Sonali Kulkarni exits Microsoft as India BFSI head

MUMBAI: Sonali Kulkarni is calling time on her Microsoft innings, and true to form, she’s leaving them guessing about what comes next. The country head for BFSI at Microsoft India and South Asia has announced her departure after two years and five months in the role, closing a broader stint that saw her ride the generative AI wave from experimental buzzword to boardroom mandate.

Kulkarni joined Microsoft at a moment, by her own account, when generative AI was still a future-gazing conversation. She leaves having helped financial services clients build enterprise AI strategies and push towards production-scale deployment, with some now chasing the label of AI-first organisations altogether.

Before Microsoft, Kulkarni spent 11 years at Accenture, rising to managing director and financial services lead for India, having earlier led the firm’s banking and consulting practice. Her career also runs through EY and GE Capital, giving her two decades-plus of steering financial institutions through digital transformation, automation and organisational overhaul.

Announcing her exit on LinkedIn, Kulkarni thanked her team, colleagues, clients and partners, and promised more details soon on her next move — pitched as a fresh shot at driving AI transformation in financial services.

For now, Kulkarni’s next address remains a mystery. But if her track record is any guide, financial services boardrooms had better brace themselves.