Infosys plans to bring employees back to work only gradually
Bengaluru-based IT major Infosys has suspended guidance on revenues and margins for FY21 due to uncertainty coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic. Infosys CEO Salil Parekh said that while there is no clear view on when a recovery can be expected, the company will provide guidance after visibility improves. Speaking of employees and hiring, Infosys has said that it has suspended hiring, salary increments and promotions for the year. However, Infosys will honour all commitments made in terms of campus hires and laterals. Campus hires, COO Pravin Rao said that campus hires will take place in a phased manner.
Pravin also said that there will not be any COVID-related layoffs. However, he said that some of the involuntary actions the company has been taking in recent past will continue and these will all be performance-based exits. The company also added that there will no be any furloughs, however the company is looking at many initiatives to bring cost under control. With some impact due to project deferrals and softening of discretionary spends, there will be some margin pressure in the near term. In response to these new contours of projected demand, Infosys will work to optimize its cost structure and operational rigor, while continuing to invest in strengthening its wallet PLATFORM' target='_blank' title='digital-Latest Updates, Photos, Videos are a click away, CLICK NOW">digital capabilities.
These announcements from Infosys came as the company reported its financial earning for the fourth quarter of FY20 and for the whole financial year. Infosys reported a 6.3% rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 4,335 crore for march 2020 quarter. It posted a net profit of Rs 4,078 crore in the year-ago period as per IFRS accounting norms. The company’s revenue grew 8% to Rs 23,267 crore in Q4FY21 from Rs 21,539 crore in the corresponding period last fiscal. In terms of sectors impacted, Pravin said that while all sectors saw some impact in some way or the other, retail, travel and hospitality, energy, oil and manufacturing were among the ones impacted badly. Infosys said that currently 93% of employees are working from home and these are more on IT side than on BPM side. In the first phase, once the lockdown ends, Infosys will have 5% of its workforce come to office over 3-4 weeks. In the next 4-8 weeks, it will gradually increase this to 15% and gradually increase that as well.