A glance over future of Indian IT

BANGALORE, INDIA: Excerpts by D K Venkatesh, VP-Innovation, SAP Labs India.

The emergence of players like Canada, Mexico and many central and Eastern European nations implies that our 'core' USP remains no longer unique. They place the IT sector at an interesting juncture needing new strategies to continue our growth story

Summer in India is a season for wedding and college admission. Much as I abhor attending weddings and forcing myself to exchanging pleasantries with more than half of the crowd whom I don't even know; I am forced to do it. Lately, however, this task is no more a drudgery. With the 'future of Indian IT industry' and “is software a good career option” being the most preferred subjects of conversation, I have realized that I can comfortably spend a few hours in the company of people, who I am unlikely to meet again.

In fact, I have to confess that that I am beginning to enjoy these discussions and debates due to the multiple perspectives that I gain from the diverse set of people whom I encounter in these social gatherings.

The geostrategic changes and their impact

The Eurozone crisis, Obama's campaign to generate jobs for US citizens, problems in our own backyard like currency pressures, inflation and new taxation rules gets often analysed and dissected while predicting the future of Indian IT. To a pessimist these are good enough reasons to argue that the future of Indian IT Industry appears bleak. The optimists however understand that market uncertainty is the new reality in which every Business (IT and non-IT) must learn to live, survive and thrive. They see Indian IT, in its middle age in an interesting inflection point where its USP would get redefined.

While the Indian IT industry blossomed due to a variety of well known factors like low cost destination, the availability of a large pool of English speaking engineering graduates etc, the industry is bracing itself to face new concepts like near shoring resulting in the emergence of players like Canada, Mexico and many central and Eastern European nations. Our 'core' USP remains no longer unique (ex: Philippines overtook India as the New Capital for Call Centers). These challenges place the IT sector at an interesting juncture needing new strategies to continue our growth story, such as Focusing on Product Innovations as a growth strategy. For IT companies that are venturing into the software product develop-ment space the time is now most appropriate to chart a growth story.

India alone has millions of registered and non-registered SMEs whose annual IT spend, together runs in billions. Technology has a crucial role to play in their success. Tremendous opportunities therefore exist for IT solutions which help companies manage their end-to-end business operations (HR, Financial Accounting, ERP, Sales and marketing tools). Being a cost sensitive segment, SMEs need solutions which are easier to deploy and use. Solutions for SMEs is one area gaining significant focus from Indian IT with myriad of products in On Premise and Cloud space

Also read: Small businesses, a primary source of employment in India

Globalization has become a common practice across a multitude of industries. IT as an enabler allows businesses to undertake trade globally and collaborate with supply chains in ways which were unimaginable a few years back. There are many examples of Indian innovations in various industries wherein ICT is creatively leveraged to deliver services using new business models. Teleradiology Solutions (http:// www.telradsol.com) from the Healthcare sector, is an good case in point.

The Indian Tech StartUp scene is seeing some vibrant action. Technologies like Cloud Computing, Mobile Computing and Social Media make it possible for aspiring entrepreneurs to try their ideas with minimal investment. Successful Indian startups like redbus.in, flipkart.com, JustDial.com and makemytrip.com have become 'household' names in India and are gaining reputation abroad as well. Watch Out Silicon Valley StartUps!

Sustainability is increasingly viewed as a core part of overall business strategy. It addresses environmental, economic and social responsibility, dimensions that every business needs to take care of. IT, as an enabler, finds itself as a crucial player in helping businesses implement their strategies. Indian IT has made significant contribution in this space having an impact on businesses and people's lives — tools to measure carbon footprint of enterprises; resource management solution to measure, monitor and optimize enterprises' energy and water consumption are subset of products Indian IT has delivered for this space

Mega-Urbanization presents mega-challenges. Governments, Municipalities, Public Sector companies, Academia and NGOs in India are trying to grapple with this challenge & Indian IT is playing a proactive role here. Collaborating with stakeholders, Indian IT is delivering concepts and solutions to address several challenges — solving traffic congestion issues; aid in the transformation of power sector via Smart Grids, Smart meters and Smart homes; addressing challenges around social inclusion and economic prosperity for all by working on affordable technologies which are accessible by all (ex. banking for 'rural' India leveraging mobile technologies).

{#PageBreak#}The road ahead

In addition, some moves observed in the Indian IT sector worth highlighting are listed below: Indian IT companies have entered new strategic markets like Brazil, Middle East, China to capitalize on growth opportunities these nations offer (with billions of dollars in annual IT & ITES spend)

Acquisition as a strategy to address gaps in current offering and to accelerate company growth story is gaining prominence for cash rich Indian IT companies

Open Innovation and co-innovation as a model to solve complex problems in “new” reality is gaining critical mass

In a knowledge-based economy, significant opportunity exists for High value services centered on Business transformation, IT transformation, IT architectures and Design, by targeting these sectors, the Indian IT industry is its evolving its brand from 'low cost outsourcing center' to 'cost effective talent center'.

While the jury is still out to decide if India would continue to see a growth in its IT sector, I am confident it will, as there are enough indications for this.

Source: www.pcquest.www.ciol.com