Murthy Got Cost Equation Right, Successor to Take it Forward: Kamath

Commending the role of N R Narayana Murthy, veteran banker K V Kamath today said the Infosys co-founder had "got the cost equation right" to improve topline growth.

Kamath, who is also the non-executive Chairman, said it is now upon the "successor" Vishal Sikka to take that agenda forward.

CEO and Managing Director-designate Sikka will take over his new role in August this year from S D Shibulal. Sikka is the first non-founder and an outsider to be appointed CEO in the company's 33-years old history.

"The key challenge in Infosys is clearly Narayana Murthy got the cost equation right and was working on the top line growth and it is for the successor to take that agenda forward," Kamath told a news channel.

He added that one has to look at succession with positivity.

"We always look at a company and a succession with great degree of positivity. I would look at Infosys in exactly the same way," he said.

Murthy stepped down as Executive Chairman from June 14, completing a second stint at the over $8 billion firm, which he founded along with six engineers in 1981.

He was brought back from retirement in June last year to head Infosys and put it back on a high-growth trajectory at a time when peers like TCS and HCL Tech were out-performing Infosys.

Asked if there was a timeline to see a turnaround at Infosys, Kamath said the country's second largest software services firm was a profitable company.

"Actually if you look at it, Infosys is a very profitable company so there is no turnaround per se. It is basically to get the top line as it were ticking at a faster pace than it was earlier," he added.