Wipro Technologies

Wipro Technologies is an information technology (IT) services company based in Bangalore, India.

Fast Facts:

1. NYSE Stock symbol: WIT
2. Annual revenue (2007): $3.47 billion
3. Founder(s): M.H. Premji
4. Year Established: 1945
5. Industry: Information Technology
6. HQ: Bangalore, India
7. Chairman: Azim Premji
8. Staff: over 79,000
9. Products (if applicable):
10. Third-largest company in India

Key Dates

1. 1945: Founded as Western India Vegetable Products Limited; initial products are sunflower oil and laundry soap
2. 1966: Azim Premji becomes head of company at 21
3. 1977: Company renamed Wipro Products Limited
4. 1983: Releases spreadsheet program Wipro 456; similar to Lotus 123
5. 1986: Develops personal computer for India market
6. 1999: Works with major companies to make global computers Y2K-compliant
7. 2000: Wipro debuts on New York Stock Exchange
8. 2007: Announces 44% revenue growth over prior year

Brief Background

Founded in 1945 as a company manufacturing sunflower oil and laundry soap, Western India Vegetable Products Limited was inherited by Azim Premji at the age of 21 after the sudden death of his father. Since then, Premji has diversified the company into one of the world's leading information technology outfits, and a prominent partner with major corporations worldwide. Renamed Wipro in the 1970s, the company began manufacturing personal computers and software in the 1980s for the domestic Indian market. Today, Wipro reports revenues of over $3 billion a year and climbing.

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