‘YOU CAN BE SWIFT EVEN IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR'

Arundhati Bhattacharya, Chairperson and CEO of Salesforce India, highlights the similarities and dissimilarities between the public sector and the private sector, how she chose banking as a career, and the role of independent directors

- UDAYAN MUKHERJEE

Arundhati Bhattacharya broke the mould when she became India's top banker, as the first woman Chairman of the State Bank of India. Yet, that was not to be the summit of an illustrious career in banking, as she quickly followed that up with an intriguing assignment-as Chairperson and CEO of Salesforce India. In a wide-ranging chat with Business Today's Global Business Editor Udayan Mukherjee, she discusses her career trajectory, what it takes to reach the top in a male-dominated industry, and the key differences between the Indian public and private sector from her unique vantage point. Edited excerpts:

Q: From State Bank of India to Salesforce India is such a big leap. Were you not daunted by what you were getting yourself into?

A: Well, not daunted really, but a few of my friends did think I was a little crazy and kept questioning why I wanted to do something like this, take such a big risk. Because, you know Udayan, when you take on something that is so different from what you've done for 40 long years, it entails a lot of change. It means learning a lot of things and the chances of success are always 5050... So I did think about it a lot, but then I had always been very interested in technology and there was not a single technology vendor at SBI that I did not interact with during my tenure. I knew in my bones that going forward, the whole world is going to need digital and every business will need a very strong technology backbone in order to survive... When I got [this] offer, it was like a ringside seat to cutting-edge technology.