Focus Is On Hiring Freshers, Re-Skilling: Cognizant CEO

Despite a tough 2019, company confident of getting back on the growth trajectory

- Te Raja Simhan

In April 2019, Brian Humphries replaced Francisco D’Souza as the Chief Executive Officer of Cognizant Technology Solutions to set the house in order as the US-based software company faced a series of challenges, including a court case on tax evasion, enquiry on illegal construction in India, and charges of bribery in the US.

The company also faced enormous pressure from activist investor Elliott Management Corp for a total shake up in the company. All these had put a dent in the company’s image considerably.

However, in the last nine months, Humphries, former CEO of Vodafone Business, took some drastic measures, including a plan to remove 10,000-12,000 mid-to-senior level associates globally, to ensure that the company’s profitability is restored to earlier levels. He says, “Over the next two years, the focus will be on four areas — Data, Digital Engineering, Cloud and IoT— that are critical for clients to accelerate their digital journeys. There will be increased focus on hiring; talent re-skilling and mergers and acquisitions (M&A).”