Narayan Murthy, Chairman and Chief Mentor of Infosys Technologies Limited is one of India's favorite sons. Hailing from Karnataka, he is known not just for building the biggest IT empire in India but also for his simplicity. Infosys Technologies is one of the few Indian companies that has changed the way the world looks at India. It is now perceived as an economic giant to reckon with, bursting with brilliant software engineers and ambitious entrepreneurs. And Infosys is the synonym of India's information technology. For every important dignitary who visits Karnataka, a trip to the famous Infosys campus is almost a must.

He has not only placed India on the world's IT map and provided jobs to thousands but also stood out as an exemplary leader. According to him, a leader has to have followers to be a leader and that was exactly why he stood by his controversial decision on CEO's salaries being linked to company's earnings. He believes that to enhance the trust of employees in the leader, the leadership of the company has to conduct itself in a manner that enhances trust. And indeed he has won the trust and loyalty of 70,000 plus people in Infosys who agree voluntarily to commit to hard work.

Born on August 20, 1946 in Karnataka, India, Murthy went on to obtain his Bachelor of Electrical Engineering from University of Mysore in 1967 and his Master of Technology from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur in 1969. In 1981, he founded along with six software professionals. Murthy served as the Chief Executive Officer of Infosys between 1981 and 2002. Today, Infosys is acknowledged by customers, employees, investors and the general public as a highly respected, dynamic and innovative company. In March 1999, Infosys Technologies became the first India-registered company to be listed on an American stock exchange (NASDAQ: INFY). In March 2002, he handed over the reins of the company to Co-founder, Nandan M. Nilekani. Murthy is the Chairman of the governing body of the Indian Institute of Information Technology, Bangalore and the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.

He is a Member of the Board of Overseers of the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School; Cornell University Board of Trustees; Singapore Management University Board of Trustees; INSEAD's Board of Directors and the Asian Institute of Management's Board of Governors. He is also a Member of the Advisory Boards and Councils of the William F. Achtmeyer Center for Global Leadership at the Tuck School of Business, the Corporate Governance initiative at the Harvard Business School, and the Yale University President's Council on International Activities. Murthy has led key corporate governance initiatives in India. He was the Chairman of the Committee on Corporate Governance appointed by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) in 2003 Murthy also serves as an Independent Director on the board of the DBS Bank, Singapore's largest government-owned bank. He is a Member of the Asia Pacific Advisory Board of British Telecommunications Plc., and a Member of the Board of New Delhi Television Ltd. (NDTV), India.

Moreover, he also serves as a Director on the Central Board of the Reserve Bank of India, as a Member of the Prime Minister's Council on Trade and Industry, and as a Member of the Board of Directors of the United Nations Foundation. He is an IT Advisor to several Asian countries. With all these wonders that Murthy has been creating, it is hardly surprising that he is a recipient of numerous awards and honors. In 2000, he was awarded the prestigious Padma Shri. He is also the first recipient of the Indo-French Forum Medal (in the year 2003), awarded by the Indo-French Forum, in recognition of his role in promoting Indo-French ties. He was voted the World Entrepreneur of the Year - 2003 by Ernst & Young. He was one of the two people named as Asia's Businessmen of the Year for 2003 by Fortune magazine. In 2001, he was named by TIME / CNN as one of the twenty-five, most influential global executives. This group was selected on the basis of their lasting influence in creating new industries and reshaping markets.

He was awarded the Max Schmidheiny Liberty 2001 prize (Switzerland), in recognition of his promotion of individual responsibility and liberty. In 1999, BusinessWeek named him one of the nine entrepreneurs of the year and he was also featured in the BusinessWeek's 'The Stars of Asia' (for three successive years - 1998, 1999 and 2000). In 1998, the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, one of the premier institutes of higher learning in India, conferred on him the Distinguished Alumnus Award, and in 1996-97, he was awarded the JRD Tata Corporate Leadership Award. In December 2005, Narayana Murthy was voted as the 7th most admired CEO/Chairman in the world in a global study conducted by Burson-Marsteller with the Economist Intelligence Unit. The list included 14 others with distinguished names such as Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Warren Buffet. In May 2006, Narayana Murthy has, for the fifth year running, emerged the most admired business leader of India in a study conducted by Brand-comm, a leading Brand Consulting, Advertising and PR firm. In November 2006, Time magazine featured him in its list of "Asian Heroes". The list featured people who have had a significant impact on Asian history over the past 60 years and it included others such as Mahatma Gandhi, Dalai Lama, Mother Teresa.

The Queensland University of Technology (Brisbane, Australia) conferred an honorary doctorate on Murthy in 2005. He has also been conferred honorary doctorates by several well-known universities in India. He was a member of the operating system team that designed real time operating system for handling air cargo for Charles de Gaulle airport, Paris. He was the President of National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM) from 1992 to 1994. Murthy is a member of the National Information Technology Task Force of India, and also of the Prime Minister's Council on Trade and Industry. He is a Director on the board of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). He was never a man who wanted to just achieve something in life. Rather he wanted to be someone who would make a difference. And Indian IT sector has touched new heights of success since Murthy and his Infosys.