“Champions of Change: Acknowledging the Innovators in digital transformation”
The CII – Tata Communications Centre for Digital Transformation proudly announced the winners of the CIO Excellence Awards 2024 during a ceremony attended by more than 200 Chief Information Officers on February 11, 2025. This prestigious event, now in its third year, was organised in collaboration with Protiviti Member Firm in India, serving as the technical partners. The awards celebrate the pivotal role of CIOs as champions of digital transformation, highlighting their vital contributions to fostering innovation and boosting competitiveness across various industries.
A significant highlight of the programme was the release of the “Release of the CIO Insights Report – Leading Technology Trend; 2024 – 25” by the dignitaries. This report is an essential resource that encapsulates the exemplary best practices recognized as benchmarks in the field of digital transformation.
Mr. G. Narendra Nath Highlights Key Strategies for Digital Security and Innovation
At the prestigious CIO Conclave & CIO Excellence Awards, Mr. G. Narendra Nath delivered a special address emphasizing the critical role of digital transformation and security in modern businesses. He highlighted the necessity of designing businesses with digital at the core, stressing that organizations now integrate digital platforms from the outset, making security a top priority. Discussing rapid technological advancements, particularly AI and digital tools, he underscored the importance of continuous learning, networking, and adopting emerging technologies. AI-driven data insights are increasingly crucial, and he urged organizations to leverage AI effectively while also providing new vendors opportunities through structured POC mechanisms. Addressing data security, Mr. Nath emphasized safeguarding digital information, fostering collaboration between CIOs and CISOs, and reducing reliance on third-party platforms to mitigate risks. He also stressed capacity building in digital protection, urging organizations to interpret government alerts and conduct regular cybersecurity exercises. Additionally, he highlighted the importance of compliance with the Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDPA) to provide greater clarity for businesses. Concluding his address, he encouraged collaboration, information sharing, and collective efforts to drive digital security and innovation, urging everyone to work together for a secure and progressive digital future.
Nominations for the awards were received from CIOs across the country. After the initial assessment and screening of the submissions by CDT and Protiviti team, the recommendations were further evaluated by a Steering Committee comprising of CIOs from diverse industries. The final selection of awardees was made by a stellar jury comprising of Dr Gulshan Rai, Former National Cybersecurity Coordinator Director General CERT-in, Mr Kiran Karnik, Former President - NASSCOM | Founder Director - ISRO’s Development and Educational Communicational Unit, Mr Sunil Chandiramani, Chairman - Sapphire Foods, Founder & CEO NYKA Advisory Services along with Chairman of the Jury Mr Vijay Thadani Chairman, CIO Excellence Awards Jury, Co- Chair, Centre for Digital Transformation & Vice Chairman & MD, NIIT Ltd
This year’s CIO award winner represent diverse set of enterprises who had displayed exemplary capabilities and achievements. List of Award Winners for the various categories are as under: -
Sector Recognition as CIO of the Year –
Mr Ravikiran S Avvaru, TVS Sundaram Clayton ltd - for Auto & Auto Ancillaries
Mr Anil Kuril, Union Bank of India – for BFSI
Mr Sanjay Jayant Joshi, Parle Products Pvt. Ltd -for Consumer Products
Dr Sandip Pradhan, Exide Industries Limited -for Industrial Manufacturing
Mr Manoj Srivastava, Easy Trip Planners Limited -for Services
Mr Sanjeev Sinha, India Power Corporation Ltd – for Oil, Chemical, Energy & Utilities
Mr Pramod Gokhale, Mankind Pharma Limited – for Pharma Healthcare & Life Science
Mr Abhishek Arora, K Raheja Corp – for Real Estate & Infra
Mr Raman Srinivasan, INMOBI Technologies – for Technology, Media & Communication
Mr Ganesh Mahadevan Vaidyanathan, Bosch Global Software Technologies – for IT/ITES
Young Tech Leader -
· Mr Tushar Zade, Aurigene Pharma Services
Thematic Recognition -
Mr Milind Korgaonkar, Bajaj Electricals Ltd. - for Cloud Computing
Mr Jitendra Jadhwani, Tata Motors Finance - for Cyber Security & Privacy
Mr Jidesh Gopinathan, The Arya Vaidya Pharmacy (Coimbatore) Ltd – for Data Analytics & Business Insights
Mr Pradeep Khurana, SBI Card - for IT/Digital Transformation
The CIO Conclave program featured plenary sessions on “Harnessing AI and Machine Learning for Strategic Decision Making; Catalyzing Change: The CIO's Strategic Influence on Productivity dealing with everchanging customer demands; Building a Culture of Data Protection in India: A Focus on the Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDPA). Additionally, there was a sharing of inspiring case studies from companies that have successfully leveraged digital strategies.
Some of the Key takeaways from the Session: -
The critical role of DPDPA in strengthening data security, ensuring compliance, and fostering trust in India’s growing digital economy.
The discussion explored real-world applications of AI and ML in enhancing decision-making, predictive analytics, and business strategy.
3. The session underscored the critical role of CIOs in advancing digital transformation, fostering business agility, and driving competitive advantage.