‘NARAYANA MURTHY IS A ROLE MODEL FOR MILLIONS OF INDIANS … THIS COLLECTION OF HIS SPEECHES WILL INFORM, INSPIRE AND GUIDE MANY IN THE YEARS TO COME.’ —MANMOHAN SINGH, PRIME MINISTER OF INDIA ‘NARAYAN MURTHY … DELIVERS A TIMELY MESSAGE ABOUT THE IMPROTANCE OF VALUES AND LEADERSHIP IN BUSINESS.’ —BILL GATES, CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD, MICROSOFT CORPORATION With one of the highest GDP growth rates in the world and an array of recent achievements in technology, industry and entrepreneurship, India strides confidently towards the future. But, in the world’s largest democracy, not everyone is equally fortunate. More than 300 million Indians are still prey to hunger, illiteracy and disease, and 51 per cent of India’s children are still undernourished. What will it take for India to bridge this great divide? When will the fruits of development reach the poorest of the poor, and wipe the tears from the eyes of every man, woman and child, as Mahatma Gandhi had dreamt? And how should this, our greatest challenge ever, be negotiated? In this honest, bold and remarkably well-argued book, N.R. Narayana Murthy shows us that a society working for the greatest welfare of the greatest number—samasta jananam sukhino bhavantu—must focus on two simple things: values and good leadership. Drawing on the remarkable Infosys story and the lessons learnt from the two decades of post- reform India, Narayana Murthy lays down the ground rules that must be followed if future generations are to inherit a truly progressive nation. Built on Narayana Murthy’s lectures delivered around the world, A Better India: A Better World is a manifesto for the youth, the architects of the future, and a compelling argument for why a better India holds the key to a better world. Cover photograph by Dheeraj Sapru/lndiapicture PENGUIN BOOKS A BETTER INDIA: A BETTER WORLD N.R. Narayana Murthy is the Founder-Chairman of Infosys Technologies Limited, a global software consulting company headquartered in Bangalore, India. He serves on the boards of Unilever, HSBC, NDTV, Ford Foundation and the UN Foundation. He also serves on the boards of Cornell University, Wharton School, Singapore Management University, Indian School of Business, Hyderabad, Indian Institute of Information Technology, Bangalore and INSEAD. The Economist ranked Narayana Murthy among the ten most-admired global business leaders in 2005. He topped the Economic Times list of India’s most powerful CEOs for three consecutive years: 2004 to 2006. He has been awarded the Padma Vibhushan by the Government of India, the Légion d’honneur by the Government of France, and the CBE by the British government. He is the first Indian winner of Ernst and Young’s World Entrepreneur of the Year award and the Max Schmidheiny Liberty prize, and has appeared in the rankings of businessmen and innovators published by India Today, Business Standard, Forbes, Business Week, Time, CNN, Fortune and Financial Times. PRAISE FOR THE BOOK ‘Narayana Murthy is a role model for millions of Indians. An iconic figure in the country, he is widely respected and looked up to not only for his business leadership but also for his ethics and personal conduct. He represents the face of the new, resurgent India to the world. I am sure this collection of his speeches will inform, inspire and guide many in the years to come’ —Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister of India ‘Narayana Murthy overcame many obstacles and demonstrated that it is possible to create a world- class, values-driven company in India. Through his vision and leadership Murthy sparked a wave of innovation and entrepreneurship that changed the way we view ourselves and how the world views India. In this collection of his speeches, he delivers a timely message about the importance of values and leadership in business’ —Bill Gates, Chairman of the Board, Microsoft Corporation A BETTER INDIA A BETTER WORLD N R Narayana Murthy PENGUIN BOOKS UK | Canada | Ireland | Australia New Zealand | India | South Africa Penguin Books is part of the Penguin Random House group of companies whose addresses can be found at global.penguinrandomhouse.com. This collection published 2009 Copyright © N.R. Narayana Murthy 2009 The moral right of the author has been asserted ISBN: 978-0-143-06857-0 This digital edition published in 2016. e-ISBN: 978-8-184-75018-8 This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser. To Akshata, Rohan, young Infoscions, and the youth in India and the world, with confidence that you will create a better India and a better world Contents Copyright Acknowledgements Introduction PART I: ADDRESS TO STUDENTS Learning from Experience The Indian of the Twenty-first Century Succeeding in the Contemporary World Succeeding in a Globalized Corporation The Need for Excellence The Legal Professional in the Era of Globalization A Case for a More Open Trade Regime in India The Role of Religion in Education PART II: VALUES What Can We Learn from the West? The Role of Discipline in Accelerating National Development How Can We Stop Corruption in India? In Praise of Secularism Time for Chak De, India! My Empowered India PART III: IMPORTANT NATIONAL ISSUES Lessons from the Economic Reforms of 1991 Population and Economic Development in India A Framework for Urban Planning in Modern India The Eight Visions that Changed the Face of India Software Enterprises: The Temples of New India PART IV: EDUCATION What Would I Do if I Were the Principal of a Secondary School? A Framework for Reforms in Higher Education in India The Unfinished Agenda PART V: LEADERSHIP CHALLENGES On Leadership: Lessons from the Infosys Journey A Leadership Mindset for a Resurgent India PART VI: CORPORATE AND PUBLIC GOVERNANCE Good Corporate Governance: A Checklist or a Mindset? Corporate Governance and its Relevance to India Corporate Governance: A Practitioner’s Viewpoint A New Model for Effective Public Governance PART VII: CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND PHILANTHROPY Compassionate Capitalism