We will take a close look at margins and focus on profitability: Mindtree CEO Debashis Chatterjee

At his first press conference as chief executive of Mindtree, Debashis Chatterjee assured stakeholders that the best practices of the Bengaluru-based software services firm and its new promoter, Larsen and Toubro (L&T), would be shared across the board to deliver the best possible outcomes to clients and stakeholders. 

"It will be important to collaborate and co-create with management and strengthen the momentum in the company. We will take a close look at margins and focus on profitability," Chatterjee told mediapersons at Mindtree’s headquarters in the city.

Chatterjee, who spent 22 years at Chennai and New Jersey headquartered Cognizant, said that the digital transformation work being done at Mindtree is cutting edge while acknowledging that margins and profitability was a challenging situation at the present moment.

Meanwhile, Mumbai-based engineering giant L&T’s chief executive and managing director SN Subrahmanyan said that group chairman A M Naik had personally written to all clients and assured them continuity. L&T became Mindtree’s promoter early last month after acquiring a controlling stake in the company. The move led to Mindtree’s founder promoters leaving the firm.

"Chatterjee took some time to come on board since he had an existing relationship and had to pass on the baton to his successor. From a continuity point of view, it has all been done. He is going to the US and Europe to meet with clients," Subrahmanyan said.

Chatterjee was previously president for global delivery and digital systems and technology at Cognizant. A graduate in mechanical engineering from Jadavpur University, Kolkata, Chatterjee also led Cognizant's technology innovation and next generation solutions across different lines of service.

Subrahmanyan said that he was not aware of any major client concerns and since both companies were well known, clients would be happy to be part of a larger umbrella. L&T has two entities that cater to technology customers -- L&T Technology Services and L&T Infotech.

"We will look at internal candidates to fill some of the vacant positions and if the positions cannot be disturbed we will have to bring in outside talent. L & T runs companies as verticals and runs each company separately and there will be no conflict of interest," Subrahmanyan added.

Mindtree’s acquisition was one of the largest hostile takeovers in the Indian information technology industry, precipitated by the sale of shares by its largest shareholder, Cafe Coffee Day founder VG Siddhartha, who allegedly committed suicide earlier this week amid mounting debt-related problems.