Automation, digitisation bigger disruptors than Trump: Vishal Sikka

Sikka cautions that most of the work done Infosys can already be done with AI systems

Infosys chief executive Vishal Sikka (pictured) has cautioned that the tidal wave of automation and technology-fuelled transformation could make the traditional information technology services obsolete. And, asked employees to shift their behaviour to adopt to shifts in technology. 

“The mountains ahead are tall ones. There is no other way but to get there and go... if we don’t, we will be made obsolete by the tidal wave of automation and technology-fuelled transformation that is almost upon us,” Sikka, the first non-founder chief executive, wrote in a New Year letter to employees. 

Sikka, whose letter had the subject: ‘Answers are blowing in the wind,’ cautioned that most of the work done by firms such as Infosys can already be done with artificial intelligence (AI) systems.

“Our path forward is very clear – we need to harness the dual forces of automation and innovation. We must embrace automation to become more productive in the work that we do and with the resulting capacity, focus our attention upwards towards innovation, both for ourselves and our clients. The foundation for all of this is our culture, our values and especially our infrastructure for life-long learning,” he said. 

Infosys, among the earliest advocates of embracing automation and use of AI to deliver services, has seen the company struggling to shift the company from focusing on the declining traditional services business, which generates four of five dollars currently, to new areas such as digital. While clients are spending more money on newer areas, contracts have now become smaller and require consulting at customer locations – unlike the traditional business where long-term multi-million contracts were bagged by Infosys and rivals TCS and Wipro. 

“We will not survive if we remain in the constricted space of doing as we are told, depending solely on cost-arbitrage, and working as reactive problem-solvers,” he said.

“Often, teams deliver only what is told without going beyond the given scope and with a lackadaisical attitude towards greater value creation. This can no longer be the case.” 

Analysts are keenly watching Infosys results, expected on January 13, when the company is likely to throw light on business impact due to technology shifts and change in policies from US President-elect Donald Trump, who ran his campaign against offshoring jobs.

Sikka alluded to Trump as well as the demonetisation effort by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, where eight out of 10 employees work but said the biggest impact would be due to technology disruption. 

“Brexit, the American Presidential election, demonetisation, cyber security, the refugee and terrorism situation were the events that seriously changed the way we viewed the world, but perhaps the biggest disruption is the one that has been proceeding irreversibly and unstoppably in our times is the accelerating force of technology and digitisation,” he said.