N. R. Narayana Murthy

The Quiet Revolutionary

Early Life & Education

• Born in 1946 in a middle-class Kannada family in Mysore. Father was a schoolteacher.
• Studied electrical engineering at National Institute of Engineering, Mysore, then M.Tech from IIT Kanpur.
• Turning point: Worked as a systems programmer at IIM Ahmedabad, where he saw the power of computers in solving real-world problems.

The Infosys Story

• 1981: Co-founded Infosys with six colleagues (Nandan Nilekani, S. Gopalakrishnan, S. D. Shibulal, K. Dinesh, N. S. Raghavan, and Ashok Arora). Initial capital: ₹10,000 borrowed from his wife Sudha Murty.
• 1987: First major breakthrough – a project for Reebok in the US. Murthy personally coded parts of the software.
• 1993: Infosys went public at ₹95 per share. Murthy insisted on transparent accounting and quarterly disclosures, unheard of in India then.
• 1999: Infosys became the first Indian company to list on NASDAQ. Market cap crossed $1 billion.

Philosophy & Leadership

• "In God we trust; everyone else must bring data." – His management mantra.
• Pioneered the Global Delivery Model: work done in India, value delivered globally.
• Corporate governance: Introduced employee stock options, independent directors, and strict compliance norms.

Setbacks & Comebacks

• 1990s: Infosys faced a cash crunch during the Gulf War. Murthy mortgaged his house to pay salaries.
• 2002-2006: Stepped down as CEO but remained Chairman. Faced criticism for Infosys's slow growth during the dot-com bust.
• 2014: Returned as Executive Chairman after a governance crisis. Restored investor confidence.

Legacy & Retirement

• Retired in 2014. Donated 60% of his wealth to charity via the Murthy Foundation.
• Quote: "The only thing that matters is whether you have made a difference to the lives of people."

Q&A

Q: What was his biggest risk?

A: Starting Infosys with no safety net. He left a secure job at Patni Computer Systems.

Q: How did he handle failure?

A: He treated setbacks as learning. When a client cancelled a contract in 1991, he personally flew to the US to salvage the relationship.

Q: What is his view on wealth?

A: "Wealth is a means to create more wealth for society." He lives modestly despite being a billionaire.