said schemes such as Kanyashree were built on "false claims" and asserted that women needed security rather than assurances.
Accusing the state government of blocking central schemes, Gupta alleged that funds worth "lakhs of crores of rupees" had not reached the poor due to non-implementation of programmes such as Ayushman Bharat, PM Awas Yojana and Jal Jeevan Mission by the state.
"You are only interested in renaming projects and taking credit," she said.
Gupta also alleged that the education sector in the state had been adversely affected, saying several state-run schools had closed due to a shortage of teachers and that the government was opposed to the National Education Policy.
Drawing a comparison with BJP-ruled Delhi, Gupta said, "People have already voted out 'Bhaia' (a reference to former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal). Now it is your turn to bid farewell to 'Didi'." Calling upon women to resist what she termed "strong-arm tactics", she urged them to assert their strength, invoking the imagery of Goddess Durga.
"Bengal has the right to live with dignity, and women have the right to live with dignity," she added.
Reacting to Gupta's allegations, West Bengal Women and Child Welfare minister Shashi Panja accused her of making "absurd allegations" against the Trinamool Congress government ahead of elections.
Panja alleged that during Gupta's tenure in Delhi, several incidents had raised serious concerns, including reports of missing young women and a blast near the Red Fort.
She also criticised the air pollution situation in the national capital, claiming that people were struggling to breathe.
The TMC leader said that despite being in power for a year, Gupta was making "tall claims" instead of addressing key issues in Delhi.
Panja further alleged that the Delhi CM visited West Bengal during elections to "peddle false allegations" against the state government.
Rebutting Gupta, the TMC said in a post on X said, "Madam why did you go off-script again? For your edification, here are the cold, hard facts: In total cases of crimes (IPC + SLL), Bengal ranks a respectable 15th, far safer than BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Gujarat, which languish near the bottom."
"In overall crime rate, Bengal sits comfortably at 28th. Who's second? Your own Delhi. Double Engine Gujarat and Haryana grab 4th and 5th as top-tier crime havens," the TMC said.
"In child marriage, Assam again takes the shameful pole position. And yet you dare lecture Bengal? Stop embarrassing yourself, stop the hypocrisy, and maybe fix the rotting mess in your own backyard before pointing fingers at a state that's outperforming your disasters on every key metric," the TMC countered.
