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Earlier during the day, we told you how <keyword id="6354512" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Infosys">Infosys</keyword> is slowly yet steadily moving on a progressive path. And now, we have heard another big news about the software firm. It has acquired <keyword id="35621" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="e-commerce">e-commerce</keyword> services provider <keyword id="2822352" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Skava">Skava</keyword> for $120 million. This is the second largest acquisition from Infosys this year; earlier the company had bought Israel-based automation solutions startup <keyword id="2728667" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Panaya">Panaya</keyword> for $ 200 million. 
 
In a statement posted on their website, Infosys said it completed the acquisition of Kallidus Inc, which is the holding group behind Skava, and its affiliate on Thursday. 
 
"The acquisition is in accordance with the terms set out in the agreement announced on April 24, 2015. The acquisition of Skava is part of Infosys' strategy to help clients bring new digital experiences to their customers through IP-led technology offerings, new automation tools and unparalleled skill and expertise in these new emerging areas," Infosys said on its website. 
 Infosys chief <keyword id="6369763" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Vishal-Sikka">Vishal Sikka</keyword> has outlined plans and even formed a committee to aggressively pursue acquisitions as part of his vision to make Infosys a $20-billion company by 2020. Sikka wants acquisitions to generate at least $1.5 billion of annual revenue, as part of the strategy. And it seems, the company is headed in the right direction. 
 
(image credits: infotechlead.com)

Infosys has made its second largest acquisition of the year

India’s second largest software exporter <keyword id="6354512" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Infosys">Infosys</keyword> expects acquisitions can bring in additional revenues of about $1.5 billion as the IT services behemoth aims to achieve a goal of generating $20 billion by 2020. The company is also aiming to bring attrition levels down to the lowest in the industry in the same time frame. 
 

	These targets include increasing revenue per Full Time Equivalent to $80,000 by deploying automation and innovation in existing businesses and inorganic investment strategies influencing approximately $1.5 billion of new revenue, according to PTI. "The mission of our management is to prepare the company to achieve an aspirational goal of $20 billion in revenue by calendar year 2020 with at least 30% operating margin with specific targets," Infosys CEO <keyword id="6369763" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Vishal-Sikka">Vishal Sikka</keyword> said in the company's annual report. The IT firm has already acquired some companies in the past few months. It announced its first major acquisition in February under Sikka, who had taken over as CEO in August 2014, of New Jersey-based automation technology firm <keyword id="2728667" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Panaya">Panaya</keyword> for $200 million. In April, Infosys made another large acquisition and bought <keyword id="2822310" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Kallidus">Kallidus</keyword> (also known as Skava) for $120 million. 
	 

	The Bengaluru-based company has been scouting for innovative companies in areas like automation and artificial intelligence. 

	The IT firm has already said it is open to 'bigger scale' mergers and acquisitions but with a caveat, it is not interested in "yesterdays" companies. 
	 

	Sikka said new services like design thinking, solutions in artificial intelligence and intellectual property-led businesses are expected to contribute at least 10% of Infosys' revenues. 
	 

	Infosys would also focus on building a vibrant ecosystem "from the ground up by investing in, incubating and growing innovative startups and companies that will help define the next generation of services and business models," he added. Once the bellwether of Indian <keyword id="6374576" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="IT-Industry">IT industry</keyword>, the company lagged behind its peers like <keyword id="6357585" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Tata-Consultancy-Services">Tata Consultancy Services</keyword> and <keyword id="30331" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="HCL-Technologies">HCL Technologies</keyword> in terms of growth. 
	 

	Moreover, it also faced a series of senior level exits that the company has now capped with a series of measures like promotions and increments. 
	 

	The target would also be "bringing attrition levels down to the lowest in the industry and achieving at least 25% in diversity in our top leadership", Sikka said. 
	 

	On standalone basis, the attrition rate for fiscal 2015 stood at 18.9% compared with 18.7% in the previous fiscal. 
	 

	Infosys has over 1.76 lakh employees with the addition of 15,782 (net) people. Sikka also expressed confidence that the company can grow at 10-12% rate in the ongoing fiscal. 

	 
	(Image: Reuters)

Infosys is going to make an additional $1.5 billion in revenues via acquisitions

India’s second largest software exporter Infosys has formed a special investment committee on its board to keep a watch on all new acquisitions and big investments of the company. <keyword id="6369763" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Vishal-Sikka">Vishal Sikka</keyword>, the CEO of the Bengaluru-headquartered IT MNC, is aggressively pursuing buyouts as the company wants to generate $20 billion of revenue by 2020. 
 Its rivals, both <keyword id="10862" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Wipro">Wipro</keyword> and <keyword id="6357585" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Tata-Consultancy-Services">Tata Consultancy Services</keyword> (TCS), have a special committee to oversee decisions regarding strategy planning, capital expenditure programmes, acquisitions and investments. Roopa Kudva, new board member and managing director of <keyword id="211875" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="80" keywordseo="Omidyar-Network">Omidyar Network</keyword>'s India operations, would chair the committee that comprises board veteran and former <keyword id="28250" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Microsoft-India">Microsoft India</keyword> chairman <keyword id="50299" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Ravi-Venkatesan">Ravi Venkatesan</keyword> among other board members, two people familiar with the development told the Economic Times. 
	 

	"Infosys felt that creating a committee to oversee acquisitions was a necessity, given the company's more aggressive stance on acquisitions and investments under Sikka — this committee will be responsible for vetting and overseeing all decisions the company makes on acquisitions, along with the approval of the rest of the board," said one of them. 
	 

	Infosys declined to confirm whether such a committee had been formed. "We do not comment on rumours or speculation," a company spokeswoman said in an email response to ET. 
 

	Sikka has said that he wants acquisitions to generate at least $1.5 billion of that. According to the company's quarterly report, Infosys had cash and cash equivalents of about $5.2 billion as of March 31, 2015. Earlier, in an interview to ET, Sikka said that Infosys would be very aggressive in chasing buyouts. In February, days after the software company bought automation startup <keyword id="2728667" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Panaya">Panaya</keyword> for about Rs 1,200 crore ($200 million), the first non-founder CEO of Infosys said, "We have a dozen targets we are looking at now." Infosys made another large acquisition and bought ecommerce services provider <keyword id="2822310" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Kallidus">Kallidus</keyword> (also known as Skava) for $120 million in April. "Anytime we see a company with talent, capabilities and IP in these areas (AI and collaboration technology) we would love to go for an acquisition," said Sikka, a former SAP board member. 
	 

	Both the Panaya and Skava acquisitions were vetted by the newly-formed investment committee on the Infosys board, said the two sources quoted above. 
	 

	The formation of this committee comes at a crucial juncture for Infosys, which is making big bets in newer areas of technology as part of Sikka's overall plan to turnaround the fortunes of the company and also when rivals such as TCS and Wipro are trying to make similar investments to gain a first-mover advantage in areas such as artificial intelligence and automation. Sandra Notardonato of <keyword id="6371981" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Gartner">Gartner</keyword> Research said, to achieve the compound annual rate of revenue growth of 18% implied by the $20 billion target, Infosys is counting on $1.5 billion in acquisitions, 10% contribution from new service areas and 15% internal growth. It’s worth noting that Infosys’ rival Wipro also has a committee that oversees decisions around acquisitions, among other things. Wipro's billionaire chairman <keyword id="6419840" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Azim-Premji">Azim Premji</keyword>, CEO TK Kurien, board veterans <keyword id="2881183" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="William-Arthur-Owens">William Arthur Owens</keyword> and Jagdish Sheth, and former head of <keyword id="6528042" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Hewlett-Packard">Hewlett-Packard</keyword>'s printing business Vyomesh Joshi are currently part of this committee. Even Tata Consultancy Services has an executive committee that oversees decisions around capital expenditure programmes, acquisitions and investments. Members of the committee include TCS CEO N Chandrasekaran, <keyword id="6355725" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Tata-Group">Tata Group</keyword> chairman <keyword id="6356895" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Cyrus-Mistry">Cyrus Mistry</keyword>, former company veteran S Ramadorai, Harvard Business School professor Clayton Christensen and board veteran Ron Sommer. 
	 
	(Image: Indiatimes)

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Infosys has made its second largest acquisition of the year

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Infosys is going to make an additional $1.5 billion in revenues via acquisitions

BI India Bureau

Infosys CEO Vishal Sikka creates a special panel to look into all acquisitions

BI India Bureau

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