Nandan Nilekani on Salil Parekh's leadership, and Infy's opportunities

Nandan Nilekani
Image: Amit Verma

Q. How has Infosys demonstrated its relevance to its biggest customers in the last two-and-a-half years, under CEO Salil Parekh’s leadership?
Since Salil took over in 2018, we’ve seen tremendous progress on several fronts. As a result of intense focus on client relevance, Infosys, under Salil’s leadership, is leading industry growth and our digital revenues are growing steadily, now contributing nearly 45 percent to the overall revenue. Our clients trust us as their partners in largescale digital transformations and the partnerships as well as acquisitions we’ve made in the last few quarters reflect this trust. Our clients have also been appreciative of how we’ve handled business continuity for them as the global pandemic struck, while also prioritising the safety and well-being of our own workforce.

Q. Going forward what are Infosys’s biggest opportunities?
As our clients navigate this pandemic, I believe great innovation breakthroughs will be achieved with technologies like cloud and AI. And that is where I see big opportunities for the Indian IT services industry in general, and Infosys in particular. As we emerge from the pandemic, enterprises globally will rely on technology solutions to reduce costs to bring their workforce safely back to offices and to reimagine their supply chains. Infosys is well positioned to leverage these opportunities.

Q. In what areas is Salil Parekh driving Infosys’s own internal transformation?
Infosys is an organisation deeply rooted in the values of learning and doing the best for our clients. Salil has intensified this culture of learning and innovation. Today, Infosys is fast evolving into a sentient, live enterprise. Our technology infrastructure, coupled with the key strategic pillar of lifelong learning, lays the foundation for this.

Q. Tell us about digital transformation within Infosys.
Let me give you some examples: Our app InfyMe has made engagement with our employees seamless. Similarly, our digital learning platform, Lex, has ensured our employees never stop learning. Infosys Meridian, our in-house engagement tool, is helping us reimagine ecosystem engagement in this hybrid work model. Another example is how Infosys deployed technology solutions to help our employees return safely to the workplaces, and given its efficacy, we launched the ‘Return to Workplace’ solutions for our clients as well.