MUMBAI: Tata Communications has handed the keys to its chairman's office to N. Ganapathy Subramaniam, the tech wizard who spent four decades cutting code and climbing ladders at Tata Consultancy Services.

The appointment, which took immediate effect today, adds another feather to NGS's already well-plumed cap, as the seasoned executive continues his post-retirement tour of Tata boardrooms.

Having hung up his boots as chief operating officer and executive director at TCS last May, the Bangalore-based tech veteran is chairman at  Tata Elxsi and Tejas Networks, making this latest appointment something of a hat-trick for the self-described "software engineer at heart."

Subramaniam's elevation comes as Tata Communications—formerly the state-owned behemoth VSNL—continues its transformation from stodgy telecom operator to nimble digital services provider. With revenues nudging Rs 17,000 crore, the company has been aggressively courting enterprise clients with cloud and IoT offerings that bear little resemblance to its public sector ancestor.

The company informed the bourses of the appointment through a  regulatory filing.

For NGS, whose four-decade tech odyssey has seen him shepherd TCS through banking, telecom and public service transformations worldwide, the new role adds to an already bulging portfolio of responsibilities. 

Beyond his corporate entanglements, he chairs the governing council of Bharat6G Alliance and serves on the institute body at Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology. To ease off from all his hectic engagements, NGS  enjoys nature walks around his Bangalore home.