How LTI Came Into Its Own

With Sanjay Jalona at the helm, the IT services company is winning against bigger rivals, stepping out of its larger parent’s shadow, and forging an identity for itself

- HARICHANDAN ARAKALI

When Larsen & Toubro Infotech (LTI) listed on the stock exchanges in Mumbai in July 2016, it wasn’t the most auspicious of beginnings for Sanjay Jalona, who had quit Infosys to take over as CEO and MD of the company the previous year. The stock ended lower on debut, even though the issue had been subscribed 11 times over.

Reports from the time suggest that the fall had more to do with the overall lackluster performance of the IT services sector then, and not anything specific to LTI. Not long after, Jalona proved that right, leading the company to the biggest order win in its history at the time—a $150 million contract to build much of the IT needed by a South African bank that was separating from its UK-based parent. At the time, LTI was not far from a billion dollars in annual revenue.

That large contract wasn’t a one-off either. The company has continued to win big contracts since then. During the three months ended December 31, 2020, LTI won two large contracts, including an enhanced partnership with Abu Dhabi-based cloud services provider Injazat, which could bring in $204 million in revenue over six years, and a net increase of $74 million over a five-year period from an existing global 500 customer.

“I like being an underdog,” says Jalona, speaking over a video call from his home in New Jersey, US. “I might not have the balance sheet to bid for a billion-dollar deal, but I have the capability to bid for a $200-300 million deal because now we are a $1.6 billion revenue company.”