The Perfect Role Model

As the Satyam debacles unfold, people are looking upto their role models within the industry for their expert opinions. Hope no more surprises out from the closet, no more role models going down. We are all shaped by our environment. Most of us are deeply influenced by our teachers, parents, friends and close social circles. For me, these influences brought out the best in me. As an aspiring entrepreneur, no other role-model in this field came as close as Mr. NR Narayana Murthy did; now the caretaker of Infosys Technologies Ltd and Infosys Consulting. “NRN” as most Infoscion’s address him, embodies the qualities most business leaders, aspire for. A man is admired when you feel alive and active in his presence. Hailing from a middle class family, NRN has always made it a point to lead by example. Blending old-fashioned values with visionary thinking, NRN had come to define the standards of personal integrity and corporate governance for India Inc.
This is where the likes of Ratan Tata, Azim Premji, Dhirubhai Ambani, Vijay Mallya and NRN built the fame of India Shining and put India on the global map for others to follow. This is how the legends are made of. For the past two decades, NRN has led the IT charge for India as co-founder and CEO of Infosys. After handing over the operational reins of Infosys, Mr. Murthy now spends most of his time traversing the globe serving on the boards of organizations and premier business schools such as Wharton and the Tuck School of Business in New York, and hobnobbing with heads of state on world affairs. NRN is an optimistic, a fighter and one who can stand up against all odds, and this notion I acquired during one of his speech in Infosys, Pune. I had my share of interaction with him, and it was nothing more than a victory to me, than to be asking questions to my childhood hero and one of India’s leading industrialist. The rookie me asked, "Sir, what is your success mantra?", and NRN replied "Again, please do not address me as Sir. the answer is Passion". He mentioned again, because the audience constantly addressed him as Sir, and rightly so, and he remained humble enough to be known with his name, and for the uncomfortable one's, he suggested adding an extra title such as Mr. With a squeaky clean image and impeccable credentials, NRN is to me, and to billion others, a PERFECT ROLE MODEL, not only within the business community, but outside it as well. His entrepreneurial thinking, perseverance and simplicity are the qualities I hope to emulate.

More about Mr. Murthy - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N._R._Narayana_Murthy