Huge opportunity ahead of us: Vishal Sikka

Coming from a global technology firm like SAP, what made you chose Infosys?
I am a son of a teacher. My mother was a teacher in Gujarat and father a railway engineer in the same state. I know the value of learning and education. What I really like about Infosys is that the company emphasizes a lot on learning. One has to constantly learn, educate and adapt themselves to the changing environment. I see this in the company. This is probably one unique factor that attracted me to Infosys.

What do you think your role will be? How do you plan to take the company forward?
I do not intend to change the company's approach. Anyways, I think it is too early for me to comment on anything. Let me assume the role first. Having said that, I feel Infosys is one of the iconic companies that pretty much changed the face of IT in India.

You are basically from IT products background. Do you think it will be difficult for you to adjust as Infosys happens to be essentially a services firm?
I think the difference between IT products and IT services is blurring. For instance, aircraft equipment are essentially products but are sold as services. I think the transformation from products to services is happening rapidly now and hence the distinction is blurring.

Do you think you will take time to understand how the system works in Infosys?
There is a deep sense of familiarity. I have known Shibulal for years now and we have many a times worked with each other for a client. You must understand that at the end of the day we are talking about software. Yes there are differences here and there, but these are not fundamental. Look at industries like retail, banking etc. Software has completely changed the way they function. There is a huge opportunity in front of us. How long these things will take only time will tell.

What do you think has been wrong with Infosys? It is no longer the No.1 IT company in India now?
I do not think that way. This has been a company which has been an icon. There are many opportunities ahead of us. At Infosys, we have had a team which has designed software that has helped steel plants, power plants long before internet of things became a fad. I see an opportunity here to deliver incredible solutions.

You will be based out of Bangalore?
I am currently based out of California and will continue staying there along with my family. Unfortunately, now I have to undertake a lot of air travel. But I look forward to spending more time in Bangalore.

What will be you message to Infoscions?
Over the next few weeks, my endeavour is to work with all the teams here. I want to work closely with people to inspire them about the great opportunities ahead of us.