Six months into CEO's shoes, Pallia quietly scripting Wipro's turnaround
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. From bolstering its India leadership, which includes shedding the image of the company’s Paris office being the nerve centre, to prioritising operating margins, Srinivas Pallia has embarked on an array of changes to script a turnaround for Wipro since he took over as the company’s chief executive about six months ago. Pallia took over as Wipro CEO on 6 April, replacing Frenchman Thierry Delaporte before the culmination of his term.
Srini, as he is popularly known, is aiming to bring the country's fourth-largest software exporter to the era preceding that of Delaporte. Unlike his predecessors who banked on big-bang changes, Pallia is relying on the basics, including imbibing cost discipline and having much more open and transparent conversations with the rank and file of the company, at least six senior officials Mint spoke to said on the condition of anonymity. Earlier this month, over a three-day period, Wipro had a leadership meeting at Prestige Golfshire, a hotel in north Bengaluru, where more than 180 leaders - vice-president and above - got together to discuss the company’s business and the road ahead.
Under Thierry, these meetings would take place in marquee hotels across Paris, Dubai, and London. A key takeaway from the meeting is Pallia’s drive to make Wipro fiscally prudent, one that does not spend as much as the company would in the past, and prioritising operating margins. Wipro’s travel costs increased marginally last year.
The IT services company spent ₹1,510 crore in travel last year, which makes up 2% of its overall expenses. Executive leadership meetings and team offsites, while still common, are being shifted to the virtual mode. Under former CEO Delaporte, Wipro's
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