Gopal Vittal, Vice Chairman and Managing Director of Bharti Airtel, has been appointed as the Acting Chair of the GSMA Board following the resignation of José Maria Álvarez-Pallete, Chairman and CEO of Telefónica. This transition was necessitated by Álvarez-Pallete’s inability to maintain his position within the GSMA due to his resignation.
The GSMA plays a pivotal role in representing the global telecommunications sector, encompassing over 1,100 member entities within the telecom ecosystem.
Gopal Vittal was recently re-elected as the Deputy Chair of the GSMA board. He has also served the board as a key member for 2019-2020.
GSMA represents the global telecommunications industry with over 1100 companies from the telecom ecosystem across the world including telecom service providers, handset and device makers, software companies, equipment providers and internet companies, as well as organizations in adjacent industry sectors.
The GSMA includes a diverse array of stakeholders such as mobile network operators, device manufacturers, software developers, infrastructure providers, internet service organizations, and companies in related industries, all converging to address the ongoing evolution and challenges in connectivity and digital transformation worldwide.
Also Read: Airtel Business with Cisco launch ‘Airtel SD-Branch’ for enterprises in IndiaBefore Airtel, Gopal Vittal was with Unilever for nearly two decades, working across sales, marketing, and general management in markets spanning India, Thailand, Indonesia, and China. In his last assignment at Unilever, he led the Home and Personal care business and strengthened the entire portfolio by growing market share and profitability across categories. Gopal Vittal is an alumnus of Madras Christian College and has completed his MBA from IIM, Kolkata.
