Xiaomi India President Muralikrishnan B resigns
Muralikrishnan B, President of Xiaomi India, has resigned from his leadership position at the leading smartphone brand. The news comes as Xiaomi attempts to regain its number one position in the Indian smartphone market. As per reports, Muralikrishnan is leaving the company to pursue his academic dreams by doing a doctorate at the Indian School of Business. He will be on a six-month gardening leave before officially leaving Xiaomi.
Leadership changes at Xiaomi India
Muralikrishnan's resignation comes just days after Xiaomi appointed Sudhin Mathur, former managing director of Motorola and Lenovo, as its chief operating officer. Mathur now has the task of steering the company's vision, formulating a growth strategy, and keeping up the current momentum. Alvin Tse, who was appointed as the general manager of the India business in 2022 and has been overseeing Indian operations from China, will remain in his position.
Muralikrishnan's journey with Xiaomi
Muralikrishnan had joined Xiaomi in 2018 as the Chief Operating Officer under Manu Kumar Jain, who was the head of Xiaomi India at the time. He initially focused on expanding the company's offline retail network. Subsequently, he was promoted to look after operations, services, public affairs, and strategic initiatives for Xiaomi. His exit comes amid government agencies' investigation into alleged foreign exchange violations by the company.
Xiaomi's market position and challenges
Xiaomi lost its top spot in Q4 2022 after ruling the last 20 quarters. The company was challenged by Samsung and other Chinese brands such as OPPO, Vivo, and Realme. However, despite the challenges, Xiaomi has now climbed to second place in terms of units shipped in the July-September quarter this year, as per Counterpoint Research. The firm's shipments grew 3% YoY with a balanced approach toward offline and online retail channels.
