Axalta Coating Systems has announced the appointment of Rakesh Sachdev to its board of directors. Sachdev will serve on the company’s Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, as well as its Compensation Committee.
Axalta says that with the appointment of Rakesh Sachdev, its board is now composed of nine directors all with unique backgrounds and experience in areas important to its business, including executive leadership, finance, audit, management consulting and global operations. This is in relevant industries, including specialty chemicals and several of the company’s end markets.
“The Axalta Board of Directors always seeks to optimise the balance of expertise, experience and diversity amongst our directors,” said Mark Garrett, Board Chair, Axalta. “In welcoming Rakesh, we are adding to our board an outstanding leader with a deep knowledge of Axalta’s end markets and business transformation. His impressive global business leadership track record and familiarity with automotive and commercial vehicle markets also make him a great fit for the Axalta team.”
“Rakesh’s experience leading innovation-focused organisations makes him an ideal addition to our board as Axalta seeks to continue to leverage our best-in-class technologies to grow our businesses globally,” said Robert Bryant, CEO of Axalta. “I am excited to have Rakesh’s voice at the table as we continue to seek opportunities to create and deliver shareholder value.”
Sachdev most recently served as CEO of Element Solutions, a global specialty chemicals company, from 2016 to 2019. Prior to that, he led Sigma-Aldrich Corporation, a leading S&P 500 global life sciences and technology company, as President and CEO from 2010 until 2015. Previously, he held executive positions at global automotive systems and components supplier Meritor, including President of Asia, Senior Vice President of Strategy and Vice President/General Manager of several of its global businesses. He also spent 18 years at Cummins in various leadership roles, including Chief Financial Officer of its automotive business and Managing Director in Mexico.
Sachdev is currently Chairman of the Board of Regal Beloit Corporation and serves as a board member of Edgewell Personal Care and Avantor. He is also a senior advisor at New Mountain Capital and serves on its portfolio boards of Aceto and ILC Dover. He currently serves as a member of the Board of Trustees of Washington University in St. Louis and has, in the past, served as a board member and chair of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.