Narayana Murthy returns to Infosys as company falters

Bangalore, Jun 1 (TNN): N R Narayana Murthy is returning to the leadership of Infosys, after having retired in 2011 from the company he founded. He will be the executive chairman with effect from June 1.

His son, Rohan Murty, will assist him in his role as the chairman. The company said Narayana Murthy will create a chairman's office to assist him during his tenure and has requested the Board to permit him to put together a team for this function. "The team will include his son Rohan Murty as Narayana Murthy's executive assistant," it said. This is the first time that Rohan is stepping into a role at Infosys.

The changes come at a time when Infosys, once the bellwether of the industry, is going through a rough time, with its revenue growth far below that of peers TCS, Cognizant and HCL.

The company's Board that met here on Saturday took the decision.

K V Kamath, who was appointed non-executive chairman on Murthy's retirement in 2011, will step down from his position and take up the position of lead independent director effective June 1.

K V Kamath said, "The Board has taken this step keeping in mind the challenges that the technology industry and the company faces and in the interest of all stakeholders, particularly shareholders large and small, who have asked for strengthening of the executive leadership during this challenging time. Murthy's entrepreneurial and leadership record and the long experience he has had as a technology pioneer makes him eminently qualified to lead the company and provide strategic direction at this point in time."

N R Narayana Murthy said, "This calling was sudden, unexpected, and most unusual. But, then, Infosys is my middle child. Therefore, I have put aside my plans-in-progress and accepted this responsibility. I am grateful to K V Kamath - the chairman, the Board, and every Infoscion for giving me this opportunity. I intend to do my best to add value to the company in this challenging situation."

During his five year term, Murthy would draw a token compensation of rupee 1 per year.

S Gopalakrishnan would be re-designated executive vice-chairman effective June 1, and would primarily focus on key client relationships and broader industry issues. S D Shibulal would continue to be the managing director and CEO.

S Gopalakrishnan and Mr S D Shibulal have requested that they draw a compensation of Re 1 per year. The Board has accepted their requests, subject to necessary shareholder and government approvals.

Rohan Murty is a Junior Fellow in the Society of Fellows at Harvard University. He has a PhD in Computer Science from Harvard University and a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science from Cornell University and has held fellowships at MIT, Caltech, and Microsoft Research. He has authored several papers and patents as part of his research on wireless and mobile computing. If appointed, Rohan Murty's term as executive assistant to the chairman would be co-terminus with that of Narayana Murthy. Rohan Murty has requested that he should also be paid only a token compensation of Re 1 per year.

The Board has agreed to Narayana Murthy's requests, subject to necessary approvals.

Murthy's election as a director would be placed for the consideration of the Company's shareholders in the Annual General Meeting (AGM) on June 15, 2013. Subject to his election as a director at the AGM, the Board will take up in its meeting on June 15, 2013, the resolutions for convening an extraordinary general meeting within the requisite period, in order to seek approval from the shareholders for appointing him as the executive chairman and whole-time director for a period of five years commencing on June 1, 2013.