Market veteran Devina Mehra voiced her strong disapproval on X (formerly Twitter) on January 10 in response to L&T Chairman SN Subrahmanyan’s recent suggestion that employees should work 90 hours a week, including Sundays, to stay competitive. Mehra called this recommendation “bunkum” and argued that such suggestions made no sense, especially when framed around “nation-building” or “company-building” ideals.
Devina further emphasized that research clearly indicates that working beyond a certain number of hours significantly reduces productivity. “Increasing the number of work hours beyond a certain point—certainly well before 90 hours—diminishes productivity,” she stated. Mehra, a proponent of output-focused work environments, expressed that her focus as an employer has always been on the results employees produce rather than the time spent at work.
She also reflected on her past experiences at Citibank, where the corporate culture promoted long working hours. “Many officers would waste time between 3-6 p.m. and then return to their desks to stay late just to show they were working till 8:30 or 9 p.m.,” she recalled. Mehra viewed this as a dysfunctional work culture and intentionally avoided replicating such practices when she became an entrepreneur.
Devina also pointed out that many of the people advocating for longer working hours, such as Infosys Founder NR Narayana Murthy, are often men with families. She argued that these suggestions typically assume the man works long hours while his wife takes on the responsibility of raising children and managing the household. Mehra shared her observations from a book about Narayana Murthy and his wife Sudha Murthy, highlighting how Mr. Murthy’s intense focus on his business led to a disconnect from his children, who felt their father loved his company more than them.
“This type of work culture excludes most women or forces them to choose between career ambitions and having children unless there’s a significant shift in how men share the responsibilities of family life,” Mehra added.
She further noted that historical data shows no country has transitioned from a low-income to a middle-income economy without substantial female workforce participation. Mehra pointed to countries like South Korea and Japan, where similar work cultures have resulted in declining birth rates due to women opting out of the workforce to focus on family life.
While she disagreed with long office hours, Devina emphasized that true expertise in fields like equity research requires a substantial investment of time—often beyond office hours. “To truly master a skill, you need to put in those 10,000 hours, which may involve reading, pursuing courses, or gaining knowledge outside of office work,” she said. Mehra concluded by advocating for learning and skill-building as a crucial part of career development in the initial years.