COVER STORY: How Shiv Nadar Learned to Let HCL Grow Up

HCL Technologies’ mercurial founder Shiv Nadar built a company that was once spoken of in the same breath as Infosys and Wipro. But it began falling behind its peers because Nadar made some strategic mistakes. In 2005, the writing on the wall was obvious, and Nadar did the best thing a founder can do. He stepped aside and asked Vineet Nayar to take charge. That change of guard is paying off. Over the last two years, Nayar has managed to snap some of the largest deals that have come Indian IT’s way. Last year, revenues grew 17 percent and its stock has outperformed its peers. However, in the days to come, Nayar will need Nadar’s counsel to tackle the even tougher parts that are coming up.