Punit Goenka Resigned as Managing Director at Zee Entertainment, Appointed as CEO

Managing Director of Zee entertainment Punit Goenka has resigned from his position and been appointed as CEO.  Now he has to focus completely on operational responsibilities assigned by the board of the company.

According to Zee Entertainment, "The board has accepted the resignation of Punit Goenka as Managing Director of the Company and appointed him as CEO."

Further, it added, Chief Financial Officer of Zee Entertainment Mukund Galgali, will take the role of Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the Company.

Goenka resigned as Managing Director, and he closed all his related reports in the business hours on November 18, and he was appointed as CEO the same day.

The change would be like the existing full-time employment for Goenka, however the variable portion of his salary 40 percent will be paid to him only on future achievement of certain milestones, subject to a maximum role as defined by the Board, according to the statement.

Furthermore, ZEE stated, "With this step, he intends to dedicate his time entirely towards the future of the Company by enhancing its performance and profitability levels in line with the direction given by the Board/Nomination and Remuneration Committee in its meeting dated 15th November 2024."

After that, the board stated, "The Company remains on a firm footing and is taking all the necessary steps to build a robust foundation for its future. In order to ensure we maintain a sharp focus on achieving our targeted aspirations, the core businesses require dedicated time and energy which can only be achieved in an operational capacity.”

"In the long-term interest of the Company and all its stakeholders, I have approached the Board with a request to attain operational focus as the CEO," the reports quoting Punit Goenka, the son of media baron Subhash Chandra.

On October 18th, the ZEE board accepted the proposal for Goenka's reappointment for a five-year term, he will take action as CEO from January 1, 2025, to December 31, 2029.

However, Goenka's reappointment has to get approval from the shareholders of the coming Annual General Meeting of Zee Entertainment, which is planned to be held on 28th November.

Last week, the company board increased the performance targets for Managing Director and CEO Punit Goenka for his reappointment, according to a regulatory filing by the company.

The board of ZEEL stated, "considered and approved higher targets to evaluate the performance of Punit Goenka which includes Quarterly Consolidated Revenue Outlook for next 4 quarters that is commencing Q3FY25, Quarterly Consolidated EBITDA Outlook for next 4 quarters commencing Q3FY25 and payout of 25 percent of consolidated net profits as dividend to the shareholders of the Company." 

Further, they added in a meeting held on Friday, Now the board will track Goenka's performance based on the new targets.

ZEEL announced its September quarter result on October 18, reporting a jump of 70.24 percent in its consolidated net profit to Rs 209.4 crore.

However, its total revenue decreased 18.93 percent to Rs 2,034.4 crore during the quarter under review.