IITGN Decennial Lecture Series, celebrating the 10th anniversary of the institute, features a diverse range of lectures and performances by business leaders, artists, scholars, social activists and professionals to explore and showcase scholarship, policy, practice and creative expression.

Industry boundaries are blurring. Intersections are what are driving all these companies who want to explore other businesses instead of only one or two. It is flowing across the industries.

K Ananth Krishnan

CTO, TATA Consultancy Services

The institute organised its first lecture as part of the IITGN Decennial Lecture Series on February 15. Mr K Ananth Krishnan, chief technology officer, TATA Consultancy Services (TCS), delivered the same on Future Technologies: Innovations at Intersections.

Mr Krishnan elaborated on the technologies of our age and why “intersections” are important. Giving examples of the emergence of various technology revolutions and business revolutions from different timelines, he said, “Every wave of new technology created a new business model, which created leaders in that space.” He termed the current new wave of technology and business model as “Digital Consumer” which started around 2006-2007 and gave birth to the business world 4.0. “The business 4.0 companies mass customise their products with the help of design and technology, and create exponential value. They leverage ecosystems and embrace risk without hesitation”, he added.

Mr Krishnan also talked about the growth of accessible design technology for the society which is reducing the line between assistive technology and technology for all. He gave an example of audiobooks which were earlier used only by the persons with disabilities, but have now been mainstreamed and are used by all. Similar is the case with augmented reality.

Providing an industry perspective on future technologies, he referred to the practice in TCS where they keep a track of “Tech Trends in 2025”, keeping in mind the growth rate of each technology in the coming seven years through a periodic table.

While concluding his lecture, Mr Krishnan spoke about how the ever-growing technology will impact academics and research and how to prepare ourselves for the change. “As an individual, learn to learn all the time, for a lifetime. The employee of the future will be measured on the ‘T’ factor and on being a well-rounded team player as well.” He emphasised the need to live by a defined value system. “Find your value system and stay with it. It is your bedrock”, he concluded.