Keshav R Murugesh, CEO of WNS Group, foresaw the potential in IT sector when the world was still new to it
MUMBAI, INDIA: Becoming a CEO is no easy task. What got that title for Keshav R Murugesh was his sheer confidence in his abilities. Keshav, CEO of WNS Group, who is now a key figure in India’s BPO and ITeS industry spoke to Pankaj Maru of CyberMedia News about how he started his career as Charatered Accountant, moved to IT industry, his role in transforming Syntel and now leading WNS with a mission to make it the fastest growing company in the BPO space
As a qualified CA, why did you prefer to join IT industry rather than banking or finance firms when the former was not much popular and accepted by people in those days?
Keshav: It was my mother who saw the ITC advertisement in the Chartered Accountant magazine and recommended to me that I should apply but at that time, I was helping my father in business and had no intent of working for any company. I was among 12 from across India to qualify for the final round of interview. At the end of a 2-day grueling sessions, I was the only one selected. At ITC, Chartered Accountants and finance people are one level senior to engineers and others and it was a big differentiator as we gained almost 2 years compared to others. ITC was a great experience as I trained across businesses and internal audit, worked in Treasury first and then tried my hand in a number of new businesses where I learnt a lot. My last assignment at ITC was to help create ITC Infotech after which I have stayed with that business.
In your life and career, what was the defining moment that transformed you from being a CA to a CFO at Syntel and later CEO of WNS?
Keshav: While I started off as a CFO at Syntel, I realized that the company needed basic help in many areas and so quickly volunteered to run administration, HR, IT and other areas. Very soon, I was getting involved in sales and operations and I found that I actually loved to meet with clients and showcase our value proposition. All this effort resulted in quick growth for the company and a significant growth for me personally. People told me that by moving to a CEO's role, I was taking a huge risk as I could never go back to a CFO's role which I had been successful in. But I had worked hard and was familiar with the business and confident of myself.
your stay at Syntel what were the key challenges you faced? How did you overcome them to transform the company into a global leading IT services organization?
Keshav: When I joined, the company's growth was stagnant for a few years due to wrong business model (onsite centric while everyone else was offshore centric), poor infrastructure and sales orientation. Despite being one of the older players in the space, the brand was unknown except as the one that created green cards for people. However, I took up this challenge although my work was cut out but I had a great team of professionals as we worked hard at a new strategic plan for the company and slowly but surely transformed each of those areas. During the last 3 years of my tenure, I also helped create a very compelling BPO business which was extremely successful. When I moved on, things were set well and the company continued to power ahead. Full credit for all of this was to the excellent leadership team that I was able to put together.
:At WNS, being a CEO what kind of role have you been playing in leading the organization to grow to new heights? What changes have you brought in in the past years in making WNS - a dynamic BPO organization?
Keshav: As a pioneer brand, WNS had a great culture with a fantastic roster of clients but needed a clear strategy and stronger sales orientation. I have focused on creating a new mission statement, a clear circle of values, driving specific key initiatives and creating a new confidence and pride in the people while continuously creating new offerings and expanding the geographic footprint.
Today, we deliver from 28 global centers in 8 countries and have expanded our sales force by almost 60 pc across Europe, US and APAC. Our key differentiators that are resonating well in the marketplace are included in our own end-to-end vertical approach. Also, we focused on technology-enabled BPO models that help clients focus on outcome not inputs and drives non-linear models of growth for us. We are driving a very client-centric and a client-partner model that is resonating well.
What's the next goal for WNS?
Keshav: To be the most relevant and fastest growing company in the space where people have the best opportunity and learn the most.
Indian IT and BPO industry is facing new competitions from other Asian nations as well as obstacles such as anti-outsourcing and protectionism policies from US. Given the situation, what is the future of Indian IT and BPO sector?
Keshav: It’s very bright. India will continue to be very relevant as it is impossible for any country to replicate easily the population base, the English-speaking ability, the mathematical capability and the progress the nation has already made in climbing up the value curve. As a global company, WNS has centers in many nations to give clients an outstanding and seamless experience.
India can definitely learn lessons from some other nations like the Philippines and re-brand BPO such that it is a preferred career option of youngsters and recommended by teachers, career counselors and other influencers. Indian BPO has transformed significantly from the old days and today focused on high-end data processes, KPO, high-end voice and employs large numbers of doctors, PhDs and Chartered Accountants.
Source
https://www.ciol.com/ciol/news/111522/from-ca-ceo-an-inspiring-story
CAclubindia
