'Freshers are integral to our workforce'
IT services firm Infosys' Global Education Centre (CEC) in Mysuru, which is one of the largest corporate training campuses globally, is central to onboarding and upskilling fresh talent. In an interaction with Uma Kannan, Shaji Mathew, Chief Human Resources Officer at Infosys talks about the company's AI talent, inclusive leadership programme and hybrid work policies. Excerpts:
How many of your employees are being trained in AI? Can you tell us about your upskilling programme and how it is benefiting your employees as well as clients?
At Infosys, we are committed to preparing our workforce for the future. Over the last two years, we have significantly upgraded both our physical and digital training infrastructure. Our Lex platform now offers over 36,000 curated courses, engaging more than 320,000 employees who dedicate an average of 40 minutes per day to learning. Additionally, through our InfyTQ app, we have extended Lex to over 500,000 college students across India.
Reskilling remains a cornerstone of our strategy. We have trained over 275,000 employees in AI and generative AI, while promoting cross-functional mobility through initiatives like Bridge and incentivising upskilling efforts. Over the past 18 months, many of our senior leaders completed an AI certification programme on business applications with Kellogg. In addition, external faculty and industry experts have led sessions covering various aspects of AI for our leadership team.
What kind of training/skilling programmes do freshers undergo at Infosys?
Freshers are integral to our workforce, and we ensure their seamless integration into projects through robust, structured training programmes. Our Global Education Centre (GEC) in Mysuru is central to onboarding and upskilling fresh talent, combining technical expertise with professional development. The Foundation Program enables fresh graduates to become corporate professionals. The programme curriculum covers over 45 variants of new technology streams alongside traditional streams like Mainframe, Open Systems, Java, and Microsoft. It also includes behavioural competencies and niche skills designed to prepare employees for dynamic business needs. We also leverage AI-powered tools like Navi and Zoiee to enhance the learning experience. Navi acts as a virtual mentor, supporting employees in career growth and well-being, while Zoiee personalises learning journeys and develops critical soft skills through real-world simulations.
Can you tell us about your inclusive leadership programme and what is the percentage of women employees in leadership roles?
Our #IamTheFuture program, developed in partnership with Stanford University and Orbit Next, equips women leaders with high-impact training to drive their growth. Additionally, gender sensitization workshops for all leaders help cultivate a culture of inclusive leadership. We also take a proactive approach to supporting women throughout their careers. From nurturing career intentionality among engineering graduates through our Campus Connect program to offering strong return-to-work support for women after maternity breaks, we remain focused on enabling personal and professional milestones. Our second career initiative, 'Restart with Infosys', creates opportunities for women professionals looking to re-enter the workforce after a break. We have hired 935 women into the Infosys ecosystem in fiscal 2025 through this endeavour.
What about your hybrid work policy and what kind of feedback are you receiving from employees?
At Infosys, we have embraced a flexible, hybrid work policy, and the response from our employees has been positive. We are seeing an increased number of people coming back to the office, appreciating the benefits of in-person collaboration within our hybrid work model. To enhance convenience and flexibility, we have expanded our office network to be closer to where our employees live. We have opened development centres in cities such as Coimbatore, Hubballi, Indore, Kolkata, Nagpur, Mumbai, Noida, GIFT City (Gandhinagar), and Visakhapatnam. These centres bring the workplace closer to the hometowns of our employees.
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