Rebounding from the recession and economic crisis, and despite increasing competition from other offshore outsourcing destinations, India outsourcing firms will still occupy the headlines as the world leader in 2011. As evidence:
- Kotak Institutional Equities predicts “blockbuster growth” for TCS, Infosys, and Cognizant
- TCS upped its plans to hire, now announcing they’re looking for 50,000 new employees; Infosys wants to add another 20,000 in headcount
However, in a PC World article on 11 trends in 2011, advisory firms EquaTerra and Everest Group predict an increasing interest in outsourcing to providers in China,… Read the rest
In Rome, do as the Romans do! This popular proverb has a strong application as corporations expand across international locations. Most of us are aware of the initial failures that some of the top brands in the world have encountered when they have rushed to penetrate a new geography/country without understanding the local nuances fully.
As an example, the Coca-Cola name in China was first read as “Kekoukela,” meaning “Bite the Wax Tadpole” or “Female Horse Stuffed with Wax,” depending on the dialect. Coke then researched 40,000 characters to find a phonetic equivalent to “kokoukole” translating into “Happiness in the… Read the rest
Switching service providers is nearly always a situation fraught with challenges, so selecting a new provider that has an effective transition methodology is crucial. Avantica Technologies, a service provider in Costa Rica, is known not only for its software development expertise but also for the way it builds collaborative relationships with its clients and for its strategy for ensuring cultural fit. I talked with Luis Enrique Corrales, Avantica’s Regional Sales Director, about these issues.
Q: How do you help your clients get off to a good start with your company when transitioning out of a difficult situation where an existing… Read the rest
Surfing the net a couple of days ago to stay on top of industry news as it happens, four articles caught my eye and took me off auto-pilot long enough to read every word.
The article in Gulf Times, a Qatar newspaper, began with this statement made by Azim Premji, the renowned Indian entrepreneur and chairman of Wipro:
“India is far from where it needs to be …. Country after country is stepping ahead.”
It seems to me that for a long time the media has treated the words “India” and “outsourcing” almost as though they were synonymous. That… Read the rest
Size makes a difference. Midsized businesses have different concerns surrounding IT infrastructure management than large enterprises. Among other IT solutions, CPM Braxis, a leading IT service provider in Brazil, provides infrastructure services for enterprise and midsized companies. I interviewed the firm’s Global Clients Director, Andre Maximiano, about issues in midmarket outsourcing.
What are some infrastructure management issues that midsized companies face?
AM: Due to budget restrictions and growth pains, midsized companies often have to improve performance of one department at the expense of the overall business. They also are often forced to take actions that don’t optimize performance because… Read the rest
On April 6, Sierra Atlantic Inc., an IT services provider recognized for outsourcing Oracle and product engineering solutions, announced that it has acquired Baytree Associates, a Charlotte, North Carolina-based consulting firm and Oracle solutions provider. The deal helps Sierra Atlantic, a Platinum Partner in the Oracle PartnerNetwork (OPN), further consolidate its already strong position as one of the top Oracle solutions and managed service providers.
But let’s look at the bigger picture. Sierra Atlantic’s strategy is a great example of how the service provider landscape is quickly changing – and why.
I talked with GK Murthy, Sierra Atlantic’s Executive Vice President. The… Read the rest
Henry Kissinger said that the absence of alternatives clears the mind marvelously. That has been true in outsourcing in recent years. It was marvelously clear that companies could reduce their costs through outsourcing to offshore locations with low-cost labor, especially in India. But now there’s a viable alternative: companies can outsource their work to low-cost nearshore locations.
The cost, time zone, and other advantages from outsourcing to a country that is a “neighbor” and has the same culture are significant. Western European companies have successfully nearshored their work to Eastern European locations for quite a while, and China is a… Read the rest
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