Genpact's Patrick Cogny on the bliss of 14 hours with no connectivity

BPO firm Genpact's Senior Vice President and Business Leader answers 22 questions to expose who's behind the name... Q: Who do you look up to in business and why? A: Lots of different folks for different things – I don’t think that any leader is outstanding in all aspects and circumstances. Jack Welch and Lou Gerstner for how they steered lumbering giants like GE and IBM towards new horizons and made them leaner and meaner. Bill Gates for being a great active philanthropist after having been a ruthless and brilliant business man. Steve Jobs for his ability to bring products to market at the right time with the right specs. And beyond these names most people would quote, there are lots of unknown folks who really taught me a lot throughout my career. There are even people whom I really hated but from whom I learned a lot as they had real brilliance in some of the things they did. Finally, I am very fortunate at Genpact to brush shoulders every day with people who have pioneered a new industry! Q: What has been your greatest achievement? A: Probably building the Genpact team in Europe. We had the opportunity to create from scratch a team that now exceeds 3,000 people, and it's been a fascinating and very rewarding challenge to help them grow their knowledge of our industry, build up their leadership skills, and integrate the Genpact culture. Q: What is your greatest regret? A: I've been really lucky in that I don't have major regrets – LOTS of things I should have done differently, but each of these has been an opportunity to learn! Q: If you could do it all over again, what would you do differently? A: It's impossible to go back, so I don't really see the point :-) Q: What looks like the biggest potential for you right now? A: Our industry is so young that there are endless opportunities – geographies, industry sectors, solutions ... the trick and the opportunity is actually to sort through them and decide which ones to go for, and then drive relentless execution. Q: What is your favorite occupation? A: Learning new things – by reading, talking to people, asking questions, taking new challenges. Q: In 10 years’ time - how do you see your current operation being run? A: A lot of what we do today won't be done anymore – it will have been streamlined or automated. We will run more complex operations, more distributed, with more knowledge workers than processors, who will have to be motivated, managed and led very differently. Q: What’s the best thing about using an external sourcing consultant? A: Forcing your organization to commit to change. Q: What’s the worst thing about using an external sourcing consultant? A: Getting biased advice – for example a consultant promoting captives just because of the revenue flow that will generate for them. Q: Where have you made the biggest impact? 1. in your life? You will have to ask my wife! 2. in your business? You will have to ask my boss :-) Q: Which management books do you read? A: I generally don't like and don't read management books – I find a lot of them take one single good idea and spread it over hundreds of pages. Short case studies are so much better :-) Q: Who are your favorite writers? A: Ian Morris, Niall Ferguson, Ian Banks, Patrick Rothfuss, Aravind Adiga, Bill Bryson, Jack Vance Q: What car do you drive and what should you be driving? A: I live in Manhattan so no car except the rentals … I find driving anyways to be a waste of time! Q: What's your favorite 10-minute dish that you cook yourself? A: Chicken Fajitas … more than 10 min but less than that is not cooking! Q: Tell us a behavioral trait we should expect of you. A: Honesty. Q: Reveal one weird thing we don't know about you. A: I sometimes do computer programming to relax … Q: What one challenge would you put to your industry? A: Deliver predictable results, especially on the IT side (surprisingly, and contrary to common views, BPO is more predictable, maybe because it promises less) Q: Which historical figure do you most identify with? A: None … I almost responded Churchill, not because I identify with him, but because he had visible weaknesses and failures … and through constant resolve made a difference. Q: If your job requires a lot of traveling - what is your favorite journey? A: New York to India – 14 hours without network connectivity. Enough time to work, think, catch-up on sleep. Q: What is the quality you most like in men? A: Candor, intelligence, curiosity. Q: What is the quality you most like in women? A: Candor, intelligence, curiosity. Q: What would you like your legacy to be? A: My grandfather passed away 14 years ago and I find myself regularly telling my family "he would always say this or that" … Being remembered with fondness by those who were close to you is a great legacy if you are not an Einstein or a Gandhi … [inlinead] Patrick COGNY Senior Vice President and Business Leader, Infrastructure, Manufacturing & Services Phone +1 (646) 624-5935 Mobile (US) +1 (347) 463-1718 Mobile (Int’l) +44 7771947831 Patrick.cogny@genpact.com www.genpact.com

Genpact's Patrick Cogny on the bliss of 14 hours with no connectivity

Upcoming Events

The Top 5 Priorities of Forward-Thinking CFOs in Midsize Businesses

Inside ASP’s AP Transformation: What It Really Takes to Modernize Global Invoice Processing in SAP

Your Payables Are a Cash Flow Weapon: How to Optimize Working Capital When Every Forecast Is Wrong

How to Scale Agentic AI Without Failing: From Pilot to Production

Visibility Wins: From Data to Decisions at British American Tobacco

Today’s AI for Finance: with Yooz the Future of Accounts Payable Starts Now!

Follow Us

Latest Webinars

Consolidating R2R at Enterprise Scale

Redefining Finance Value: Key Insights from SSOW Europe 2026

IntelliChief AP Automation: AI + Advanced ERP Integration for Performance, Confidence, and Value

Recommended

Crafting Teams That Deliver Excellence: Nick Fury’s Framework from Avengers

8 Steps for Integrating DEI into the GBS DNA

The AI Edge: From Experiments to Strategic Advantage in Talent Acquisition

Lookin’ for Love in all the Wrong Places: Hiring Managers Miss the Right GBS Tal...

NEAR, NOW, NEXT. Why Latin America is ready to supercharge your North American b...

Five GBS Leadership Actions to Deliver High-Impact AI

The Better Agents We Need: Reclaiming Human Agency in the Age of AI

The Symbolic Shift: Technology, Meaning, and Leadership in Shared Services

A Guide to Future-Proofing Your Workforce

HR SSOW Post-Show Report

Agile Leadership in GBS: Leading Through Uncertainty and Change

Engage, Empower, Retain: How AI and Mindset-Centric Design Transform Onboarding...

FIND CONTENT BY TYPE

SSON COMMUNITY

ADVERTISE WITH US

JOIN THE SSON COMMUNITY

Genpact's Patrick Cogny on the bliss of 14 hours with no connectivity

Upcoming Events

Follow Us

Subscribe to our Free Newsletter

Latest Webinars

Recommended

FIND CONTENT BY TYPE

SSON COMMUNITY

ADVERTISE WITH US

JOIN THE SSON COMMUNITY