Leadership

Mr Manoj Jain took charge as the Chairman and Managing Director of Navratna Defence PSU Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) on June 20, 2024. He was Director (R&D) since September 26, 2022, and was also assigned with the additional charge of Director (Bangalore Complex) from August 1, 2023.

Mr Manoj Jain was assigned additional charge of Director (HR) from November 1, 2022, to May 31, 2023. He was General Manager of the Electronic Warfare & Avionics SBU at BEL’s Bangalore Complex prior to his elevation as Director (R&D).

Mr Manoj Jain joined BEL in August 1991 as Probationary Engineer after completing his BE (Electronics) from REC Jaipur (MNIT) with Gold medal. In an illustrious career spanning over three decades, he has made significant contributions to the field of Research & Development.

During his initial years in D&E at BEL’s Kotdwara Unit, Mr Manoj Jain played a pivotal role in the development of Digital Multiplexers, Cross Connects, CDOT Exchanges and Military Switches. In 1999, he moved to BEL’s Central Research Laboratory in Bangalore and was engaged in the development of technologies for Defence Networks and Network & Bulk Security Solutions. In the area of Radar, one of BEL’s core businesses, he was involved in the development of VeXT, Scan Converter and Display using FPGA.

Mr Manoj Jain served as Chief Scientist of CRL-Bangalore from December 2017 to May 2019, overseeing technological developments in all technical areas. He took over as General Manager of BEL’s Product Development & Innovation Centre (PD&IC) in June 2019. During his two-year stint here, PD&IC developed many new products/sub-systems required for BEL, thus ensuring innovation and value addition, leading to self-reliance.

Mr Manoj Jain took over as the General Manager and Head of the Electronic Warfare & Avionics SBU at BEL-Bangalore, in June 2021. Apart from overseeing all the business operations of the SBU, he provided the much-needed vision for this business vertical.

Mr Manoj Jain has received various R&D awards, Key Contributor Awards, Raksha Mantri’s Award and SODET Awards. He has published many technical papers, applied for several patents and delivered talks to Defence users and DRDO scientists.

Mr. Bhanu Prakash Srivastava took charge as Director (Other Units) of BEL on April 20, 2022. He held Additional Charge as Chairman & Managing Director from November 1, 2022, to June 19, 2024. He was serving as General Manager of the Advanced Defence Systems- Navy (ADSN) Strategic Business Unit at BEL’s Bangalore Complex prior to being elevated to the Board.

Mr. Bhanu Prakash Srivastava holds a degree in Bachelor of Technology (Mechanical Engineering) from IIT-BHU and Master of Business Administration (Marketing). He joined BEL in August 1986 and in a career spanning 36 years in three Units of BEL (Kotdwara, Ghaziabad and Bangalore), gained rich experience in diverse functions such as Manufacturing, Project Management, Quality Management, Materials Management, Design & Development and Product Support. He had a 3 year stint in BEL’s New York Regional Office, where he had good exposure to international business.

Mr. Srivastava, during his long tenure at BEL in various senior Management positions, has made major contributions towards sustained business growth and profitability in the areas of Radio & Data equipment, Military and Telecom Switching Equipment, C4I Systems for Civil & Military applications, Radars for Army, Air Force and Navy, Sonars, Fire Control Systems & Communication systems for Navy and Surface-to-Air Missile project for Naval Ships.

Mr. Damodar Bhattad S assumed charge as the Director (Finance) of Navratna Defence PSU Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) with effect from January 11, 2023. He was working as General Manager (Finance) at BEL’s Corporate Office prior to his elevation.

Mr. Damodar Bhattad is a Chartered Accountant, who had secured All India Rank in ICAI final examination. A B.Com Graduate from the University of Madras, he joined BEL as Accounts Officer at its Chennai Unit in 1988 and in a career spanning over 34 years, served the company in various roles and capacities.

As Head of Finance at BEL Corporate Office, he played a significant role in the formulation of various company policies and procedures. He also played a pivotal role in BEL recording its highest ever turnover of Rs. 15,044 Cr in FY22 and achieving an order book of more than Rs. 50,000 Cr.

As Head of Funds, he efficiently managed Working Capital and ensured BEL remained debt free. He and his team played a key role in efficient collection of Trade Receivables, in the last two years (FY 2021 and 2022). He also initiated investment of surplus funds in Mutual Funds, which increased the company’s returns from Treasury Management.

Mr. Damodar Bhattad has ensured that adequate internal financial controls are put in place in BEL and the company’s Risk Control Matrix is current and updated. He has been a member of various Management Committees — Management Audit Committee, Corporate Risk Management Committee, CSR Screening Committee and Invitee of Audit Committee and Capital Investment Committee to name a few, and has been able to provide valuable insights to BEL Management from the Finance perspective.

Mr. Damodar Bhattad was Lead Member (Finance) for devising a business-cum-growth plan for BEL with respect to a strategic advisory services contract signed by the Defence major with a leading consultancy firm. He has been an integral part of the BEL Management team at various analysts/investor conferences. He has played a major role in BEL making the leap from conventional financial reporting to the more holistic approach of bringing out its first Integrated Annual Report in 2021-22. He believes and supports initiatives which increase BEL’s value for shareholders, in terms of higher Dividend payout and capitalisation of reserves.

As a member and Finance representative of BEL’s Pension Trust and Gratuity Trust, Mr. Damodar Bhattad has ensured that the trust portfolio is suitably diversified in order to minimise risk and maximise returns. Earlier, during his tenure as Head of Finance (Operations), he played a crucial role in finalising contracts and selling price of major equipment and systems with customers. As a member of BEL’s Price Negotiation Committee, he was instrumental in obtaining significant price reductions from suppliers. He believes that BEL being a socially responsible corporate citizen must maximise its value for all its stakeholders.

Mr. Vikraman N took charge as the Director (HR) of Navratna Defence PSU Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) on June 1, 2023. He was serving as Executive Director (Radar) and Unit Head of BEL’s Ghaziabad Unit prior to his elevation to the Board.

Mr. Vikraman has 35 years of vast, rich experience in handling various facets of HR and diverse functions such as Testing, Marketing and Customer Support in the field of Radars and Missile Systems. He holds a degree in Bachelors of Engineering (Honours) in Electronics & Communication and Post Graduate Diploma in Human Resource Management. He is a recipient of the prestigious Raksha Mantri’s Award for ‘Innovation’. He is also a certified Project Management Professional from Project Management Institute, USA.

As ED (Radar) and Unit Head, BEL-Ghaziabad, he steered the second biggest Unit of BEL to its highest ever turnover and profitability and was presented ‘Achiever’ Award at the annual Roll- on-Plan Business Meet of BEL.

Mr. Vikraman has played a pivotal role in providing a strategic edge to the Human Resources function in BEL. During his previous tenure as General Manager (Human Resources) at BEL’s Corporate Office, Mr. Vikraman was responsible for institutionalising HR policies and strategies in alignment with the business requirements of BEL. He established new systems and procedures in areas such as Manpower Planning, Performance Management, Training & Development, Competency Development, Skill Development, etc. He was responsible for introducing a comprehensive framework for various competencies for benchmarking performance standards and providing a more equitable method for career progression. Under his leadership, BEL received the certification for People Capability Maturity Model (Level 3).

Mr. Vikraman has promoted an atmosphere conducive for learning within the company through the establishment of the BEL Academy for Excellence and fostering partnerships with both national and international academia. Some of his other major contributions to BEL in the field of HR include institutionalising ERP based Learning Management System for Talent Management, establishing Functional Competency Dictionary to build competencies required for different job roles, and introducing a blended e-learning platform to promote flexi-learning. He implemented changes in key HR processes to ensure safety of the workforce during the pandemic, thus ensuring business continuity.

In his previous assignment at BEL’s Missile Systems SBU, Mr. Vikraman developed multi- disciplinary competencies in his team to handle system integration projects. He nurtured the culture change required for the organisation to migrate from the role of a Radar manufacturer to that of a Weapon System Integrator. During his tenure as Head of Testing, Marketing & Customer Support, the Missile Systems SBU achieved a record turnover of Rs. 1,000 Crores for four consecutive years. Mr. Vikraman managed over 100 major stakeholders who were involved in the prestigious Akash project and successfully completed the realisation of the country’s first indigenous missile system.

Mr. Kaipa Venkata Suresh Kumar took charge as Director (Marketing) of Navratna Defence PSU Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) on June 16, 2023. He was serving as the General Manager of BEL’s Product Development & Innovation Center (PD&IC) in Bengaluru before his elevation.

A post-graduate in Electronics & Communications engineering, Mr. Suresh Kumar joined BEL in May 1989 as a Probationary Engineer. An accomplished engineer, he has worked on multiple technologies at multiple Units of BEL, held key corporate positions, including that of Chief Indigenisation Officer, BEL. In an eventful career spanning 34 years, he has gained rich experience in diverse technology areas dealing with all major customer segments, and played a pivotal role in driving business development through R&D.

Mr. Suresh Kumar is a recipient of the prestigious Raksha Mantri’s Excellence Award. Under his able tutelage, many patents / copy rights have been created by his teams.

He has worked in all phases of product development life-cycle, including conceptualisation, design, development, qualification, installation and commissioning, field trials and induction of systems. He has in-depth knowledge and understanding of the end user’s needs / requirements, and the means to meet them.

During his tenure as GM (PD&IC), he guided a team of 500 engineers for in-house development of technology modules in 16 verticals, which are used across BEL. He also drove the IP generation and skill enhancement initiative at PD&IC. Prior to this assignment, Mr. Suresh Kumar held the position of General Manager (Technology Planning) at BEL’s Corporate Office, where he spearheaded planning and execution of all R&D activities across the company, which resulted in a large number of R&D projects that have since been successfully commercialised.

His efforts and contributions, during the period 2017-2019, resulted in the induction of highly complex and state-of-the-art airborne EW Systems onto the fighter aircraft of IAF, paving the way for receipt of orders worth Rs. 3,000 Cr.

Mr. Suresh Kumar was instrumental in realising an above 90 Mn USD export order from Airbus for the supply of EW Suite, the single largest export order received by BEL. He also introduced new products and generated future business opportunities worth about Rs. 4,000 Cr.

Between 2014 and 2017, he successfully led teams for the development and induction of a very large number of Electro-Optic products / systems into the Indian Army and Paramilitary Forces, which in turn have fetched BEL a business of about Rs. 5,000 Cr. He also aggressively pursued indigenisation efforts and saved about Rs. 300 Cr FE.

Prior to 2014, he had developed and inducted many EW systems into the helicopters and aircraft of Indian Navy and IAF. During the same period, his efforts have resulted in the receipt of about Rs. 1,000 Cr order from IAF on nomination basis for setting up the world’s most comprehensive EW Test Range in India.

Since 2021, he has been serving as the Chief Indigenisation Officer of BEL and has made significant contributions to the Government’s ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan’. BEL has saved more than Rs. 1,000 Cr FE in the last two years through indigenisation efforts. The company has also contributed over 100 products to the Positive Indigenisation lists promulgated by the Ministry of Defence, Government of India. A majority of these products are under development through the Make II route.

Mr Rajnish Sharma took charge as Director (Bangalore Complex) of Navratna Defence PSU Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) on August 10, 2024. He was working as General Manager of BEL’s Military Radars SBU prior to his elevation.

Mr Rajnish Sharma graduated in Mechanical Engineering from the Delhi College of Engineering in 1989 and joined BEL in 1990. In an eventful career spanning over 33 years, he has served at various Units and Strategic Business Units (SBUs) of BEL, gaining diverse exposure to core technologies such as Radar Systems, Secure Communication, Electronic Warfare & Avionics, Naval Missile Systems, etc.

He has played a pivotal role in the execution of some of the largest systems of BEL, including LRSAM, which has broadened his outlook and given him a holistic view of organisational businesses, challenges, people, teams, diverse cultures, etc.

While taking up such roles and challenges, he has also acquired professional competencies like the Certified Project Management Professional, Certified Manager of Quality and Organisational Excellence, Six Sigma, CII Business Excellence Assessor, etc. Such learnings have enabled him to successfully execute key projects with international companies like Thales-France, Selex-Italy, HSA-Holland, RAC-Russia and IAI-Israel.

Also, active involvement with LRDE in projects such as the Airborne Early Warning & Control System with CABS, Flycatcher, Weapon Locating Radar, Reporter Radar, Revathi and Rohini Radars have helped Mr Rajnish Sharma hone his skills for a variety of business and production processes critical to the success of any business entity.

His versatility, observant nature and close association with technology partners has given Mr Rajnish Sharma the knack to assimilate learnings and translate technology into developing mature and robust processes leading to best-in-class products. His process orientation and die-hard, never-give-up attitude has stood him in good stead, helping him to meet stringent targets on time.