Infosys resorted to this tried-and-tested hack to stem its top-level exodus: Promotions

Bengaluru: Infosys Ltd has rewarded at least two dozen senior executives with top spots this year, in what could be the biggest promotion drive in the company’s history following a senior management exodus the previous two years.

India’s second-largest information technology services company has promoted 25 employees, most of whom have been with it for at least two decades, to executive vice-president and senior vice-president roles since the beginning of this year, as per Mint research.

Experts say Infosys resorted to the promotions both to retain its best executives as well as to ensure continuity for its top clients.

The promotions come after Infosys lost top-level talent to rivals including Tech Mahindra Ltd and Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. over the past two years.

Two former executives, both of whom were in the rank of president, left the company after Salil Parekh was awarded a second term as Infosys chief executive in May 2022. Ravi Kumar S. took charge of Nasdaq-listed Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. as its CEO in January 2023, and Mohit Joshi took over as Tech Mahindra Ltd’s CEO in December.

Since Kumar moved to Cognizant, he has hired at least seven executives from Infosys.

Ravi Kuchibhotla, who was a senior vice president at Infosys, joined Cognizant as chief strategy Officer in July, and Rajesh V., who was an executive vice president at Infosys, joined as Cognizant India’s managing director and chairman in September.

Similarly, at least a dozen Infosys executives have followed Joshi to Tech Mahindra. The most recent exit was that of Nitesh Aggarwal, a senior vice president who joined Tech Mahindra as its chief strategy officer in July.

This top-level exodus has coincided with Infosys reporting its slowest growth since Parekh was appointed its CEO in January 2018. Infosys’s full-year revenue grew 1.9% to $18.6 billion for the year ended March.

Infosys did not reply to an email sent on 12 October.

Also read | After Cognizant, Tech Mahindra goes after former Infosys top talent

A signal to employees

In a conversation with Nomura analysts, Infosys’s management said it had a deep leadership bench and all vacancies had been internally filled, according to a 19 February report by the research firm’s Abhishek Bhandari and Krish Beriwal.

To be sure, half of Infosys’s 25 top-level promotions came in March.

At least one expert attributed the promotions to Infosys wanting to retain top talent.

“Infosys is promoting these people to retain them… They hold a lot of organizational knowledge," said Peter Schumacher, president and CEO of Value Leadership Group Inc., an executive management consulting firm. Infosys is “also signalling to the employee base at large that it is worthwhile to stay with Infosys. If you stay with the company, you have a chance to become an EVP and possibly even the CEO".

Another partner at an executive search firm had a similar view.

“Promotions can be attributed to several factors, the most prominent being career growth opportunities for employees, recognition of meritorious performers, retention of top talent, and changes in organizational structure," said Ritu Sethi, partner for technology, outsourcing and offshoring at ABC Consultants. “These factors have been key contributors to the recent promotions at several Tier 1 IT services firms."

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Staying the course

Infosys promoted six executives to executive vice-president positions in January and another three to the role in March. Among them, Sushanth Tharappan was promoted as EVP and human resources head, and Venky Ananth as EVP and global head of healthcare.

Of the 16 executives promoted to senior vice president roles, save two, the others have served at least two decades in the company.

Satheesha B. Nanjappa was promoted as SVP and head of education, training, and assessment in January, and Anand Santhanam as SVP and head of strategy for communications, media and technology in March. Both of them have been with Infosys for about three decades.

“Within a complex organization like Infosys, retaining and applying organizational knowledge is important to ensure continuity and efficiency. Internal executives know the way things are done at Infosys, and bring with them a deep understanding of the company’s culture, processes, and methodologies," said Schumacher of Value Leadership.

“They also have a lot of relationships throughout the company and with customers. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the approach also signals that the company is intent on staying the course, as opposed to looking for a major change in direction."

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