Anand Mahindra on IT investment
From (Part I/III) Anand Mahindra & Steve Ballmer interact on ET Now.swf · · Tech Mahindra
“You always have this problem of capex and how much to spend, how do you compute a rate of return on your investment... The Japanese companies used a very interesting rule of thumb. They said don't agonize over rate of return because there'll always be somebody in the shop floor who will say that return didn't come from it, it came from my sweat and toil. What you do is ask yourself would I be able to achieve the same customer objectives that I have without investing in that particular software or IT. If I can't, then spend.”
On , Anand Mahindra, Chairman at Mahindra Group, spoke about IT investment during (Part I/III) Anand Mahindra & Steve Ballmer interact on ET Now.swf on Tech Mahindra.
About Anand Mahindra
Anand Mahindra, Chairman of the Mahindra Group, delivered a series of speeches at the Telangana Rising Global Summit in late 2025 and early 2026, praising the state's vision document as "one of the most ambitious and genuinely people centric visions I have ever encountered, not just in India, but globally." He described Telangana as being at a "pivotal juncture" and emphasized that the vision was "cocreated" through consultation with citizens and experts. Mahindra noted the Mahindra Group's participation in this journey, citing its women-led battery manufacturing facility in Zahiraabad as a "statement of belief in the future." He also spoke about his role as chairman of the Young India Skills University, stating that he initially hesitated to accept the position but was persuaded by Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, whom he described as "someone who doesn't take no for an answer." In his summit addresses, Mahindra offered a contrarian view on artificial intelligence, arguing that "the more digital the world becomes, the more valuable the human touch will be." He stated that as AI absorbs repetitive tasks, value shifts to human skills such as "the skill of the hand, the intuition of the crafts person, the empathy of the caregiver, and the problem-solving grit of the technician." He asserted that developed economies face a "hollowing out of skilled real-world talent" and a "surplus of managers but a shortage of makers," and that through the Young India Skills University, "we are asserting that blue collar is the new gold collar." Mahindra also commented on the work-hours debate, saying the focus should be on "the quality of work, not on the quantity of work," adding, "Even if it's 10 hours, you can change the world in 10 hours."