Bengaluru, Karnataka, India, February 2026 – Manjunath Karikatti has joined Rittal India, a leading German multinational and part of the Friedhelm Loh Group, as Senior Director & HR Head – APAC Region. Based out of Bengaluru, he will drive the people strategy for Rittal and Eplan across the Asia-Pacific region, aligning talent priorities with regional business growth and operational excellence.
In this strategic mandate, Manjunath will lead HR transformation, organizational design, succession architecture, culture integration, and industrial relations across diverse APAC markets. His appointment underscores Rittal’s commitment to strengthening leadership pipelines and embedding agile, future-ready people practices to support its expanding regional footprint.
Prior to joining Rittal India, Manjunath spent over seven years at SKF India, most recently as General Manager HR, where he led people strategy for operations spanning six manufacturing sites, purchasing, and logistics functions covering 400 staff and 3,000 workers. He successfully executed a complex enterprise demerger of a publicly listed entity, strengthened succession readiness from 50% to 100% at N-2 and N-3 levels, launched a “Y-Shaped” career path for technical SMEs with 100% retention, and established a Manufacturing Leadership Academy to build internal capability. His international assignment in Indonesia further strengthened his expertise in cross-border talent management and production system readiness.
Earlier, he held key leadership roles at Tata Motors, where he served as Human Resources Business Partner, leading HR strategy for over 1,000 employees and supporting major product launches including the Tiago through structured OD interventions. He also held HR leadership positions at Tata AIA Life Insurance, Federal-Mogul Powertrain, and Bajaj Allianz Life, building a strong foundation in industrial relations, workforce planning, and performance-driven culture building. He has completed an Executive Development Programme in Labor Laws and Industrial Relations from XLRI Jamshedpur.
About Rittal India
Rittal India is the Indian subsidiary of Rittal GmbH & Co. KG, headquartered in Herborn, Germany. Rittal is a leading global provider of solutions for industrial enclosures, power distribution, climate control, IT infrastructure, and related software and services. With over 10,000 employees and 58 subsidiaries worldwide, Rittal serves sectors including transport, power generation, mechanical and plant engineering, IT, and telecommunications. Complemented by engineering solutions from Eplan and automation systems from Rittal Automation Systems, the group delivers integrated, energy-efficient, and future-ready infrastructure solutions globally.
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