Founder Profile
Francisco D'Souza
Last reviewed: October 2026 · By Swet Parvadiya
Who is Francisco D'Souza?
Francisco D'Souza is a founder of Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation, which was founded in 1994 with Kumar Mahadeva and Lakshmi Narayanan.
- Company founded
- Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation
- Founded
- 1994
- Co-founders
- Kumar Mahadeva and Lakshmi Narayanan
Background
Francisco D'Souza was part of Cognizant's founding team in 1994 and served as CEO from 2007 to 2019, the period when revenue grew from about $2.1 billion to more than $16 billion.
Founding Story
Francisco D'Souza joined the Dun & Bradstreet Satyam Software venture at its founding in 1994 and held roles in delivery, business development, and as president and chief operating officer before becoming CEO in January 2007. Over his 12 years as CEO, Cognizant grew into a Fortune 500 company, expanded into consulting, digital services, and business process work, and made its largest acquisition, the $2.7 billion purchase of TriZetto in 2014. He also served as vice chairman of the board and stepped down as CEO in 2019, when Brian Humphries took over.
Francisco D'Souza was born in 1968 in Nairobi. Education: Tepper School of Business; University of Macau.