Interview with Arjun Malhotra

IIT 2013 Conference Podcast

IIT 2013 Conference Podcast Interview with Arjun Malhotra Arjun Malhotra served as Chairman of Headstrong's Board of Directors before its acquisition by Genpact in May 2011. Prior to Headstrong he was Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of TechSpan, which merged with Headstrong in October 2003. A pioneer of the Indian IT industry, Mr. Malhotra founded TechSpan in 1998 with funding from Goldman Sachs and Walden International. The merger of TechSpan with Headstrong had built an end-to-end services organization. Mr. Malhotra led the seamless integration across businesses and cultures, resulting in Headstrong's recognition as one of the fastest-growing IT-based Financial Services companies Mr. Malhotra has a long string of entrepreneurial successes. He co-founded the HCL group in 1975, taking it from a six-person "garage operation" to one of India's largest Information Technology corporations. The first leading Indian entrepreneur to relocate to USA, Mr. Malhotra took over HCL's US operation in 1989 and grew it to nearly $100 million annual revenues. In 1992 he ran the HCL-HP joint venture in India, and in 1996 he set up and ran the joint venture with Deluxe Corporation. He consolidated and grew HCL operations in Hong Kong, Australia and New Zealand. Mr. Malhotra studied at The Doon School, Dehradun, and Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kharagpur. He graduated from IIT with B.Tech. (Hons.) in Electronics & Electrical Communication Engineering and received the Dr. B.C. Roy Gold Medal. In 1985, he attended the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School. Mr. Malhotra is a Member of the Board of Governors, IIT (Kharagpur) Foundation, Member of the Board of Governors of the Indian School of Business, Hyderabad, Member of the Board of Governors of Rajiv Gandhi Indian Institute of Management, Shillong and IIM Udaipur. He founded the Prof. G.S. Sanyal School of Telecommunications at IIT Kharagpur through a personal endowment. In "recognition of his outstanding contribution and services to the Institute", Mr. Malhotra was declared Life Fellow of IIT Kharagpur in February 2003 and has been awarded Doctor of Science (Honoris Causa) in September 2012. Mr. Malhotra was awarded the Albert Einstein Technology Medal for 2001. The Award salutes the high tech industryís vanguard who "with their vision ... have revolutionized the perception of time and space, linking mankind with ever growing speed and ingenuity. Their cutting-edge breakthroughs have empowered countless others." The Institution of Engineers (India) has named Mr. Malhotra an Eminent Engineering Personality. Mr. Malhotra is a Fellow of the Institute of Electronics & Telecommunication Engineers, India (FIETE), and a Member of the Institute of Engineers, India (MIE). He is a Member of Indian Public Schools Society and is on the Board of Governors of The Doon School. He is a past Co-Chair of the Global Pan-IIT Alumni Association and has served on the Board of Governors for the Delhi College of Arts & Commerce, University of Delhi, and as Vice President of The Doon School Old Boys Society. Mr. Malhotra is a Charter Member of The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE), a non-profit network with over 10,000 members across 61 chapters in 13 countries. He has previously served as the Chairman of the TiE Global Board. TiE fosters global entrepreneurship through mentoring, networking and education. He is also one of the founding members of SPIC-MACAY, the Society for Promotion of Indian Classical Music and Culture amongst Youth and is presently on their Advisory Board. SPIC-MACAY is today Indiaís largest non-government, not for profit, social and cultural organization.