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Naveen Krishna, EVP and chief information and digital officer, is retiring from Genuine Parts Company effective April 1, according to a March 20 SEC filing. Krishna will remain on as an employee through May 5 and help transition his responsibilities to other members of the organization. The company said it does not have plans to replace him.
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Krishna arrived at the company in 2021 to lead its digital strategy, bringing years of technology experience to the role from Fortune 500 companies including Macy’s, Home Depot, Target and FedEx, according to a press release.
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The departure coincides with a massive strategic overhaul for the wholesale distributor and service provider. In February, Chair-elect and CEO Will Stengel shared plans to separate its NAPA-led automotive division from its industrial division, focused on Motion Industries, into two publicly traded entities. The company expects the separation to be completed in the first quarter of 2027.
Krishna is exiting as Genuine Parts Company begins a major shift in operations, a reflection of the economic, global market and supply chain headwinds the company has faced in recent years.
During his five-year tenure at the organization, Krishna focused on digital transformation, which included forging a strategic partnership with Google Cloud to modernize end-to-end processes, provide better visibility into inventory and supply chain operations and strengthen its customer experience.
As AI began to saturate the technology landscape, Krishna viewed data as central to the company’s success. “Large language models are available to most anybody,” he said in a 2023 interview with consultancy Metis Strategy. “What makes the large language models more valuable to one business versus another business is the underlying data the business can provide.”
The company has since made efforts to integrate AI into its workflows. In February, NAPA and robotics vendor Brightpick entered into a partnership to expand a warehouse automation pilot project launched in 2025. The project expands the use of robotics for high-volume inventory processing from one site to two, with Brightpick tailoring its services to NAPA’s warehouses and integrating with its existing technology.
The company also rolled out ChatGPC, an internal AI-powered assistant, with 6,000 active users that operates on company data, within company governance standards, Stengel said at the UBS Global Consumer and Retail Conference earlier this month.
“AI is only helpful if your data is actionable,” Stengel said. “We’ve done a ton of work around customer data. We’ve done a ton of work on inventory data. We’ve done a ton of work on supply chain visibility. So with that foundation and ChatGPC, I think you’re in a position to start to make sense of it.”
The company reported Q4 and full-year 2025 earnings last month, with full year revenue up 3.5% to $24.3 billion, falling below expectations due to weaker than expected sales performance in the fourth quarter. It also informed shareholders of the imminent restructuring plan.
“There’s an ongoing body of work to finalize all the separation details and there are a select number of IT, sourcing and back-office support functions that we will manage and transition, ” Stengel told investors last month.
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