The business leader frequently described as the Bill Gates of Asia because of the similarities in the story of how he founded a software firm in Bangalore in 1981, Narayana Murthy will receive an honorary degree from the OU School of Business Administration during its December 13 commencement ceremony.
Murthy is founder of Infosys Technologies Limited, a global information technology consulting and software services provider, headquartered in Bangalore, India. His entrepreneurial spirit and determination has resulted in tremendous cost savings for companies across Europe and the United States first by creating, then by setting the standard for, the global outsourcing business process. His business endeavors are also credited with helping lift his native country out of poverty. Murthy served as Infosys CEO for 21 years before retiring in 2002. He then served as the executive chairman of the board and chief mentor until 2006.
As an admired global leader, highly respected business leader and as an Asian hero who has brought about revolutionary changes in Asia, Murthy has a long and varied list of accomplishments.
Named one of TimeASIA’s 60 Asian Heroes in 2006, the publication credits Murthy and his partners with transforming the way the entire world does business. It also tells the start-up story of Infosys and its similarity to Microsoft: Murthy and six friends met in his bedsit in a Bombay slum, each contributed $250 to start a software firm, Infosys, in 1981. Ten years later, the company generated annual revenues of $150 million in 1991, and $36 billion in 2006. In March 1999, it became the first India-registered company to be listed on an American stock exchange.
Other honors Murthy has received include: being ranked among most-admired and respected business global business leaders in 2005 by The Economist and Financial Times, voted World Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst and Young in 2003, named most powerful CEO for in 2004, 2005 and 2006 by Economic Times and selected as the business process innovator by The Economist in 2007. In 2008, he was awarded Padma Vibhushan, the second highest civilian award by the government of India, in 2008, and named the Officer of the Legion of Honor by the government of France.
For additional information about Murthy’s visit, visit the SBA Web site at www.sba.oakland.edu.