Madhurisha Vippatoori, Vice President (R&D) and CTO, Schaeffler India, shares her experiences in the industry, key learnings, challenges, and how to overcome them.
12 Mar 2025 | 698 Views | By Radhika Dave
For all the stereotypes she's broken, Madhurisha Vippatoori makes her role look easy. Schaeffler India’s Vice President (R&D) and CTO talks about what it is like being a woman leading such an important function. An industry veteran of 23 years, her advice to women is to stick to your decision, ...
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For all the stereotypes she's broken, Madhurisha Vippatoori makes her role look easy. Schaeffler India’s Vice President (R&D) and CTO talks about what it is like being a woman leading such an important function. An industry veteran of 23 years, her advice to women is to stick to your decision, give 100% to your role, and as you grow, let the team grow with you.
Vippatoori has made significant contributions to Schaeffler India, especially on the technical side. "I am an electronics and communication graduate but I stuck to the core field of product development and manufacturing industry from day one." She recalls how earlier, the number of women were so few that she could count them on her fingers.
"There have been instances where I have had to put in extra effort or have taken that bold decision to prove myself, to show that I can perform equally with my male counterparts if not better. You will end up facing such doubts. Am I doing right, am I in the right field, and all those things? But it's up to us how we stick to our decision and deal with this.
And I never regretted my decision of being in the manufacturing industry." Schaeffler India has a diversity ratio of around 22% at the board level and 30% at the executive leadership level. "Schaeffler is very progressive, with an inclusive culture. Our India leadership team is a testament or proof of how we do this.
The main functions – finance, HR and me as CTO – all of us are women leaders. This is not just for representation, it also strengthens our decision making and innovative way of thinking," she notes. Vippatoori plays a pivotal role in steering the company's technological direction. In her capacity, she is responsible for overseeing all R&D activities, ensuring that Schaeffler India's technological advancements align with both operational excellence and the company's strategic objectives.
Her leadership is instrumental in guiding various technological development efforts, fostering innovation, and driving the overall technology strategy within the Indian market. Her role involves close collaboration with crossfunctional teams, to integrate advanced technologies into Schaeffler's product offerings, thereby enhancing the company's competitive edge.
In a recent interview with Autocar Professional, Harsha Kadam, CEO and MD, Schaeffler India said that the company is actively evaluating the establishment of a Global Capability Centre (GCC) in the country to enhance its software and digital capabilities.
Taking an example of dealing with market disruptions in the e-mobility sector, Vippatoori talks about how the company adapts to changes in terms of performance, efficiency, and the pace of development. "Innovation is key to growth. We have customers spanning ICE engine and e-mobility vehicles." Meanwhile, the CTO notes that she has noticed a decline in stereotypes about women in manufacturing industries, as well as the gender gap.
"Now more and more women are taking critical roles in this industry. The industry is much stronger and more inclusive, and it's really future ready." Talking of her challenges, she said that as a C-suite leader, one challenge she has faced is striking the right balance of functional expertise and strategic leadership, particularly "coming with an R&D background and aligning that with the strategic goals of business."
“Striking the right balance to get that needed output," as she puts it. A votary of ‘people-centric’ leadership, Vippatoori has learnt the importance of managing expectations. "Setting the right expectations and managing them is the key aspect which I learned over the years. When it comes to professional life also, as I was mentioning, there were times where I had to push my boundaries.
But to what extent? To what timeline can you push? Setting goals for yourself and meeting them. Sometimes you may excel. Sometimes you may fall short. But setting that expectation and managing it is key for me: I have followed the same thing in my professional life in whichever role I did. As we say in R&D terminology – things gone right, and things gone wrong. Document. Learn. Move on. And don't repeat the mistakes."