Nandan Nilekani named Ford Businessman of the year

30 November 2006

Beijing: Infosys CEO Nandan Nilekani has been named as ''Businessman of the Year'' for 2006 by Forbes Asia for, what it said, was his "nimble" stewardship in keeping the company ahead of peers in the global outsourcing phenomenon.

A Forbes Asia statement said that the 51-year old co-founder of the Bangalore-based firm was picked for his track record, which has seen the company achieve sustained profitability under his tenure.

After-tax profit has grown by 30 per cent in each of the last three years, with the most recent quarter, ended September 2006, being the best on record. Revenue for the quarter reached $746 million, up 13 per cent from the previous quarter and 42 per cent higher than the same period a year ago. Net income was $199 million for the quarter, a 14 per cent increase over the previous three months and a 44 per cent gain over the same period a year ago, the statement said.

At the current pace of earnings, Infosys is expected to make more money this year than Central Japan Railway, Fujifilms Holdings and Sharp, all considerably bigger.

"Nilekani is an outstanding example of what the Asian entrepreneurial spirit can achieve. More remarkable is his leadership at Infosys, which has been influential in reshaping and levelling the global business landscape," Editor of Forbes Asia Tim Fergus on, said.

Nilekani has been chief executive since 2002, assuming sole charge in August this year when Infosys founder Narayana Murthy retired.