Procter & Gamble Co. will have a new CEO and a new leader of its largest division in less than two weeks. The company has tapped Shailesh Jejurikar to become president of its $15 billion global fabric care division. The promotion is effective Nov. 1, the same day David Taylor succeeds AG Lafley as CEO of the Cincinnati-based company.
The Global Fabric Care division, which is the largest business category at P&G, includes Tide, Ariel, Downy and Gain detergents. Jejurikar also will assume the role of leader of Home Care Brand Building. Jejurikar, 48, already works at the downtown headquarters of P&G, where he has been president of the North America fabric care division since October 2014. The promotion is an expansion of Jejurikar's responsibilities. He will continue to lead North America fabric care. Jejurikar and his team are credited with restoring the North America Fabric Care division to growth for the first time in five years, largely on the strength of innovations such as Tide Pods and Downy Unstopables.
P&G’s net sales for the 2015 fiscal year that ended in June fell 5% to $76.3 billion. The company posted a profit of $7.1 billion for the fiscal year, down 40% from the nearly $11.8 billion in fiscal 2014. Jejurikar will report to Giovanni Ciserani, group president for global fabric and home care, who has been overseeing fabric care globally. Ciserani recently was assigned the added responsibility of overseeing global baby and feminine care, whose brands include Pampers diapers and Always feminine care products.
Jejurikar previously spent more than four years as vice president of P&G’s North America home care business. A native of Mumbai, India, Jejurikar joined P&G on July 1, 1989 as an assistant brand manager for personal health care in India. He also has served as brand manager for skin care and later personal care cleansing in India. He was named marketing director for India in 1999.