A Year in Infy

Exactly 385 days have passed by since I have joined Infosys. Thought long back to write a blog about the time I had in Infy in the last one year but didn’t get the time to do so. Awesome, it was in many senses, making wonderful friends, learning the so called corporate etiquettes, professional life and also the intermittent bench periods. It wasn’t quite professional the way the word would suggest but the training time fun, formation of a wonderful group called “Chocogang” and the fun that I had in Chennai are hard to forget.Thanks to all Chenfoscions for that. I was in Bangalore and Chennai for almost equal time during the last 1 year.

There wasn’t much euphoria or a sense of excitement within me when I joined Infosys as it is considered a company for all and sundry and for those who consider Infosys as their last resort. Nor it was noteworthy the way selections happened. The bulk was recruited I was just a part of that bulk. But the life it offers, the time to you get here to pursue your interests and hobbies is what the employees of other companies envy. Surely the hard core tech geeks wouldn’t agree to my point as the type of work offered is the only criteria for them to judge a company and by that parameter Infosys has miles to go. Though Infosys is looking beyond the maintenance and production support projects it will take some time for it to set standards in other domains.

I was in a training batch of approximately 350 trainees divided between Internet and Mainframes stream. I, Lalit, Atul, Tanmay, Shankar (Appa), Sourabh, Khan all from Ramaiah used to be together, be it lunch time, coming to office or going back to the home. It was this training time when we had friendship with Cummins lot and the popular “Chocogang” was formed. The name Chocogang, because lots of chocolates used to be exchanged within the group. Really had a ball of time when the entire group was there, be it going to disc, hanging around in the Infy, having Lassi in Udupi Garden restaurant, Chats and Pani Puri in Ladoos, gossiping in transit which are just few of many things that we did.

After the training, the entire group got fragmented as all were posted in different locations (Pune, Chennai, Bangalore). But there are still few wonderful pals in the group who put a lot of effort in keeping the group together through mails. A reunion in Chennai was possible only because of the efforts of these breed of folks…. Robin Sharma says-“Every person you meet in your life has a story to tell and a lesson to teach”. I have made a specific reference to the choco group because I have learnt a lot of things from all the members of the group.

Gone is one year and need to look for the year ahead….If all goes well then hopefully this will be my last year in Infosys as a Software Engineer. I don’t mind coming back to Infy as I love the company, love the life it offers and many more things. People say you shouldn’t get in love with the company but with the work you do. It’s not exactly the case with me. I think the aesthetics and the beauty of Infy has taken a toll on me.