IT services are growing at barely 4 percent globally. So when we look at the double-digit growth of the Indian majors, they’re not just exploiting new areas of business, they are also winning business away from the Western incumbent providers.
We expect to see this trend continue into 2014, with the potential of some major upsets as these firms continue to win some important deals. The Global 2000 already outsources much of its administrative IT. Many of these firms are now allocating more business to Indian services providers for two reasons. One, India has developed a stellar brand as an IT services economy, so most major global enterprises like to use Indian firms in some capacity for their IT support. And two, most of the major Indian IT services firms are no longer being pigeon-holed as the outsourced providers of low-value administrative work. They are maturing and proving capable of taking on higher value work, such as analytics, cloud and mobility services.
Wipro has impressed in 2013, as it emerges from its transition years, and we expect it to have a solid 2014, leading with both its IT services and BPO capabilities. Its recent acquisition of Opus CMC demonstrates the firm’s determination to lead with industry-specific solutions in high-growth markets, such as banking and health care. Moreover, its client delivery performance in analytics services, where it leads the industry in execution, sets it on firm ground, and we expect it to challenge aggressively next year, as it focuses on business process-led opportunities to complement its traditional IT services and consulting business.
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(This story appears in the 10 January, 2014 issue of Forbes India. To visit our Archives, click here.)
Aashish, Am not \"handing\" the IT services market to anyone, merely discussing the emergence of the Indian heritage firms as powerful players in the market. I don\'t see too much changing in 2014, in this regard. However, it\'ll be interesting what any of the Western incumbent providers do differently to counter the threat, such as CSC\'s recent partnership with HCL and Accenture\'s new focus around digital platforms. The core battleground is going to develop around the cloud and the complex environments this is creating for providers to integrate \"islands of SaaS\" with on-premise ERP and legacy systems. As you say, it\'s a marathon, not a sprint and we\'re probably only at the half-way point, Phil
on Jan 31, 2014Phil, If I were you, I would hold on a bit before handing the IT Services market in 2014 to the Indian heritage players and declaring them as winners of this \'race\'. While they have no doubt succeeded in making significant inroads across major markets, the Western incumbents too have been investing in strengthening their offshore presence and now have price points comparable to the Indians. Along with strong consulting skills (which haven\'t really worked that great for the Indians) the Western players still have a lot of fight in them. Besides, this race is a marathon and we have just about reached the half-way mark! Cheers, Aashish
on Jan 31, 2014