The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Narayana Murthy stresses need for technology innovation by firms

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Saturday, Dec 02, 2006
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Narayana Murthy stresses need for technology innovation by firms

Special Correspondent

`Innovation is not only for software developers but for marketing people too'

Bangalore: Technology innovation should be part of a company's culture and be evident in all its activities, including those involving its vendors and the community, chief mentor of Infosys Technologies N.R. Narayana Murthy said here on Friday.

Delivering the keynote address at the conference on `Managing Technology Innovation in IT,' organised by the newly started Bangalore chapter of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), he referred to the examples of Google and Toyota whose constant technology innovation took them ahead of competitors.

"At Infosys we innovated a global delivery model based on 24-hour workdays, involving our prime time and that of our U.S. clients, delivering across time zones. Innovation is not only for software developers but for marketing people too," he said. Intel was an example where great vision was combined with matching operational capability.

There were also companies that failed to innovate, like CBC, which failed to anticipate the appeal of 24-hour music television channels, and Gillette, which did not take up battery-powered toothbrushes, which became a success for a competitor. Companies that missed the innovation bus had to license technology from rivals, as in the case of Ford buying technology from Toyota.

S. Sadagopan, director of the International Institute of Information Technology, Bangalore, who chaired the conference, traced IET's international origins from 1871 onwards.

Education for all

Speaking to presspersons on the sidelines of the conference, Mr. Murthy said he did not favour reservation in private sectors jobs.

Asked for his views on the Rajinder Sachar Committee's report on widespread deprivation among Muslims, he said providing access to education for all communities was the better option.

"We have done fairly well in education, even higher education, thanks to the vision of Jawaharlal Nehru, but at the primary education level we are lagging behind. Reservation in jobs is not the way to bring up any community. Access to education for all so that people can compete on equal terms is better," Mr Murthy said.

Asked whether the current state of technical education encouraged innovative thinking, he felt it could happen if research was focussed on results.

Paul Jackson, operations director of the IET, welcoming the Bangalore chapter into the fold, said its activities would go beyond conferences. There would be sharing of knowledge among technology people, students and the wider community. There would be videoconferences of lectures and conferences from around the world, he said.

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