"Investors have many choices today and given that, they can move in a jiffy. So we have to satisfy the expectations and aspirations of the most stringent of investors and consumers," Murthy said at a CII Governance series event on ethics and values as corporate strategy.

Murthy, the chief mentor of IT bluechip Infosys, said fairness, transparency and accountability were the "three pillars" of corporate ethics which companies should adhere to.

"Accountability is taking the bottomline responsibility and discharging it without fear or favour," he said, adding that to keep customers satisfied, companies have to conduct themselves in a "trustworthy" manner.

Murthy said Indian companies were today not only competing between themselves but with global multinational corporations.

Photograph: Dijeshwar Singh/ Saab Pictures