At one time, the West's multinationals ruled supreme. Now, the shining stars of India's Silicon Valley are shaking up the global IT business. A number of books have been written on the subject of late. Among them, Bangalore Tiger, which reveals the key principles of the IT giant Wipro's transnational business model, deserves special mention.
In this book, author Steve Hamm offers valuable lessons in improving quality, cutting costs, motivating employees and streamlining processes. According to him, Wipro succeeded as it understood the importance of quality and adopted quality standards. Moreover, the company's obsession with customer satisfaction helped it excel.
In an e-mail interview to Senior Associate Editor Indrani Roy Mitra, Hamm talks about his idea of Indian IT, its past, present and future and also about how he conceived Bangalore Tiger. Read on:
Since you have closely followed India's IT growth story, how has the country progressed in the IT sector in the last few years?
I began following India's IT growth in 1999, at the time of rising demand for services because of the Y2k glitch. Since then, the Indian IT industry has risen to become a major disruptive influence on the $600 billion worldwide tech services industry.
The top Indian firms, TCS, Infosys, Wipro, Cognizant, and Satyam, have grown to be large companies with wide arrays of services, and strong reputations for quality and knowledge. TCS recent win of a 10-year, $1.2 billion contract with Nielsen shows that Indian tech services companies can compete with the industry incumbents at the highest levels.
What motivated you to write Bangalore Tiger?
An editor at McGraw-Hill Professional in the United States called me up and told me that they wanted to publish a book about the rise of the Indian IT industry. After some discussions we decided to tell the story primarily though one company, to keep it focused.
Why did you select Wipro as an example for your story?
I had written a couple of stories about Wipro at that time, so I was quite familiar with the company. Also I was intrigued by Azim Premji, the company's chairman, because he was forced by his father's premature death in n1966 to take over the company when he was just 21 years old. Over the years, he transformed what was originally a cooking oil company into a tech giant.
What do you think is India's biggest strength in terms of IT? Why is it considered such a powerhouse in the sector?
Tech services, including software programming, hardware R&D, and business process outsourcing, are India's most important tech markets. The industry's greatest strength is its ability to efficiently recruit, train, and deploy thousands of talented Indian graduates. The western tech giants now have massive Indian workforces as well, but don't have the came capabilities to scale Indian operations.
Do you agree with Thomas Freidman's optimism when it comes to India?
I'm optimistic about India's future. I think the tech services, telecom, and industrial sectors are on the right track. I worry a lot about the country's backward infrastructure, its corrupt politics, and the vast population of poor people. Overcoming these problems will be incredibly difficult. I don't think the poverty problem will be adequately addressed unless politics are improved, and I don't see any sign of that happening yet. So India's future, potentially so bright, is also imperiled.
Could you please share with us some interesting anecdotes/experiences you had while writing this book?
One funny thing that happened is that I found that a lot of Indians who met me thought I looked like Richard Gere, the actor. That was very flattering. When he got involved in a scandal because he kissed an Indian actress (Shilpa Shetty) , I firmly disavowed any connection to him.
What, according to you is the key to Wipro's success?
The keys to Wipro's success are:
- Azim Premji built a strong foundation for success with his ethics and fundamental business management principles;
- The company aggressively jumped into the tech business when it had a chance in around 1980 and quickly jumped into IT services in the early 1990s;
- It understood the importance of quality and adopted quality standards;
- It's obsessed with customer satisfaction and
- It strives to constantly improve.
What makes Wipro stand out from the pack?
The focuses on quality, constant improvement, customer satisfaction, and fair treatment of employees are shared by Wipro and the other top Indian IT firms. My sense is that Wipro's dedication to outstanding customer service may be even more pronounced.
Is there any other Indian IT company that you intend to write a book on? If yes, please name it.
No I don't have any such plans.
Infosys or Wipro, which IT company has a better prospect and why?
Infosys has grown faster than Wipro, and has a better profit margin, so it has performed better than Wipro over the past several years. It is hard to predict the future in the tech industry, however. The companies have different focuses and strengths. Right now, R&D services, where Wipro has a larger business, is growing a bit slower than software services, which gives Infosys at least a temporary advantage over Wipro. I highly respect both companies, though.
