Soon to retire Microsoft India chairman Pramanik wants to help companies navigate disruptions
BENGALURU: Microsoft India chairman Bhaskar Pramanik, who is retiring from the technology firm this month, plans to split his time between his family and friends, working on social impact causes and mentoring startups and companies.
Pramanik, an IT veteran of 45 years who has seen a wave of technology changes, said the only constant is change. "When I was young, people were still using punch cards to operate computers. I've seen the mainframes, the mini-computer and the personal computer. Now it's the mobile phone. And I don't think the phone is going to last forever. That's why in Microsoft we talk about the mobility of the experience, not the device," Pramanik said. Dealing with this change will remain one of the biggest challenges for people just entering the technology industry, he said.
"When I talk to customers about investments in technology, the terms have to be in RoI (return on investment). If you think you can make an investment and depreciate it over 10 years, that won't happen.In technology, it is five years and that is becoming shorter," he said. "It makes sense to start moving to pay-per-use."
Pramanik is set to retire at a time when the United States headquartered company is moving to grow its cloud-based business, from Office 365 to Azure, and also faces a wider range of competition.
Technology companies, which previously focused on different parts of the market, are now targeting the same business. Amazon is now the biggest player in cloud computing. Google is attempting to get enterprises to use G-Suite, a product that competes with Office 365. Facebook is building Face book-For-Work, which competes with Microsoft's enterprise social media business.
"In technology , a onetrick pony only has one life. You need to be able to move and reinvent yourself. We have done at Microsoft - we had Windows, Office, then we Xbox, Dynamix and now it is the cloud," Pramanik said. He said he hopes to spend at least part of his time after he retires to helping companies -whether large enterprises or startups -navigate the disruptions ahead. "It is not just about technology . Because I have run companies, I understand strategy. When I worked at NELCO, manufac turing used to report to me, so I have that experience. And helping could either be through mentor ing startups or be ing on a board."
Pramanik, an IT veteran of 45 years who has seen a wave of technology changes, said the only constant is change. "When I was young, people were still using punch cards to operate computers. I've seen the mainframes, the mini-computer and the personal computer. Now it's the mobile phone. And I don't think the phone is going to last forever. That's why in Microsoft we talk about the mobility of the experience, not the device," Pramanik said. Dealing with this change will remain one of the biggest challenges for people just entering the technology industry, he said.
"When I talk to customers about investments in technology, the terms have to be in RoI (return on investment). If you think you can make an investment and depreciate it over 10 years, that won't happen.In technology, it is five years and that is becoming shorter," he said. "It makes sense to start moving to pay-per-use."
Pramanik is set to retire at a time when the United States headquartered company is moving to grow its cloud-based business, from Office 365 to Azure, and also faces a wider range of competition.
Technology companies, which previously focused on different parts of the market, are now targeting the same business. Amazon is now the biggest player in cloud computing. Google is attempting to get enterprises to use G-Suite, a product that competes with Office 365. Facebook is building Face book-For-Work, which competes with Microsoft's enterprise social media business.
"In technology , a onetrick pony only has one life. You need to be able to move and reinvent yourself. We have done at Microsoft - we had Windows, Office, then we Xbox, Dynamix and now it is the cloud," Pramanik said. He said he hopes to spend at least part of his time after he retires to helping companies -whether large enterprises or startups -navigate the disruptions ahead. "It is not just about technology . Because I have run companies, I understand strategy. When I worked at NELCO, manufac turing used to report to me, so I have that experience. And helping could either be through mentor ing startups or be ing on a board."
