After Infosys founder Narayana Murthy said youngsters should work 70 hours a week, an outrage is going on with some supporting the remark while others giving divergent views. Tech Mahindra MD and CEO C P Gurnani said Murthy did not say work 70 hours for the company but he meant work 40 hours for the company but work 30 hours for yourself.
“I believe when he (Narayana Murthy) talks of work, it’s not limited to the company.. it extends to your self and to your country.. He hasn’t said work 70 hours for the company – work 40 hours for the company but work 30 hours for yourself.. Invest the 10,000 hours that makes one a master in one’s subject.. burn the midnight oil and become an expert in your field,” Gurnani said in a post on X.
Gurnani also said 70 hours of work which can differentiate you as a youngster and in the process your country.
In a podcast ‘The Record’ on 3one4 Capital’s YouTube channel, Murthy in conversation with former Infosys CFO Mohandas Pai said India’s work productivity is among the lowest globally, and the country’s youth need to put in extra hours of work — like Japan and Germany did after World War 2 — in order to compete with countries like China.
Murthy said in order for India to compete with economies that have made tremendous progress in the past 2-3 decades, youngsters need to work 70 hours a week.
Jumping on the debate, Ashneer Grover said, “I think junta got offended here because work is still being measured in ‘hours’ than ‘outcome’. The other thing is people feeling as if youngster’s laziness is only thing keeping India from becoming developed. Funny – getting offended unites us more than cricket, religion, caste or language.”
In a post on X, Sajjan Jindal said, “I whole heartedly endorse Mr. Narayana Murthy’s statement. It’s not about burnout, it’s about dedication. We have to make India an economic superpower that we can all be proud of.”
He said 5-day work week culture is not what a rapidly developing nation of our size needs. “Our Prime Minister Narendra Modi works over 14-16 hours everyday. My father used to work 12-14 hours, 7 days a week. I work 10-12 hours everyday. We have to find passion in our work and in Nation Building.”
Expressing divergent view, Ronnie Screwvala, co-founder and chairman of edtech platform upGrad, said the quality of work mattered more than longer hours. “Boosting productivity isn’t just about working longer hours. It’s about getting better at what you do – Upskilling, having a positive work environment, and fair pay for the work done. Quality of work done > clocking in more hours,” he said in a post on X.
Ola’s Bhavish Aggarwal in a post on X said, “Totally agree with Mr Murthy’s views. It’s not our moment to work less and entertain ourselves. Rather it’s our moment to go all in and build in 1 generation what other countries have built over many generations!”
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