‘IT industry has huge opportunity in e-governance’

India is very close to Brian Manning?s heart. The president and managing director of CSC in India sees his role as both challenging and exciting to lead an organisation that is growing and so critical to CSC?s success globally. India is the largest global delivery location for CSC with 20,000 employees across seven locations, serving 250-plus customers. ?Large parts of many large outsourcing deals are executed out of India,? he tells Sudhir Chowdhary in a recent interaction. Excerpts:

How has your journey as CSC India president and MD been so far?

India is very close to my heart. This is my second stint in India and I loved coming back to the country. My first stint in India was between September 2005 and December 2007, when I served as director, Global Infrastructure Services, and established strategic operations to grow CSC?s offshore capability in India. Now, in my second stint, I wear two hats, one of the president and MD of CSC in India, and two, as the COO of our Global Applications organisation delivery, of which India is a big part.

The journey as the president and MD has been wonderful. My mandate is to ensure that the delivery capacity in India continues to expand with CSC?s global business requirements and that CSC India?s portfolio of services across diverse industry segments continues to enhance CSC?s global competitiveness.

Major e-government initiatives are being assiduously chased already by the IT majors. How do you fancy your chances in the Indian market?

The Indian government is truly doing a great work in terms of e-governance initiatives and the IT industry has a huge opportunity in this space. The IT market in developing countries is growing at a faster pace than that of the developed nations. While the market is large now, it is also growing.

Technology changes fast and there is always something new happening. The constant change we live in presents a huge opportunity, not just in the India market but everywhere. CSC has the legacy of working with some of the largest government agencies across the world which gives us an edge in terms of both domain experience and understanding of the government needs and processes. CSC has been providing security services for the most mission critical jobs in the world. We are a preferred partner by the most security-conscious enterprises and are well positioned for the evolution of the industry.

What is the specific strategy of CSC in India?

India is an extremely strategic location for CSC. It is the largest global delivery location for CSC with 20,000 employees across seven locations, serving 250-plus customers. India provides end-to-end services and solutions in applications, infrastructure, consulting and systems integration across domains. We have a deep knowledge and expertise across insurance, banking, healthcare, manufacturing, technology & consumer, chemical, energy & natural resources and government verticals.

Large parts of many large outsourcing deals are executed out of India. We have grown organically by providing additional cutting-edge services to our existing engagements as well as serving the emerging needs of many new customers. These services have matured over the years, and with sustained efforts we continue to evolve and add value to our customers in current and future business environments. We will build capabilities in India, with a special focus on new and emerging technologies. We are currently leading the way in our strategic growth vectors of applications, cloud and virtualisation, cyber security and mobility.

Tell us something about some of the new success stories emerging out CSC?s India innovation centre.

The CSC Office of Innovation enables more strategic, open approach to innovation by integrating seven CSC groups? Catalyst, Collective Intelligence, Cordys, Global Portfolio Organization, KM at CSC, Leading Edge Forum, and Research Networ?in an architecture that spans the complete arc of innovation; from idea generation to solution development. We function as a ?network of networks,? bringing together a cumulative power that is far more potent than our discrete groups. By unifying, the Office of Innovation focuses our workforce on critical problems, synthesising and bridging ideas to further the strategic business goals of our clients, making sure our clients win by staying at the forefront of technology and thought leadership.

One of the key programmes that have been launched by CSC?s Office of Innovation in India, purely keeping in mind the problems and issues our industry faces in India, has to do with honing talent in the country, thus increasing employability and gearing up for the future requirements in our sector. The programme called CSC COIN (CSC Collaborative Open Innovation Network) also helps drive rapid innovation in IT. CSC COIN covers more than 3,500 students, mentors and researchers from multiple universities, and more than 100 technical institutes. The programme is based on the principles of collaboration, with the aim of creating an ecosystem that extends beyond aggregation of ideas.

What are your expansion plans for India?

India is an essential part of CSC?s growth. With strategic locations in seven cities?Noida, Chennai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Mumbai, Indore and Vadodara?and 20,000 employees, we have the largest delivery centre in India dedicated to serving customers globally. We have achieved 52% headcount CAGR since 2004 and continue to grow.

CSC established it presence in India in the year by acquiring Policy Management Systems (PMSC) of Blythewood, South Carolina, a leading software vendor serving the insurance industry that was incorporated in Indore in September 1996.

Over the years, CSC grew consistently in India expanding its domains across insurance, banking, healthcare and manufacturing as well as its people base.