Driving the Future of Mobility
Automotive & Transportation
Executive Search
70+ C-Suite Placements in Automotive — with an average 41 Days time-to-placement and a 12-month candidate guarantee.
70+
C-Suite Placementsin Automotive
41 Days
Avg. Time-to-Placement
93%
Offer Acceptance Rate
12 Months
Candidate Guarantee
Is This Your Situation?
If any of these sound familiar, you're speaking to the right practice.
→Your EV startup has raised Series C funding and needs a Head of Manufacturing who can set up a Greenfield plant producing 100,000 units annually within 18 months.
→Your global OEM's India MD is relocating to headquarters. The successor must manage a ₹15,000 Cr India P&L spanning manufacturing, sales, and a 2,500-person R&D centre.
→Your Tier 1 component company's largest customer is transitioning to EV platforms. You need a CTO who can lead the R&D pivot from ICE to electric powertrain components.
→Your commercial vehicle business needs a VP Sales who can manage both fleet operators and individual buyers across India's complex state-level regulatory and financing landscape.
Our Automotive Track Record
Finding the Powertrain Engineers and Homologation Specialists India's Automotive Sector Builds Over Decades and Rarely Lets Move
The most critical talent in India's automotive ecosystem — a Head of Powertrain Development who calibrated BS-VI emission systems across 12 engine variants, a Vehicle Homologation Lead who secured type approvals for 40+…
See how Gladwin International & Company helps India's leading organisations access hard-to-reach specialist talent in Automotive — the profiles that never appear on job boards.
2,500+
Automotive & transportation professionals mapped
35+
Specialist mandates placed in 36 months
30
OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers & test agencies in our network
Situation:
Well-funded electric two-wheeler company needed a CEO who could scale from 5,000 to 100,000 units/year, build a dealer network from scratch, and manage FAME subsidy compliance. Founder wanted to focus on product design.
Outcome:
Placed in 49 days. New CEO built a 120-dealer network in 14 months. Production scaled to 8,000 units/month. FAME subsidy claims processed without a single rejection.
Situation:
European OEM's India R&D centre (1,800 engineers) needed a Head of R&D to lead the transition from localisation engineering to global platform development. Required someone who could influence the global matrix from India.
Outcome:
Placed in 42 days. Candidate elevated India's role from support centre to lead development site for two global platforms. Headcount grew from 1,800 to 2,600 within 20 months.
Situation:
₹5,000 Cr auto component group with 8 plants needed a CFO to lead consolidation of acquired businesses, manage working capital across cyclical demand, and prepare for a potential IPO.
Outcome:
Placed in 37 days. Working capital cycle reduced from 85 to 62 days. IPO draft red herring prospectus filed within 15 months of placement.
All client details anonymised. Specific mandates available for reference under NDA upon request.
Our Automotive Practice
The global automotive industry is experiencing the most radical transformation in its 130-year history — driven by electrification, connected and autonomous vehicles, and the emergence of new mobility platforms. In India, this transformation is particularly dynamic: the country is simultaneously the world's third-largest auto market, an aggressive adopter of EV technology, a growing hub for automotive R&D and engineering, and a major global supplier to OEMs worldwide.
Our Automotive & Transportation practice at Gladwin International Leadership Advisors has deep roots in the sector. We have placed senior leaders across Indian OEMs (Tata Motors, Mahindra, Bajaj, TVS, Hero), global OEM India operations (Hyundai, Toyota, Volkswagen Group, Mercedes-Benz), Tier 1 and Tier 2 component suppliers, EV companies, and automotive engineering and design services firms.
The EV transition is creating entirely new leadership requirements — combining electromechanical engineering expertise with software development, battery technology, and digital connected services. We are actively building expertise in placing EV-native leadership teams as this sub-sector accelerates.
The Automotive Landscape Today
India is the world's third-largest automobile market (4.5 million units/year) and the largest two-wheeler and three-wheeler market globally. The government's EV30@30 target (30% EV penetration by 2030) is driving massive investment in electric mobility. PLI schemes for advanced automotive technology and battery storage are attracting global supply chain investments. India's auto component industry is a $70 billion sector, with significant export growth to North America and Europe. New-age EV companies (Ola Electric, Ather, Revolt, and 50+ startups) are disrupting the incumbents. Connected mobility, fleet electrification, and charging infrastructure are emerging high-investment categories.
Key Leadership Challenges in Automotive
Electrification transition — finding leaders who can simultaneously manage ICE business profitability while investing in and accelerating EV product development and go-to-market
Software-defined vehicle leadership — as software becomes 40-50% of vehicle value, OEMs need engineering leaders who can build software capability in traditionally hardware-focused organisations
Supply chain transformation — redesigning procurement and supply chain leadership for an EV world with new material requirements (lithium, cobalt, rare earths) and new supplier bases
New mobility business models — subscription-based mobility, fleet electrification, and B2B mobility services require commercial leaders with non-traditional backgrounds
Global expansion leadership — as Indian auto companies expand internationally (Tata, Mahindra, Bajaj), they need leaders who can manage multicultural, multi-geography P&Ls
Speed of product development — reducing time-to-market from 48 months (traditional) to 18-24 months (EV-era expectation) requires new product leadership paradigms
Roles We Typically Place
Why Gladwin International Leadership Advisors for Automotive
30+ senior placements across Indian OEMs and global OEM India operations in the past 5 years
Emerging EV sub-practice — leadership placements at Ola Electric, Ather, and multiple EV component startups
Tier 1 and Tier 2 component supplier network: Bosch, Motherson, Bharat Forge, Minda, Faurecia, and 100+ component companies
Automotive engineering services: Tata Technologies, Infosys BPO Automotive, KPIT, and global engineering service companies
Connected vehicle and mobility technology — understanding of software-hardware convergence in modern vehicle development
Organisations We Serve
Indian OEMs and their India operations
Global OEM India manufacturing and R&D centres
Tier 1 and Tier 2 auto component companies
EV startups and electric mobility companies
Automotive engineering services and software companies
Automotive Leadership Assessment — “ORBIT”
Seven dimensions calibrated for automotive and mobility leadership.
C-Suite Function Practices
Each function we place in Automotive has a dedicated practice with sector-calibrated assessment.
Discuss a Automotive Mandate
Confidential · No obligation
Response within 4 business hours · All enquiries handled by a senior practice partner · Strictly confidential
OEM, Tier 1, and EV startup coverage across the full automotive value chain
EV and new mobility leadership — one of our most actively growing sub-practices
Automotive R&D and engineering services — strong GCC and India engineering centre placements
Looking for a Automotive Leader?
Our Automotive practice is ready to help. Guaranteed placement · 12-month candidate guarantee · Affordable pricing for organisations across the value chain.
Frequently Asked Questions — Automotive & Transportation Executive Search
Common questions about recruiting Automotive & Transportation leadership in India.
Our Automotive & Transportation practice has deep sector relationships across OEMs, auto component manufacturers, commercial vehicle companies, EV players, and mobility platforms. We understand the technical, commercial, and regulatory dimensions of automotive leadership — from plant operations and supply chain management to EV transition strategy and software-defined vehicle leadership. Our search methodology identifies candidates across India's established automotive corridors and emerging EV and tech-automotive ecosystems.
We fill the complete automotive leadership spectrum: CEO/MD, CFO, COO, CTO/Chief Engineer, VP Manufacturing, VP Sales & Marketing, VP Supply Chain, CHRO, Head of R&D, Head of EV Business, Head of Software & Connected Vehicles, Head of After-Sales, Chief Commercial Officer, and Board Directors. We serve OEMs, Tier 1 and Tier 2 suppliers, EV startups, commercial vehicle companies, fleet management firms, and mobility platforms.
The EV transition is arguably the most significant leadership challenge the automotive industry has faced. Companies need leaders who understand battery technology, software-defined vehicles, charging infrastructure, and new go-to-market models — while managing the wind-down or retooling of ICE manufacturing. The most sought-after profiles combine traditional automotive operational credibility with software, electronics, and new energy expertise. We are actively mapping this emerging leadership profile across India's growing EV ecosystem.
Yes. EV and new mobility is one of the fastest-growing segments within our automotive practice. We place CEOs, CTOs, Chief Product Officers, Head of Manufacturing, Head of Battery Technology, and commercial leaders for EV two-wheelers, three-wheelers, commercial EVs, EV charging infrastructure companies, and fleet electrification platforms. We understand what entrepreneurial automotive leadership looks like versus what a legacy OEM requires.
A CEO of a mid-sized Indian OEM or large auto component company typically earns ₹2.5–6 crore CTC. Country heads of global automotive OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers typically earn ₹3–8 crore. CTO and VP Engineering roles at OEMs typically command ₹1.5–3.5 crore. EV startups frequently supplement cash compensation with significant ESOP packages. We provide detailed compensation benchmarks for every automotive search.