ABOUT COGNIZANT
This month we spotlight Cognizant Technologies (Symbol: CTSH) as our newest Shining Light Company. Headquartered in Teaneck, NJ, Cognizant provides IT consulting services that help their clients envision, build and run more innovative and efficient businesses. These include digital business, digital operations, Digital systems and technology. Cognizant was named as one of the Fortune 500’s fastest growing companies and is consistently recognized as one of the world’s Most Admired Companies.
Cognizant was originally founded in India as Dun & Bradstreet Satyam Software (DBSS) to develop Y2K solutions for mainframe run companies and web development services. The company was renamed and re-branded Cognizant in 1996 when it moved its headquarters from India to New Jersey.
Cognizant celebrated their 25th anniversary in January, using the milestone to celebrate the company’s commitment to innovation, growth and success. Executives and employees at Cognizant took part in the Nasdaq market opening bell ceremonies in New York City and in Chennai, India. Over its first couple of decades, Cognizant has built its success upon identifying client needs, responding with new capabilities and scaling them into growth opportunities. Seeing and responding to the needs of the market enabled Cognizant to exponentially grow from a small, 200-person firm in 1994 to a Fortune 200 company and an influential digital leader that employs more than 270,000 employees worldwide.
CEO Francisco D’Souza expressed his pride over the growth, saying “When I look back on the last quarter century, my greatest source of pride and satisfaction is the inherent importance of the work Cognizant does to help solve some of the world’s most complex challenges and the millions of lives we’ve changed for the better.” Not only has Cognizant maintained a rich history of business innovation and advancement, they have done so for the bettering of clients’ lives.
COGNIZANT & CORE VALUES
Cognizant is clearly committed to core values that go beyond simple dollars and cents. Cognizant states a solid belief in transparency, passion, collaboration, empowerment, integrity, and customer focus. Cognizant says that “The customer is our true north. Every associate knows that the customer is why we are here and that we place unwavering focus on customer satisfaction.” This includes transparency in all of their relationships.
Cultivating a culture of collaboration is integral to the business process at Cognizant. The company is clear that they are not individuals working for themselves; rather, they are a team, a community, that is working together to break the barriers of innovation in order to better serve customers and clients. Integrity and honesty are important values to consider when investing in a company. Cognizant emphasizes integrity as a part of their core values, declaring that they elect to never compromise, and seek to do the right thing always. As part of integrity, the company also takes the treatment and care of their employees very seriously as evidenced by the many glowing reviews on Glassdoor.com.
IMPACT IN COMMUNITY
Cognizant believes that their impact and innovation in technology demands a deep allegiance to stewarding their resources well. The Cognizant Foundation, which recently celebrated its tenth year of existence, seeks to enable and facilitate access to education, healthcare, and livelihood opportunities to the less fortunate around the world. One example of this is by providing wireless assisted hearing for hearing-impaired children and giving advanced eye care for people in the rural areas of Kolkata, India. Among numerous other actions and projects, Cognizant exhibits a humble and honest commitment to leveraging their technology for greater purposes.
Cognizant started as a relatively small IT company in India but has grown to become a vast and diverse corporation in a couple of decades. While success and economic prosperity are certainly important considerations when making investment decisions, companies that value people over profits and are committed to impacting the world through philanthropy and service are indeed praiseworthy attributes that contribute greatly to long-term results. For this, we are proud to name Cognizant a Shining Light Company!
DISCLOSURE: Shining Lights companies are those companies we have identified as exemplary companies living out the Golden Rule and exhibiting the virtues of Integrity, Humility, Diligence, Caring and Courage. This is intended for general information purposes concerning only the values, corporate culture and business practices of the companies being spotlighted. It DOES NOT incorporate any analysis of the companies’ investment merit based on intrinsic value, fundamental analysis, etc. This must not be construed as investment advice or a buy/sell recommendation. These companies may or may not be included in our LightPoint Portfolios at any given time.