Watch and learn before mordernising IT prospect: Nasscom's Chairman Premji

Industries, enterprises and their leaders today do not have the "luxury" of time to wait and learn before modernising IT landscapes for being ready for the future, Nasscom Chairman Rishad Premji said, stressing that modernisation is not just about technologies like artificial intelligence and blockchain but also about change management and talent.

"With an eye on the unpredictable future, I would humbly submit to you that we don't have the luxury of time to wait, watch and learn before modernising our own IT landscapes to be future ready, Premji said addressing the NASSCOM C-Summit here.

He said the pace of the modernisation journey is dictated by the shifting landscape of technology and ecosystems but the choice to act is ours. This in many way is the leadership challenge of today."

"Technology is no longer enabler to business strategy, I think technology is the new business strategy, he said at the May 24 summit.

The day-long Nasscom (National Association of Software and Services Companies) C-Summit focussed on the theme of digital innovation and brought together executives, industry leaders and analysts who talked about digital innovation and transformation and how new technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain, Internet of Things and Augmented Reality are transforming work and customer experience.

Premji, who was in April this year appointed as Nasscom Chairman for 2018-19, said the modernisation agenda is not only about technologies such as cloud, Application Programme Interface (API), Artificial Intelligence and Blockchain but it is as much about culture, change management, about fundamentally revisiting the ways of working and about talent.

Premji, Chief Strategy Officer and Member of the Board at Indian IT services giant Wipro, said digitalisation is still very much in its early stages of scaling but there is significantly more maturity in the way companies and industries are addressing it.

We have learnt that beyond the latest technology, the fundamental economics have changed. Business models are being and will continue to be disrupted and industries will blur boundaries. But irrespective of the strategy, the fundamentals of putting the customer first and at the centre of every conversation will not change, he said.

He pointed out that new technologies powered by more organised data and the focus on behavioural design would make it possible for other stakeholders to stake claim on one's customers.

The good news is that if you can impactfully leverage this data and technology to truly know and understand your customers, the opportunity to grow is limitless, he said.