Narayana Murthy: The man behind
Infosys
Simplicity and the inner desire to
make a difference are what drive India’s most admired CEO.
According
to a survey of CEOs, conducted by Taylor Nelson Sofres Mode,
Narayana Murthy is India’s most admired CEO, and Chairman
of India’s most admired corporate entity. As the Chairman
of Infosys Technologies, Narayana Murthy, has consistently
tempered all his decisions with practicality as well pragmatism.
His name today has become synonymous with the Software Industry
in India. In many ways, Narayana Murthy, has led the trend
in the software industry and has steered not only Infosys,
but also the country's software Industry to a position of
dominance. Today, over 25 percent of software development
for Fortune 500 companies is handled by Indian companies.
In 1981,
Infosys was started with an investment of US$ 250. In August
2000, its Market Capitalisation in, NASDAQ alone, was US$
27 billion! These two decades have seen Narayana Murthy
use sound management skills to take Infosys to the pinnacle
of success.
Strategy:
Strategy
is central to any company. Any company that does not start
out with a sound strategy in place will not be successful.
Infosys, with its present position, has proved the importance
of these ideas. Infosys has also used Zero-based decisions,
where any previous biases are avoided when taking strategic
decisions.
Globalisation:
In
an environment that is dynamic and highly competitive, Narayana
Murthy has leveraged the quality and cost of Indian IT professionals.
He has successfully led the globalisation of Infosys. Today,
over 90 percent of the clientele of Infosys are based outside
Indian shores.
Customer
Service:
The
emphasis that Narayana Murthy has given to Customer Service
and Quality of product delivery has ensured that Infosys
retains its market share. Today well over 90 percent of
Infosys clients are not new but are repeat clients.
Human
Resources:
Narayana
Murthy has always held that Human Resources are the greatest
asset of a company. The skill-set of the individuals
in a team should be ``mutually exclusive but collectively
exhaustive''. This team must also be proactive and innovative
in order to be able to solve problems and limit outsourcing.
Narayana
Murthy has transferred the principles that he holds in his
personal and private life into his corporate governance
practices. Since his needs are so limited, sharing the wealth,
which the company has created with the employees, comes
as second nature.
In Narayana
Murthy’s own words “We realised early at Infosys
that if we aim for public good, it will lead to private
good”. With the Narayana Murthy at the helm, Infosys
has successfully pioneered Employee Stock Options in India
and has been the first Indian company to be listed on the
NASDAQ. This not only did wonders for the company’s
image but also made millionaires of many Infosys employees
and increased employee retention.
The
Man:
He had
humble beginnings, and all his decisions are rooted in his
simple upbringing, that had an emphasis on family and community
values.
His
lifestyle gives no hint of his wealth. The Murthys, a closely-knit
family of four, live on a frugal household budget. The two-bedroom
flat in a middle-class locality of Bangalore gives no hint
from the outside of its illustrious resident. The only indulgence
that he permits himself is music.
All
the members of the Murthy household believe that hard work
and an attention to detail are the only ways to do anything.
Irrespective of what environment Mr. Murthy finds himself
in, he has always been able to change it for the better.
A simple person, Mr Narayana Murthy, now admits to being
caught on the horns of a dilemma! Today he has to choose
between savings and consumerism regularly. In order to be
able to create wealth he has to spend and that means consumerism.
Narayana Murthy always wanted to contribute to society and
create quality employment.This to him is the best way to
make a difference.
Related Reading:
1. "Money is Just a Tool" (950)
Archana Rai,Intelligent Investor, 20 September, 2000
2. "The Software Industry in India: Opportunities and
Challenges" (951)
An address by Mr.
R. Narayana Murthy; (Chairman and CEO, Infosys
Technologies) to the Asia Society, Hong Kong.
www.asiasociety.org, 08 May
2000
