New Delhi: In order to get government contracts in Australia, Infosys paid lobbying company Synergy 360 $16 million over the course of five years. Andrew Groth, executive vice president, Australia, Infosys, during a hearing of a Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit (JCPAA), revealed Infosys had ended ties with the lobbying firm, Groth said.
Synergy 360 is in the middle of a political storm and is connected to Stuart Robert, a former member of Parliament.
The development comes at a time when reports have come indicting Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) executives for a “bribe-for-jobs” scam, which the company is investigating.
In November 2019, Infosys had beaten Accenture and IBM to win a deal from the Australian Federal Government’s Services to change the entitlement calculation engine for the nation’s welfare system.
“Infosys engages third-party lobbyists from time to time, Groth said. In 2019, Synergy 360 was appointed and was subjected to onboarding processes and adherence to the supplier code of conduct. Additionally, to advice on some public sector business and help us design, build and deliver IT solutions. I would like to advice the committee that the relationship with this company has ended”.
According to Groth, Infosys has taken measures to improve internal governance in Australia, including additional mandated training for all of our employees who work in the government sector.
He further told the committee that for the last 22 years, Infosys has been doing business in Australia. “A large part of the business was in the commercial sector, like financial services, utilities, and others. Infosys took a strategic step to engage with the government sector and thus engaged Synergy 360 to help Infosys as it looked to grow the government business,” he said.
