Confident of Doubling Customer Deliveries: TCS CEO Designate K Krithivasan

Mumbai:

K Krithivasan, chief executive-designate of the country’s largest software services company, TCS, said on Friday that the company does not have the culture to make sweeping strategic changes when it has a new boss and shows up. optimistic about doubling deliveries to customers.

The $25 billion software giant said in a surprise announcement on Thursday that Rajesh Gopinathan, its CEO for more than six years with more than four years left before his second five-year term, has decided to leave from September 15. that Krithivasan, chairman of its BSFI vertical which contributes 31.5% of its revenue, will lead the company as CEO designate with immediate effect.

Rajesh Gopinathan, 52, said it was his first resignation and he had not written a CV since his campus days when he joined Tata Industries 27 years ago from the campus and TCS 22 years ago. He did not reveal his plans after September 15.

The abrupt departure of Rajesh Gopinathan did not have a big impact on the TCS counter.

On BSE, the certificate opened at Rs 3,151 after closing at Rs 3,184.75 on Thursday. After hitting an intraday high of Rs 3,194, the stock fell 0.62% to Rs 3,165.

The market valuation of TCS, a key component of Sensex, stood at Rs 11,58,419.07 crore on BSE.

On the NSE, the company was down 0.47% at Rs 3,169.90. It had opened at Rs 3,150.50 after ending the day at Rs 3,185 on Thursday.

“Our fundamental principle has been and will continue to be to work for and with our clients and will continue to do so under my leadership. I do not expect, nor should you (the media) expect, any major strategic changes under my leadership” , he added. Krithivasan told reporters via video conference on Friday. Outgoing CEO Rajesh Gopinathan was also present at the videoconference.

“In fact, TCS does not have the culture to make drastic strategic changes when it has a new CEO. We will continue as we have done, focusing on customers. But of course the changes will be there because the markets will ask us to do .. Our culture of ‘One Team’ will remain at the center of our concerns,” he said.

“It’s a continuum, we don’t change strategy when a new CEO comes along. But we will change based on what our customers want and how the market changes. We won’t make short-term changes but We will continue to focus on our primary goal of being with customers,” he explained.

“I hope to double our deliveries,” he said.

Rajesh Gopinathan says his 22 years at TCS have been “fantastic”.

“And after deciding to move on, which was taken after much deliberation with the family and the group president and my mentor N Chandrasekaran, I feel so light now.

“For the past six years, I have led the TCS team with enthusiasm. And I have enjoyed every day I have spent with the company. But today I have mixed feelings. Yes, I’m also a bit sad as reality is sinking in and at the same time I also feel very light now,” he added.

In his six years, he added more than $10 billion to the company’s incremental revenue and more than $70 billion to its market capitalization. In the first nine months of this fiscal year, it posted revenue growth of 14.8% in constant currencies, the best in the industry.

Regarding the timing of his resignation, Rajesh Gopinathan said, “We are in the most stable period considering what we have been through in recent years. Of course there are ups and downs. It was important for me to announce the decision before the start of the new fiscal year.” He declined to reveal his plans, except saying he “has a lot of ideas for the future.”

“I feel so happy and light now, it’s completely freeing now, but a week before, it consumed me so much. Also, it’s always better to leave when everything is going well and not when everyone is rooting for my ousting,” he said.

“The timing now made sense to follow. I met Chandra from time to time and told her that I wanted to move on. So better pull the trigger now. Yes, TCS is an integral part of that. I am, just like the I’ve never had a second thought. And I’m sure my contributions to TCS will last. Over the past 22 years, I’ve never thought of anything but TCS.” said Rajesh Gopinathan getting emotional.

The priority now is, he said, “my immediate priority is for Krithi to step in smoothly and I will be 100 per cent available for him.”

On the challenges of the transition, Krithivasan, who has been with the company for 37 years, said on a lighter note that leaving Chennai will be more difficult than the job of CEO.

“The transition is not rocket science because we have a stable team and we have worked together for so many years. More importantly, some verticals I know well and the rest I will learn from Rajesh,” he said. he said, adding, “but we owe it to our customers and stakeholders for our success and that will be my main goal – to double our deliveries.” K Krithivasan said he was sure of success “because we are lucky to have the culture of one team. We have so many leaders to replace me in the BSFI vertical and we don’t expect dramatic changes in the future. Our basic principle has been to work with customers and this will continue”.

(Except for the title, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)