Vodafone India CIO Vikas Grover quits amid Idea merger talks

NEW DELHI: Vikas Grover, chief information officer (CIO) of Vodafone India has stepped down from the post after a stint of over nine years, people familiar with the matter told ET. A Vodafone spokesperson confirmed Grover’s exit . “A suitable replacement has been identified and will be taking over soon,” he added.

A person familiar with the matter said that former Bharti Airtel executive Meenaxi Vajpai will be taking over the role from Grover. Vajpai however would not get the CIO post, the person said, adding that she might be give the post of head of infrastructure and architecture. Vajpai couldn’t be reached for a comment.

She has over 25 years of diverse experience in the IT industry, having worked with organizations like Steel Authority of India, Sapient Corporation, and PVR. The development comes at a time when Vodafone Group is discussing a possible merger of its Indian subsidiary with rival Idea Cellular.


Grover joined Vodafone as executive vice president of technology planning in June 2008. He was promoted to the CIO’s position in 2016, following the exit of then CIO Anthony Thomas, who subsequently joined General Electric (GE) as their India CIO. Before joining Vodafone, Grover was serving Atos Consulting as principal consultant. He also served KPMG as principal consultant for three years till 2003.

Grover had also worked for Tata Communications as senior manager from 1995 to 2000.