Why The War Within Infosys Isn't Over!

Why the trouble at Infosys is unlikely to abate quickly.

- Venkatesha Babu

CROSSING SWORDS

These are the 10 broad sets of allegations being made by an anonymous whistleblower at Infosys, some of which have also been flagged by the founders of the company. Infosys’ board and its management have responded to these charges

ALLEGATIONS

VIOLATION OF GOVERNANCE NORMS: Former CFO Rajiv Bansal as well as Chief Compliance Officer David Kennedy were paid large amounts of money to ‘hush up’ things including aggressive accounting practices

VERY BIG JUMP IN CEO SALARY: Salary of $11 mn per annum very high compared to that of an average employee and even other Indian companies chief executives

HIRING VIOLATIONS: Ex-SAP colleagues of Sikka hired at fancy packages and given out of turn promotions

MISUSE OF COMPANY PRIVILEGES: Chartered flights being used by CEO. Executives close to Sikka flying first class without honouring expense policy

PROFLIGATE : Office in Palo Alto, Bay Area leased on high street at great cost. Focus on appearances rather than results.

DIRECTORS APPOINTMENT: Punita Kumar Sinha, wife of Union minister Jayant Sinha, and a few others done for non-meritocratic reasons

MOTIVES IN ACQUISITION: In deals like Panaya and Skava, there were other motives apart from getting the best for Infosys.

LACK OF CONSULTATION AND COMMUNICATION: Founders as well as senior ex- Infoscians, who are well wishers of the company, not being consulted adequately on substantial decisions

COMPANY CULTURE BEING SUBVERTED: High degree of transparency, adherence to ethics and a culture of frugality being given a go-by