The majors are poised for a great 2014. But who will lead?
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.
(This story appears in the 10 January, 2014 issue of Forbes India. To visit our Archives, click here.)