Sanjay Kumar

Finance is critical. If sufficient investment is made in infrastructure and venture capital is made available, there will be a big improvement in the situation.

So in 2000, when we changed the business model and started really focusing on that triangle and putting the customer in the center, we decided we should hold off - we've done enough consolidation; we've got enough critical mass.

I'm very comfortable in having a strong team. I'm very comfortable in sharing the limelight with the team.

That's a very critical phase in customer service because you can start to really understand what part of customer service has value to customers and what part is bothering customers.

Companies are starting to measure how effective their customer service is and trying to understand what they can do to improve the customer service process.

Few service industries are designed to be 24x7 in India, and thus there was no 24x7 mentality.

So far, Indian companies have focused more on customer application. This needs to shift to packaged software for sectors such as banking and financial services.

Clients do not expect the infrastructure to be any less reliable just because the service is being delivered from an offshore location; thus, the uptime requirements justify the expense.

And I'm comfortable being who I am, so I think a lot of people who take over from a founder worry about how they compare to the founder; I worry about doing the best I can.

Finally, I have to say that the most surprising aspect has been the speed at which the folks in India adapt to Western practices. They learn fast, really, really fast.

As I said before, a big part of my strategy says - and the management team I think is in agreement with this - we don't have to be out there with a lot of noise all the time. What we need to do is paint a vision for customers, promise them deliverables, and go hit at it.

I'm equally comfortable in getting out there and taking a stand when I have to take a stand.