NR Narayana Murthy, the founder of Infosys, openly acknowledged that his long-held opinion that founders' offspring shouldn't work for the company was incorrect. He claimed that his choice to exclude the next-generation promoter group from Infosys was incorrect.
Murthy had believed Infosys is a professionally run company and should keep promoters’ children away from any management roles in the firm. “I was completely wrong in that. I was depriving this organisation of legitimate talent. I take back whatever I said. I think every individual should have the same opportunity as every other individual if he or she is considered the best person for that role,” he said at a press conference in Bangalore at Infosys’s 40th year celebrations.
"I probably adopted that attitude at that time because I was concerned that certain people may bring in undeserving candidates and place them in positions, and I wanted the future of the organisation to be strong," he added. When assigned a post, competency, according to Murthy, should come first. Nandan Nilekani, co-founder and chairman of Infosys, responded to the same query by saying, "We should not practise reverse discrimination."
Nilekani said when he returned to the company in 2017, he couldn’t stomach Infosys becoming a reality show. “There is no plan B for when I leave. I have a huge responsibility. How do I make sure that I hand over in a way that it continues for the 100-year journey? I will be here if it’s required. (But) I don’t want to be here that long looking at the 50th anniversary,” he said. Nilekani said his challenge is acute.