Avinash Limaye

Hello CEO: Avinash Limaye, TCS

Hello CEO vitecherupp
Our 1,350 members range from small start-ups with few employees to large multinationals with thousands of employees around the world. Under the banner "Hello CEO", we gather their views on the recent past and their thoughts on the future. Avinash Limaye is the CEO of TCS (Tata Consultancy Services) in Scandinavia.

How would you sum up the pandemic year from your organization's perspective?

- It has been a year that has had a major impact on the vast majority of businesses, including both TCS and our customers. Despite this, it has gone far better than expected. We have been able to help our customers maintain their businesses, many of which have had to switch to remote working. But when we look back on the year after the pandemic, my first thought will be for all those who have been affected by COVID-19, both those who have fallen ill themselves and those who have family members who have fallen ill or even died. TCS donated some $200 million early on to support research into, as well as direct action against, the disease, and that is something that I and my colleagues are obviously very proud of.

What lessons have you learned and what will you take away?

- The first thing that comes to mind is our transition to teleworking. Despite having over 450,000 consultants, TCS was able to implement it in just a couple of weeks, without compromising security. This successful transition, combined with the desire of our employees and customers to be able to work from home and remotely, has led TCS to introduce a new teleworking program. The program means that no employee will need to spend more than 25% of their working time in the office from 2025. We have also been supporting customers with solutions to make their remote working work satisfactorily.

What benefits have you seen from membership of IT&Telecom during the crisis?

- As a member of IT&Telekomföretagen and Almega, we have the opportunity to participate in a number of different forums, initiatives and industry networks, but we can also seek support on various issues. The corona crisis has led to us all now being on unbroken ground and therefore we have a lot to gain from learning from each other. The IT&Telecom companies have an important unifying function and we really appreciate the goodwill that all parties have shown, even among competitors, so that together we can come out of the pandemic stronger. There has long been a shortage of skilled IT staff in Sweden and the pandemic has increased competition for talent, especially those with cutting-edge skills. The work of IT&Telecom companies to address the skills shortage in the industry is incredibly important, both in the short and longer term.

Looking ahead, how do you see the immediate future?

- I am very positive about the future! Both from a pandemic perspective with vaccines that will help put an end to COVID-19 globally and for TCS's operations in the Nordic region and the rest of the world. In the Nordic region, we have very good relationships with our customers and we see good potential to continue to grow. There is a great willingness among Swedish companies to invest further in IT and digitization. When it comes to IT and digitization, we see that our customers are very insightful and that they have great knowledge in the area, which means that the starting distance for implementing new technologies to optimize and streamline operations is significantly shorter than it might otherwise have been.