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Business News/ Companies / News/  Infosys appoints Egon Zehnder to help find Vishal Sikka’s successor
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Infosys appoints Egon Zehnder to help find Vishal Sikka’s successor

Move comes less than 24 hours after Infosys named co-founder Nandan Nilekani as non-executive chairman in wake of turmoil triggered by Vishal Sikka's resignation

Vishal Sikka resigned as Infosys CEO last week. Photo: ReutersPremium
Vishal Sikka resigned as Infosys CEO last week. Photo: Reuters

Bengaluru: Infosys Ltd has appointed executive search firm Egon Zehnder to help it find a chief executive officer (CEO), a week after Vishal Sikka stepped down from the post.

The development comes less than 24 hours after Infosys named co-founder Nandan Nilekani as non-executive chairman, suggesting that he is moving fast to help find a leader who can make Infosys future-ready.

“The board has also approved the appointment of the executive recruitment firm Egon Zehnder to work with the nomination and remuneration committee to review and identify the right candidate to be the company’s next CEO and MD," said an Infosys statement.

For now, independent director and Biocon chief Kiran Mazumdar Shaw will head the nomination and remuneration committee, the panel which will eventually decide the successor to Sikka, who abruptly resigned on 18 August.

Shaw became the head of the panel after former head Jeffrey Sean Lehman stepped down from Infosys’s board on Friday.

“On the CEO search, we will cast a very wide search. We are looking at internal candidates, external candidates and Infosys alumni," Nilekani told analysts in a call on Friday morning.

“We will look at someone who can manage a large corporation, someone who should be able to execute strategy, have a strong appreciation of the cultural transformation being undertaken, have a strong technology prowess and who is able to build and strengthen with all stakeholders," said Nilekani, as he spelt out the five traits essential for the candidate who will get the top job at Infosys, which ended FY17 with $10.2 billion in revenue.

On Tuesday, Mint reported that the company was yet to appoint an executive search firm even though three global executive search firms, including Egon Zehnder, had expressed an interest in helping the firm find its next CEO.

Although Infosys elevated chief operating officer U.B. Pravin Rao as interim CEO to lead the company till Sikka’s successor is found or until March 2018, the company runs the risk of facing the ire of proxy advisory firms and large investors if the search turns out to be a long-drawn-out affair.

During Infosys’s last CEO search, prior to Sikka’s appointment in August 2014, Egon Zehnder was mandated to prepare a list of potential external candidates, while Development Dimensions International was tasked with screening internal candidates.

Infosys also appointed independent director D.N. Prahlad as the chairman of Edgeverve Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary.

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Published: 25 Aug 2017, 06:45 PM IST
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