Ravi Venkatesan quits as independent director of Infosys

Ravi Venkatesan, Independent Director has stepped down as the independent director of country's third largest IT services company Infosys.

Venkatesan has been an independent director since 2011 and served briefly as Co-Chairman, with R Sheshasayee as the Chairman, before transitioning this responsibility when Nandan Nilekani became Chairman in August 2017. Venkatesan's tenure as co-chairman was full with controversies for the IT major.

Venkatesan quiting as co-chairman of the board, was part of the massive overhaul that Infosys board went through when Nilekani returned to the helm of the company he had co-founded three decades back.

"This is to inform that Ravi Venkatesan, Independent Director has resigned as a director of the company with immediate effect to pursue an exciting new opportunity. Accordingly, the board took note of the same, " Infosys said in the statement.

With Venkatesan's exit, company is only left with eight directors now, including company's CEO and MD Salil Parekh and COO UB Pravin Rao.

As per the sources, after Nilekani's return, Venkatesan felt neglected in the company, and ultimately left the company.

"I joined the Board at a time when Infosys was beginning the complex journey of transitioning from founder-led to professional management. This was also a time of tectonic industry shifts. I am pleased that this mission has been accomplished,” Venkatesan said on his exit.

Nandan Nilekani, Chairman of the Board, thanked Ravi for his pivotal contributions to Infosys in a period of important transitions and towards a digital-first future.

"This passage is one that every entrepreneurial company faces eventually and I thank Ravi for his leadership in ensuring a successful transition. The Board will miss his passion, strategic insights, and personal warmth, but he will always remain a friend,"he said.

Nelekani said that Ravi has been a champion for driving social impact and it is desire to do more, that led to his request for stepping off the Board. I am delighted that he will be pursuing an exciting opportunity in this area.

Prior to his Infosys stint, Venkatesan served as chairman of Microsoft India between 2004 and 2011. He is credited with helping build Microsoft India into Microsoft's second-largest presence in the world.