Raman Roy to be Nasscom Chairman, Rishad Premji Vice Chairman

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NEW DELHI: Global services major Quatrro’s Founder Raman Roy will be the Nasscom Chairman and Wipro Board Member Rishad Premji its Vice-Chairman for fiscal 2017-18, said the IT industry’s representative body said on Wednesday.

“Roy will take on the new role from outgoing Chairman C.P. Gurnani and Premji (junior) takes his (Roy’s) place as Vice Chairman on April 6 (Thursday),” said the National Association of Software Services and Companies (Nasscom) in a statement.

Roy is the Chairman and Managing Director of Quatrro, Gurnani is the Managing Director and Chief Executive of software major Tech Mahindra and Rishad, 40, is Wipro’s Chief Strategy Officer and the eldest son of IT czar Azim Premji.

“It is an honor to be given this opportunity at a time when the (IT) industry is at the next phase of maturity and evolution,” said Roy, as per the statement.

Asserting that Nasscom was playing a critical role in evangelizing the digital opportunity for the sector, Roy said he would support the industry in facilitating its skilling and re-skilling efforts through disruptive models.

“Building India’s innovation edge is another key priority and we will plan to scale our start-ups and centre of excellence initiatives to the next level,” he added.

Nasscom President R. Chandrashekhar said Roy was an industry veteran and had been a catalyst of its exponential growth over the last few decades.

“We will gain huge insights from Roy’s wealth of experience on global and domestic markets,” he said.

Welcoming the new Vice-Chairman, the former Telecom Secretary said a new age leader like Rishad would bring fresh ideas, helping the industry tap new domains and opportunities globally with his vast exposure.

Meanwhile Gurnani said: “Last fiscal (2016-17) has been eventful for the industry and I am glad to see it standing tall in the face of global headwinds. For me it was a great experience to get this opportunity and help chart the industry’s course in the new world order.”

He also hoped that the trio – Roy, Rishad and Chandrashekhar would lead the apex body achieve its 2020 vision for the industry, including showcasing the importance of global skilled labour mobility, navigating new policy needs and evangelising skilling and re-skilling of talent to help business continuity.

Roy is also involved in shaping the Business Process Management (BPM) industry’s future in India, China, Mauritius, Sri Lanka and the Caribbean region.

As a tribute to his contributions to the global services industry, the International Association of Outsourcing Professionals (IAOP) inducted him into its “Hall of Fame” in 2013, while the BBC Knowledge Magazine in December 2013 chose him as one of the 10 game changers that shaped modern India.