From IFS to IT

ICE PEOPLE

What is a former Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer and banker doing in the information technology (IT) industry?

Ask Uma Krishnan, recently joined as head of Polaris Software Lab's business process outsourcing (BPO) company Optimus, that and she'll tell you that, yes, she was an IFS officer posted in Paris, but the IFS was not her first choice.

"When I wrote the civil services exam I had written it to work at the grassroots by being part of the Indian Administative Services. However, in my application form I put my first three choices as IFS, IAS and IPS "� in that order "� without realising the implication." She'd ranked 13th in her batch and was given the IFS.

A year later, she opted out and wrote the admission test for the big B-schools and joined the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, in 1985. ANZ Grindlays Bank recruited her on campus in 1987. That was the beginning of a 16-year long career in banking.

This was followed by an assignment to head the retail branch banking and credit cards business of HDFC Bank. She spearheaded the bank's credit cards initiative from the project phase to the launch, and was a core member of the team that managed the bank's merger with Times Bank.

A career for Krishnan is not just about the foreign service, banking or even IT for that matter. She says: "I had been in banking for 16 years and enjoyed challenges, taking on something new and creating a business out of it."

The BPO industry, she believes, is on the upswing and has enormous potential.

Says Krishnan: "The idea of being part of a new growth industry and being able to leverage my experience and knowledge in banking excited me. And so I made a switch (to Optimus) to contribute, learn, grow and be part of change."

As chief operating officer of Optimus, Krishnan will be responsible for the BPO operations including operations centers for various lines of business, quality, process transformation, transition, human resources, training and administration.

Uma lives in Chennai with her family. Husband B G Krishnan founded and runs an e-commerce company. But Krishnan doesn't believe in all work and no play. Her interests include travelling, art and theatre.

"I believe in health and fitness and regularly workout and do yoga. I enjoy travelling and experiencing new places, cultures and people. I also like theatre and art," she says. With that kind of a bio, she'll undoubtedly go places.

Linux man

He actively promotes the adoption of Linux in e-governance, business, education and other applications in India admits to having helping more people in the government know about Linux.

No, he's not Linus Torvalds. Meet Rahul Chopra, the editor of "Linux For You" magazine, launched by Delhi-based publishing house the EFY Group.

"Linux For You" is the first publication dedicated to Linux in Asia. Launched in February 2003, the magazine is now rated among the top 10 magazines on Linux.

Chopra, 29, says that "Linux For You" participates in seminars organised by the government and manages to spread information on the subject.

To prove that Linux is catching on in India, Chopra quotes the example of hundre-ds of government schools in Madhya Pradesh that have switched to Linux. While Mantralaya in Mumbai adop-ted Linux some time back, Delhi's civil courts moved to the software last month.

"Linux for You" is, for the first time, organising Linux Asia 2004, to be held in February 2004.

It is expected to be the largest Linux event ever in Asia. Over 50 global leaders will speak on the adoption of Linux.

After completing his engineering degree from Mumbai, Chopra joined the publishing house in 1996.