Wipro has become much more “growth-obsessed” than before and is increasing its focus on larger deals, Chairman Rishad Premji said in his letter to shareholders as part of the company’s Annual Report for FY22.
He added that Wipro has “invested significantly” in acquisitions either for gaining market access or for acquiring new capabilities.
With the pandemic wounds still far from being healed, a soaring inflation, an armed international conflict, a worldwide economic uncertainty, climate change and a looming energy crisis, Premji said that the company finds itself at a crossroads. “Yet, I remain optimistic. Because I believe that grave crises carry within them seeds of great possibilities,” he said.
The long-term prospects of the tech services industry look good, he said, highlighting the increased demand for digital, data, cloud and cybersecurity services due to the pandemic which, he believes, will continue to grow.
He added that Cloud is in focus, and it has “significant headroom for growth" in the coming years. “We are investing $1 billion in Wipro FullStride Cloud Services over the next few years to deliver an orchestrated transformation that accelerates business results for clients.”
Wipro, Premji said, has transformed its structure and operating model. “We have gone from being industry organised to being market-organised (supported by our global capability units). We have added new talent across the board, with particular emphasis on women leaders,” he said.
The company will continue to invest in building capabilities and acquiring talent in growth areas such as cyber, data, AI and the engineering business, he said. “We are accelerating our investments in our Topcoder platform and in emerging areas such as Metaverse, Web 3.0, Robotics, self-learning AI, and privacy systems.”
He emphasised that while a significant number of the company’s new hires in the last year have not been to the office, the company will continue to work in a hybrid model.
Chief Executive Officer Thierry Delaporte also said the company expects demand for its services to remain strong as enterprises become more sophisticated in their use of the cloud. “We expect technology investments to only grow in importance in the coming years, as businesses continue to turn to cloud-based technologies and digital tools to enable an increasingly dispersed global workforce,” he said.
“Against the backdrop of an uncertain macro environment, we will stay focused on our clients, our employees, and our stakeholders to help them rise to the challenges of the moment and realize their boldest ambitions,” he added.
Wipro's cross-town rival Infosys too sees opportunities amid challenges. Headwinds such as slowing growth, supply chain disruptions, soaring inflation, rapidly rising interest rates, and fears of a recession present an opportunity to transition to new ways to gain market share, Infosys Chairman Nandan Nilekani said on June 25 at the company's annual general meeting.