Underperformance: 3 Key things Rishad Premji told Wipro shareholders at the company’s AGM

Bengaluru-based IT major Wipro held its 77th annual general meeting on July 12. The shareholders meeting was held virtually. It was addressed by Wipro executive chairman Rishad Premji and chief executive officer Theirry Delaporte. Here are key things that Premji told shareholders
CEO Delaporte and his leadership team have the full support of the board
“I want to re-emphasise, Thierry has my full support and the full support of the board as he takes the company forward,” said Premji. Delaporte, who was appointed to the top role in July 2020, has two years remaining in the current term. The 56-year-old Capgemini veteran has led an aggressive acquisition strategy that has seen Wipro acquire a dozen companies, shelling out about over $2.3 billion, in the last three years.
Macro environment remained challenging
“The Ukraine war entered its second year and global interest rates remain high. These factors affected clients’ spending, especially in the second half of the year (FY23) … but our portfolio of solutions has helped us react quickly and pertinently to these developments,” he said. The company said banking, financial services and high-tech verticals have seen clients move to cost-optimisation projects over discretionary projects in the second half of FY23.
CEO operating out of Paris is “intentional and calculated”
Premji said that Delaporte operating out of Paris — as opposed to the US as planned earlier — is a “intentional and calculated” call of the management that results in better access to customers present across from East and West of Europe.