Cisco is looking forward to benefit from the transformational changes taking place in Indian industries across verticals
Naresh Wadhwa, President & Country Manager, India & SAARC, Cisco India, talks at length about Cisco's travails in the Indian market, as well as his own plans for the future in this exclusive interaction with B&E
B&E: Please elaborate on Cisco’s experience in India since inception?
Naresh: When we started off, we got involved in building teams, getting the right talent in and most importantly, dealing with the right partners.
We decided not to focus on big cities alone and moved beyond them.
That was the time when we decided to enter into security and wireless areas in a big way and formed incubation within our teams, which basically focussed on small virtual teams used to look at specialist technologies. In the next 3-4 years, the focus was on operational excellence. But achieving that was a problem because not only were we growing as a team but we were also growing as an eco-system. All along this while, new market verticals started developing like BPOs and call centres. The service provider market was highly de-regulated (BSNL being one of the exception). That was when ISP market opened, which brought in huge growth for us. The next phase for Cisco began when India got recognised as a global hub of activities. The Indian IT industry then became more visible outside the country. And Cisco India was playing a significant role not only due to the growth that we were seeing in this market but also because of some of the innovations we were deriving out of here.
B&E: How does the Indian market fit in with Cisco''s global strategy?
Naresh: India’s contribution as a percentage to Cisco''s global revenue is increasing for the past 12 years primarily because this is a growth market. So, if you are in a growth market and you are growing faster than the average, obviously your contribution as a percentage also increases. As India continues to transform and drive IT, our share will continue to grow. When I joined Cisco, we were not even a drop in Asia-Pacific, but today, we are recognised in the global market in terms of revenues. And this is not only true for Cisco but for the whole IT industry. Today, the Indian IT market is substantially larger than what it was a few years ago. As the market continues to grow, we will continue to have a larger share. So, from my perspective, it will not be an innovation hub ''only''. In fact, this will fuel Cisco’s growth in the emerging markets as well. If we are able to innovate and approve the models here in India, then other emerging countries will be willing to take that model. But the first phase of growth will happen here and then it will be transformational.
B&E: How have you gone about driving innovation in the Indian market?
Naresh: When Cisco entered the Indian market, it was highly de-regulated. To look at broader emerging company needs while sitting in the Indian market, we had to have an understanding of the domestic needs, which were not necessarily common across different countries. A lot of factors had to be considered while we were devising our strategies like how do we address the market, how will India act as a platform for globalisation and what was common between India and the remaining emerging countries. That culminated in setting up Cisco’s globalisation office in Bangalore, and today India is clearly designated as our second world office. Therefore, we have started to look for far more innovative solutions out of here. We are also looking at building an eco-system, which will take us to the broader emerging countries'' market and I think that is the way transformation has happened over a period of time.
For Complete IIPM Article, Click on IIPM Article
Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008
Naresh Wadhwa, President & Country Manager, India & SAARC, Cisco India, talks at length about Cisco's travails in the Indian market, as well as his own plans for the future in this exclusive interaction with B&E
B&E: Please elaborate on Cisco’s experience in India since inception?
Naresh: When we started off, we got involved in building teams, getting the right talent in and most importantly, dealing with the right partners.
We decided not to focus on big cities alone and moved beyond them.
That was the time when we decided to enter into security and wireless areas in a big way and formed incubation within our teams, which basically focussed on small virtual teams used to look at specialist technologies. In the next 3-4 years, the focus was on operational excellence. But achieving that was a problem because not only were we growing as a team but we were also growing as an eco-system. All along this while, new market verticals started developing like BPOs and call centres. The service provider market was highly de-regulated (BSNL being one of the exception). That was when ISP market opened, which brought in huge growth for us. The next phase for Cisco began when India got recognised as a global hub of activities. The Indian IT industry then became more visible outside the country. And Cisco India was playing a significant role not only due to the growth that we were seeing in this market but also because of some of the innovations we were deriving out of here.B&E: How does the Indian market fit in with Cisco''s global strategy?
Naresh: India’s contribution as a percentage to Cisco''s global revenue is increasing for the past 12 years primarily because this is a growth market. So, if you are in a growth market and you are growing faster than the average, obviously your contribution as a percentage also increases. As India continues to transform and drive IT, our share will continue to grow. When I joined Cisco, we were not even a drop in Asia-Pacific, but today, we are recognised in the global market in terms of revenues. And this is not only true for Cisco but for the whole IT industry. Today, the Indian IT market is substantially larger than what it was a few years ago. As the market continues to grow, we will continue to have a larger share. So, from my perspective, it will not be an innovation hub ''only''. In fact, this will fuel Cisco’s growth in the emerging markets as well. If we are able to innovate and approve the models here in India, then other emerging countries will be willing to take that model. But the first phase of growth will happen here and then it will be transformational.
B&E: How have you gone about driving innovation in the Indian market?
Naresh: When Cisco entered the Indian market, it was highly de-regulated. To look at broader emerging company needs while sitting in the Indian market, we had to have an understanding of the domestic needs, which were not necessarily common across different countries. A lot of factors had to be considered while we were devising our strategies like how do we address the market, how will India act as a platform for globalisation and what was common between India and the remaining emerging countries. That culminated in setting up Cisco’s globalisation office in Bangalore, and today India is clearly designated as our second world office. Therefore, we have started to look for far more innovative solutions out of here. We are also looking at building an eco-system, which will take us to the broader emerging countries'' market and I think that is the way transformation has happened over a period of time.
For Complete IIPM Article, Click on IIPM Article
Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008
An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative
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