Unilever Appoints Srinivas Phatak as Chief Financial Officer
Unilever has named Srinivas Phatak as its new CFO, effective September 16, 2025. A seasoned company insider, Phatak takes charge at a pivotal time as Unilever accelerates AI-driven strategies across global and Indian markets.
TL;DR
Unilever has appointed Srinivas Phatak as its new Chief Financial Officer, effective September 16, 2025. A seasoned company insider, Phatak brings decades of financial and strategic expertise and steps into the role at a pivotal moment as Unilever accelerates AI-driven initiatives across global and Indian markets. His leadership reinforces stability and confidence, strengthens the company’s executive bench, and signals a clear focus on leveraging AI for smarter supply chains, personalized consumer engagement, and sustainable growth. This move underscores the growing importance of aligning financial strategy with technology and positions Unilever to navigate global markets with precision and innovation.
In a significant leadership move, Unilever has appointed Srinivas Phatak as its new Chief Financial Officer (CFO). The announcement was made on September 16, 2025, with Phatak stepping into the role after serving as acting CFO since February 2025. This leadership change signals more than just a shift in financial stewardship, it comes at a time when global FMCG giants are increasingly relying on AI-powered insights to optimize growth, supply chains, and consumer engagement.
Unilever, a multinational consumer goods powerhouse headquartered in London and Rotterdam, owns some of the most recognizable brands in food, beauty, personal care, and home essentials. With operations spanning 190 countries, Unilever touches the lives of billions of consumers daily. Over recent years, the company has embraced digital transformation and AI-driven analytics, deploying data platforms for consumer behaviour insights, sustainability initiatives, and precision marketing. This integration of AI into operations is no longer peripheral, it has become core to Unilever’s strategy for efficiency, innovation, and market responsiveness.
Srinivas Phatak, a longtime Unilever insider, brings decades of financial expertise and operational leadership. He has held various senior roles in finance, including stints in strategy and M&A, giving him both a broad and deep understanding of Unilever’s complex global operations. Since stepping in as acting CFO earlier this year, Phatak has already demonstrated stability and financial clarity. His permanent appointment reinforces Unilever’s commitment to seasoned internal leadership during a period of digital and AI-driven transformation.
Phatak’s appointment holds particular significance for India, one of Unilever’s fastest-growing markets and a crucial hub for its AI-enabled operations. India is not only a consumer growth engine but also a digital innovation hub where Unilever has partnered with AI startups and analytics firms to optimize retail distribution, personalized marketing, and rural outreach.
Unilever is anticipated to further integrate AI and data analytics into financial decision-making under Phatak's direction. AI tools are becoming more and more essential to the effective capital allocation of multinational firms like Unilever, from automated budgeting and risk assessment to predictive demand forecasting. This could enable Hindustan Unilever Ltd. to sustain its competitive edge in India through more focused investments in digital retail platforms, AI-driven consumer insights, and sustainable supply chain solutions. The appointment of Phatak indicates that Unilever sees technology as an essential part of its financial strategy and market execution, rather than as an auxiliary tool.
With Pathak’s extensive experience, the company is better positioned to navigate complex global markets, respond to changing consumer trends, and optimize operations. In India, one of Unilever’s fastest-growing markets, this leadership transition signals a focus on continued expansion, operational efficiency, and sustained market leadership, ensuring that both the company and its brands remain at the forefront of the consumer goods industry.
From an AI perspective, the CFO’s role is increasingly tied to investment in data infrastructure, predictive analytics, and automation. With Phatak at the helm, investors can expect sharper capital allocation towards AI-driven efficiencies whether in smart supply chains, sustainability tracking, or consumer personalization engines. This has the potential to ripple through Indian markets, where Hindustan Unilever Ltd. (HUL) already stands as a benchmark for AI adoption in consumer goods.
Although balance sheets and profitability are frequently the focus of CFO transitions, financial strategy and AI adoption are intricately linked in today's ecosystem. It is crucial for Unilever to have a CFO who is knowledgeable about both the financial benefits of AI investments and global operations. Under Phatak's direction, the business may move more quickly toward becoming an AI-first enterprise, where predictive analytics drives long-term growth, AI algorithms maximize marketing return on investment, and machine learning models direct demand forecasting.
In a larger sense, this action shows that CXO changes are about more than just maintaining leadership, they are also about coordinating financial vision with AI-driven change. This appointment serves as a reminder to the AI community that the future of consumer goods is at the interface of artificial intelligence, strategy, and finance.
Now that Srinivas Phatak is leading Unilever's financial strategy, the company conveys assurance, steadiness, and forward motion. His hiring strengthens Unilever's leadership team and puts the business in a position to precisely and clearly navigate international markets. For investors, staff, and customers alike, this is a significant step toward long-term expansion, innovation, and market leadership, demonstrating that one of the most recognizable consumer goods companies in the world can be shaped by its leadership.
