Search the Internet          Tips  Sites: Finance, Investment

Infosys sales chief quits over sexual harassment lawsuit

Priya Ganapati in Mumbai and
Fakir Chand in Bangalore

Phaneesh Murthy, director on the board of Infosys Technologies Ltd and the company's head (sales and marketing and communication & product services), resigned on Tuesday in the wake of a lawsuit filed against him and the company, alleging wrongful termination and sexual harassment of a female employee, who was till recently on the rolls of Infosys.

According to a statement issued by the company in Bangalore, Phaneesh Murthy cited as the reason for his resignation, the need for personal time to devote attention to, and pursue a successful defense of a recent lawsuit filed against him and the company, alleging wrongful termination and sexual harassment.

The case has been filed in the United States.

Phaneesh Murthy was the highest paid Infosys executive with an annual take-home pay of $400,000 (Rs 20 million), including bonus.

Commenting on the resignation, Infosys chairman and chief mentor N R Narayana Murthy said: "Phaneesh has been an integral part of Infosys' growth in the last 10 years. Phaneesh has performed outstandingly in sales and marketing and CAPS, and we are sorry that he has tendered his resignation in these circumstances. We wish him well for the future."

Infosys also announced that it has appointed Basab Pradhan as its new senior vice-president and head - worldwide sales, who will take over part of Phaneesh Murthy's portfolio.

Prior to his appointment, Basab Pradhan served as the company's regional manager and vice president - sales (West North America).

Infosys managing director Nandan Nilekani, while speaking to rediff.com, said, "There would be no impact on the company's revenue outlook because we have reallocated all the portfolios that Phaneesh used to handle."

"The company does not expect to see any material change due to Phaneesh's sudden resignation and change in the management structure. We are sticking to the guidance we have given for this (second) quarter and the current fiscal year (2002-03). We see no need to change that projection. We reaffirm that we will continue to grow this quarter as well as the entire year as we have planned," Nilekani asserted.

Nilekani, who succeeded Murthy at the beginning of this fiscal year in April as the new CEO of Infosys, however, declined to comment on the lawsuit filed against Phaneesh in the US as it was already sub-judice.

He, however, admitted that it was the first of its kind incident to have taken place in the global company, reputed for its clean and transparent image, with a global recognition for practising the highest standards of corporate governance.

The new chief of Progeon - Infosys' subsidiary for its foray into the business process management business - will be Mohandas Pai, director, CFO and head, administration and facilities.

Sanjay Joshi, chief marketing officer who reported to Phaneesh Murthy, will now report to S Gopalakrishnan - deputy managing director and COO.

Meanwhile, Phaneesh Murthy, who operates from the IT major's US office in Freemont, California, was not available for comments.

Phaneesh was recently appointed chairman of Progeon Ltd, the new subsidiary set up by the IT bell-wether to steer the fortunes of its latest venture in the emerging IT-enabled services industry, worldwide.

Known popularly as the 'Other Murthy' of Infosys, and following in the footsteps of its Mentor, Phaneesh has been instrumental in building Infosys as a global brand in IT consulting, services, and transformation spaces.

Operating most of the time from Infosys' main US office at Fremont in California, Phaneesh is credited with having taken the parent company's revenues to half-billion dollars today from a mere $1 million a decade ago.

The Rs 26-billion Bangalore-based company has projected a revenue of Rs 7.6-7.8 billion for the current quarter (July-September), and around Rs 32 billion for the current fiscal year (2002-03) in its forward-looking statement.

Additional inputs: Agencies

ALSO READ:
More Money Headlines