OYO appoints new CTO, rejigs top brass to strengthen global business

SoftBank-backed hospitality chain OYO Hotels and Homes has reorganised its leadership team across verticals and geographies to strengthen its global business.

Amid the Covid-19 pandemic that has wreaked havoc on the hospitality industry, OYO has announced the appointment of Ankit Mathuria as its CTO. 

Mathuria, set to replace Anil Goel, brings more than 15 years of technical expertise to the company. He was previously employed as the CTO of Souq, an Amazon subsidiary, in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. 

OYO has also elevated several C-suite executives to grow its global business in 2021, including chief business development officer Ayush Mathur, who will take up the role of global chief supply officer. 

Global COO Abhinav Sinha will now be the interim chief product officer in addition to his existing role; and chief growth officer Kavikrut will jointly lead global communications and branding teams. 

OYO China CEO Gautam Swaroop will drive OYO International, which will also include hotels in the European Union and the United States. Swaroop will be supported by Prasun Choudhary, who has been elevated as the president of OYO International, as well as Della Zhang and Jessie Yang, the CFO and chief human resource officer, respectively, elevated to oversee both OYO China and Europe.

The changes are expected to improve products and experience for guests, partners, employees and all stakeholders of the OYO ecosystem.

Read more: OYO on cash runway, IPO and renewed focus on hotels, holiday homes biz

Other geography-specific changes, the company said, will see EU head Rishab Gupta lead global capital and positioning strategy, and OYO China head Ping Wang take over as president and COO for the market. 

In India and South Asia, Sharad Saxena will be the senior vice president (SVP) and COO for the franchise, taking over from outgoing COO Harshit Vyas, and Abhinav Ankur will be the SVP, and chief strategy and transformation officer. 

OYO Vacation Homes (OVH) CPO Rahul Sahni, OVH Europe CFO Deepak Goyal, and OYO SEAME COO Guruprasad Sankaranarayanan are also being elevated to the role of senior vice presidents in addition to their new positions. Operated business VP Varun Jain will be the SVP for the segment, and Vineet Pandita will be elevated as the SVP for engineering from the VP position.