Worcester Biz Journal names Virtusa CEO a ‘Business Leader of the Year’

Virtusa Corporation, a global business consulting and IT outsourcing company that combines innovation, technology leadership and industry solutions to transform the customer experience, this week announced that the Worcester Business Journal has named CEO Kris Canekeratne one of its ‘Business Leaders of the Year’ (in the large business category).

“I am delighted to have been named WBJ’s ‘Business Leader of the Year’. This recognition is a direct reflection of the dedication and hard work of our global team members and their commitment to our clients,” said Kris Canekeratne, Chairman and CEO at Virtusa.  “Central Massachusetts has been home to Virtusa since our inception and has provided us with excellent infrastructure and easy access to talent, all key enablers of our growth platform.”

In its announcement, the Worcester Business Journal recognised Canekeratne for his role in driving continued success at Virtusa and for helping transform the IT industry as a whole. Over the past eight years, Virtusa experienced significant growth across industries such as banking and financial services, insurance and healthcare under Canekeratne’s leadership. The Worcester Business Journal noted that “as customers shift toward more online and mobile services, Virtusa could be on the brink of another boom.”

“The Virtusa story is very compelling as a company that has stayed ahead of the curve of change in information technology,” said Rick Saia, editor of the Worcester Business Journal. “That takes great foresight, and it’s something Kris Canekeratne has shown since he founded the company. He seems to have that combination of engineering and business acumen that is elusive in many people.”

As the IT industry transforms to capitalise on new opportunities, Virtusa continues to lead in mobile, social and other emerging technologies. Virtusa enables its customers to build and deploy new solutions that drive business transformation.

In addition to his business accomplishments, the Worcester Business Journal also recognised Canekeratne for spearheading Virtusa’s award-winning sustainability efforts and community involvement. The company continues to apply its technical skills and expertise to a variety of initiatives that positively impact surrounding communities.

This recognition joins a number of accolades Virtusa has achieved including being named in Forbes’ 2012 and 2011 Best Small Companies in America, prestigious ranking by Dataquest-CMR as one of the Best IT Employers in India for four consecutive years (2012, 2011, 2010 and 2009), inclusion on the 2012 GS100 list and 2012 FinTech 100 list, and recognition from Stevie’s American Business Awards and International Business Awards for HR department of the year.

The 2013 Worcester Business Journal Business Leaders will be honoured at a special ceremony on March 26 at the Beechwood Hotel in Worcester, MA.

Virtusa provides end-to-end information technology (IT) services to Global 2000 companies. These services, which include IT consulting, application maintenance, development, systems integration and managed services, leverage a unique Platforming methodology that transforms clients’ businesses through IT rationalisation. Virtusa helps customers accelerate business outcomes by consolidating, rationalising and modernising their core customer-facing processes into one or more core systems.

Virtusa delivers cost-effective solutions through a global delivery model, applying advanced methods such as Agile and Accelerated Solution Design to ensure that its solutions meet the clients’ requirements.  As a result, its clients simultaneously reduce their IT operations cost while increasing their ability to meet changing business needs.

Founded in 1996 and headquartered in Massachusetts, Virtusa has operations in North America, Europe, and Asia.