Nandan Nilekani Reveals How Narayana Murthy Gave Him A Job; Details Here

“He was ambitious. He set great goals. I would have done anything. If he asked me to jump off the cliff, I would have jumped off the cliff. It was a great experience working with him,” Nilekani said

Recalling his job interview with Murthy, Nilekani added, “He asked me some problem-solving questions. Fortunately, I managed to get them right, and he gave me a job"

Source : Infosys

Co-founder of Infosys Nandan Nilekani recently referred to himself as an “accidental entrepreneur” and reflected on how a job interview with Narayana Murthy in 1978 set him on a path that eventually led to the founding of Infosys on July 2, 1981. This journey also saw him become the chairman of Infosys Technologies Limited.

Fresh out of college with an electrical engineering degree from IIT Bombay, Nilekani recalled how computing was transitioning from mainframes to mini-computers. "I came at a time when computing was moving from mainframes to mini-computers," he shared in a conversation with LinkedIn CEO Ryan Roslansky. "When I heard about this mini-computer company, I said, ‘Wow, this sounds exciting.’”

He was referring to Patni Computer Systems in Pune, where Narayana Murthy was leading the software division.

“He was ambitious. He set great goals. I would have done anything. If he asked me to jump off the cliff, I would have jumped off the cliff. It was a great experience working with him,” Nilekani said.

Recalling his job interview with Murthy, Nilekani added, “He asked me some problem-solving questions. Fortunately, I managed to get them right, and he gave me a job.”

Nilekani went on to say that he never set out with the goal of building a global IT giant or leading one of the most ambitious public tech projects in history. Instead, what drove him was a deep sense of curiosity. I get up every morning wanting to learn new things,” he explained. “The future is about what only humans can do: empathy, compassion, and connecting the dots.” He emphasised that these qualities, which are distinctively human, would be the key to shaping the future, particularly in a world increasingly shaped by technology.