By Tarun George

A late arrival to the LatAm market as compared to its larger Indian rivals, HCL Technologies has in less than two years ramped up to a strong presence in the region. But there’s something very different about its growth strategy in the Nearshore that sets it apart from companies like TCS, Infosys and Wipro. We chatted with Sandeep Kalra, Vice President of Emerging Markets to find out what that is.

Sandeep tells us how HCL’s Latin American expansion goes against conventional sourcing practices, and his plans for the large domestic market in Brazil. Read on for more.

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Is Brazil on the same meteoric path as India – and does it have a unique story to sell to the world?

By Tarun George

Can Brazil replicate the Indian IT services success story? More than a few observers have noted the similarities between Brazil today and the India of 1990, right before its outsourcing industry exploded. Is Brazil on the same meteoric path? After the recession, both BRIC countries show a recovery growth rate that many nations would be proud of in peak time – India at 8.9%, and Brazil at 7.6%. But in spite of all the signs, Brazil always seems to be just on the edge of greatness. Nearshore Americas examines a few similarities and differences between the two sourcing powerhouses here.

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Source: Financial Chronicle

In its 29th year of existence, it is time for Infosys to once again embark on a periodic ritual — a self-overhaul. This “normal process” of re-organisation, undertaken every two or three years, has in the past seen Infosys redefine, reinvent and restructure itself.

But what is different this time is that the overhaul is expected to be truly massive, necessary for India’s second largest software exporter to compete with TCS, Wipro and the new challenger Cognizant.
Since 1998 the organisation has been recast six times — each time essentially to create need-based sub-units, beef up and/or split sales & marketing, and recast the geography-based and industry-based structures.TV Mohandas Pai, director, told Financial Ch­ronicle: “For the past 15 years we have been doing this. It is a normal process. It will make us agile and place us in a better position to serve our …

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Source: IndiaInfoLine

Seventy-five percent of C-level executives surveyed in India cite reliability concerns as a significant reason they are not adopting cloud computing, according to the fourth Global Status Report on the Governance of Enterprise IT (GEIT)—2011, conducted by the nonprofit, IT Governance Institute (ITGI), ISACA’s research affiliate.

While more than 45 percent of respondents use or are planning to use cloud computing for mission-critical IT services, those who do not plan to use cloud computing list reliability concerns, followed closely by security and privacy  concerns, and existing IT investments as barriers to adoption.

Over 50% of respondents said their practices related to IT governance have led to improved management of IT-related risk. Other key benefits included improved business competitiveness (over 44% of respondents) and improved return on IT investment (over 34% of respondents).

“Issues such as cloud computing and …

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Source: Business Standard

Indian software services firms Wipro and HCL Technologies will join global firms IBM, HP and CSC in a bid to snare an IT consolidation project of ArcelorMittal, the world’s largest steelmaker. The deal is expected to be worth up to euro 400 million (around Rs 2,360 crore).

The project, which aims to consolidate ArcelorMittal’s IT infrastructure across Europe, has the potential to be one of the largest in the region for the Indian software sector. It could also provide a firm foothold in a market that is receiving greater attention from domestic outsourcing companies.

According to sources, Brussels-based global sourcing advisory Quantum Step is advising ArcelorMittal on the deal. However, when contacted, a spokesperson for Quantum Step declined to comment. An email sent to ArcelorMittal’s India office did not elicit any response. Calls to its UK office went unanswered.

“ArcelorMittal has not so …

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By Preetam Kaushik

Indian tech player Infosys has traditionally been cautious about expanding in Latin America, much more so than rival TCS which has spent the last eight years aggressively opening delivery locations across the region. By contrast, Infosys has two country locations – Mexico and Brazil – and has focused more on consolidating services from those centers than expanding its LatAm footprint. But when we listened in on its quarterly results announcements last month, we found a marked difference. Infosys execs seem confident of future expansion in the Nearshore space, and in their ability to capture larger profits in Latin American outsourcing.

One of the enduring comments by Infosys CEO Kris Gopalakrishanan a few years ago is that changes in technology matter more for the company than losses from changes in outsourcing policies. That is relevant to how Infosys approached its results this quarter – placing equal importance on the earnings and financials, as well as strategies for the future.

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SOURCE: NEWS.OUTLOOKINDIA.COM

In a move that could shake the foundations of India’s IT services industry, US President Barack Obama today said he will end tax breaks to American firms that ship out jobs abroad.

“To encourage… Businesses to stay within our borders, it is time to finally slash the tax breaks for companies that ship our jobs overseas, and give those tax breaks to companies that create jobs right here in the United States of America,” he said in his first State of Union address.

A report by IT consultancy firm Forrester Research estimates that 3.3 million American jobs will be lost to outsourcing in 15 years ending 2015. Already, half of the Indian IT-BPO industry’s USD 71.7 billion revenue comes from the US.

According to Gartner, Indian BPO vendors will command 10 per cent of the total global market share by this year end.

Obama said: “Now, the House has passed a jobs bill …

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