S. D. Shibulal, the last of the seven founders of Infosys to head the company as CEO, appeared to have let down his guard a bit on Friday, after a tense few quarters where he was seen sticking to his script while announcing results and in media interactions.
As he readies himself to hand the baton over to former SAP executive Vishal Sikka on August 1, Mr. Shibulal said that he was happy he was handing over a “healthy and stable Infosys”, after a tumultuous three years when the company faced both macroeconomic rough weather externally and major regulatory, legal and transitions-linked challenges internally. We have been unhappy with our performance, said a reflective Mr. Shibulal, who listed the transition to Infosys 3.0 among his major achievements.
Constantly reinventingADVERTISEMENT
Looking back at the growth and success of Infosys, and the evolution of technology over the three decades, Mr. Shibulal noted that the industry has shifted from data to information to insights to intelligence. “Corporations like ours have to reinvent ourselves every 3-4 years. One of the reasons we have been successful for so long has been that every three years, the company has changed. As a result, every three years my job has changed – even if my job profile has remained the same. This is what kept us relevant.”
Asked in a lighter vein for a ‘headline’ for his exit, he said: “To summarise it all, I would say that the only thing that is constant is change.”