Mar 2006 Mar2008
What can one say about the coming of age of a child you loved, nurtured and protected? A child whose successes you rejoiced, and whose failures you suffered quietly. Commitment, admiration and affection for Infosys are unparalleled among my colleagues who always put the interest of this child first in every thing they do.
Completing 25 years is a watershed event in anybody's life. It signals the arrival of a strong, confident, young person, ready to take on bigger challenges. Energy, enthusiasm, confidence, idealism, daring, openness and curiosity find utterance and fruition. Nothing seems impossible. This is when you move on to higher aspirations in life, and learn to accept failures with equanimity. We need all of this and more for Infosys to achieve bigger and more plausible targets.
This journey of 25 years has been a symphonic marathon. It has been symphonic because every Infoscion, a maestro in one's own right, subordinated individual egos and interests to work as part of a fine team, and produced spectacular results year after year. It is a marathon since we have a long way to go before we hit the tape.
There have been many happy events during these 25 years. Prominent among them are enrolling the first customer; arrival of the first employee; signing of the first million dollar contract; opening of the first sales office abroad; installation of our first computer - a DG MV/8000; inauguration of the Electronics City campus, the Global Education Center and the Infosys Leadership Institute; CMM Level 5 certification; listing in India and on NASDAQ; our first acquisition (in Australia); founding of Infosys Foundation, Progeon, Infosys Consulting and Infosys China; and reaching the magical figure of billion dollar in sales. There have been a few sad moments too - departure of valued colleagues; death of a few young Infoscions; loss of a few major contracts in spite of giving off our best; and the unacceptable