Infosys founder NR Narayana Murthy's 70-hour work week comment has sparked a huge debate online. Mr Murthy made the remark on a podcast hosted by former Infosys CFO Mohandas Pai. Now days after the controversial comment, Marico founder and chairman Harsh Mariwala has shared his views on Mr Murthy's remark on X, formerly Twitter.
In a lengthy post, the billionaire said that employers and employees should focus on the quality and passion put into work rather than the number of working hours.
"Reflecting on the recent sentiments expressed by Mr Narayan Murthy regarding the youth working 70 hours a week, I feel compelled to share my perspective. Undeniably, hard work is the backbone of success, but it is not about the hours clocked in. It's about the quality and passion one brings to those hours," Mr Mariwala wrote on X.
He further expressed that youth should be truly engaged and motivated. "We need to ensure they are placed in roles that not only challenge them but also foster growth and learning. When an individual sees a path where hard work translates to a promising future, they are naturally inclined to give their best."
The industrialist further said, "It's pivotal for organisations to cultivate a culture rooted in transparency, trust, and meritocracy which is devoid of gossiping, backbiting and politicking. The ultimate objective should be to make work so invigorating and rewarding that the paradigm of work-life balance seamlessly integrates."
He concluded his post by saying, "When young professionals are passionate and see purpose in what they do, the need to 'balance' becomes a harmonious blend of personal and professional fulfilment."
See the post here:
His post on X has amassed 2 lakh views and a flurry of comments. A user wrote, "Agreed. But nowadays quality is very subjective. So managers have given up looking for quality and always trying to negotiate in salary terms. If the right person is employed for the job, he will do it with passion and does not feel overworked."
Another user commented, "The relationship between Management and Employees is becoming more and more transactional, this trend needs to be reversed."
"Yup Definitely agree with this, If Work can Be completed in 8 -9 hours itself then Why waste 5 more on it and not focus on Improving Skillsets, You have said what most will agree on," the third user wrote.
NR Narayana Murthy, on the first episode of 3one4 Capital's podcast 'The Record', said, "India's work productivity is one of the lowest in the world. Unless we improve our work productivity, unless we reduce corruption in the government at some level, because we have been reading, I don't know the truth of it, unless we reduce the delays in our bureaucracy in taking this decision, we will not be able to compete with those countries that have made tremendous progress."
He added, "So therefore, my request is that our youngsters must say 'this is my country. I'd like to work 70 hours a week".
