This is new normal

We are in a new environment today. After the pandemic, people are very flexible in working. They work for multiple companies, they learn new technologies and they get additional income. They are now used to it. Suddenly, it can't be stopped.

Corporate view is that you are employee for me and you can't work for anyone else. Employee view is that I have a commitment of 8 to 9 hours and what I do in my free time is none of your business. It is going to be a friction between companies and employees. Even if you put all conditions on the contract, employees will do it as they are now used to it. Startups are different animals. They work on outputs. Look at IT services companies, most of the contracts are time and material. So, the parameter is number of hours and not output. Startups work on output. So, these new age companies don't care what you do with your free time. So, both of conditions will find a new normal. It is not good or bad; it is somewhere in between. But it is a new wave and you can't stop it. Every new innovation faces resistance in the beginning. That's what is happening now. Over a period of time, companies will adopt to it.

-V Balakrishnan, Chairman, Exfinity Ventures & former CFO of Infosys