Taking stock in the tech world

H R Srinivasan is a man on the move. His Take Solutions is fast innovating to come up with new products to suit the slowdown survivors. There is pressure on companies to outperform and technology clearly plays a key role. The global economic crisis also comes at a parallel when technology itself is evolving at high speed. Social media, Cloud and many other themes are making corporations wonder about how they can best adapt to growth delivering plans. Srinivasan of Take Solutions talks to Shaili Chopra, Senior Editor at ETNOW & the author of Birdies In Business.

How is the technology environment changing for domestic IT companies?

Technology environment does not change in isolation for domestic companies. When a technology change happens its universal and so is the impact. There are two trends we are seeing right now.

One, use of personal and enterprise mobility devices and therefore technology is adapted enough to handle multiplicity of the device options.

Then comes, Cloud computing and social media - this enables quick and universal information presence at very affordable costs. Technology companies that do not take advantage of these two trends are likely to face challenges.

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Has the slowdown put more pressure on IT firms to innovate with products that can help companies cut costs?

Any slowdown has a corresponding impact on organisation spends. Therefore organisations have to rely on innovation to make their company see value; the value driver is their revenue growth or cost economies - sometimes both.

IT firms that rely very largely on CAPEX spends will face short term challenges, however companies that rely on domain intensity and the use of current technology such as cloud computing will always stay relevant.

How big is the American threat to outsourcing? Can it really pull the plug?

Personally, I do not see any major threat to outsourcing. If there is a value for commercial enterprise in outsourcing, in the long run, that is likely to stay. We have seen this trend in manufacturing, and this could not be different in service industry.

High decibel levels are partly social and partly political and to be expected in global economies in case of substantive changes.

So while there will be a short term difficulty / impediment - I do not see concern in the medium to long term. I see a continued concern on whether India will be an attractive out sourcing destination 5 years from now, at the current rate of cost inflation.

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Are such times of economic crisis ideal to scout for cheaper buyouts?

Yes this is definitely a goodtime to examine buyouts. The prices will be depressed and some very good organisations may temporarily face financial difficulty - that makes it quite attractive. So this is a good time to look for value-buys.

Which geographical areas are you expanding in?

We currently focuses on US, Europe and Asia. At this stage we will focus on consolidating our business in these markets.

Do you think India's reform process has stalled?

Stalled will be a very strong term - but derailed it is, and we need some very concrete action to put it back on rails.  There has to be an enormous focus on generating investments and creating world class infrastructure. We need a very strong push in reforms to make this happen.

What's the impact on leadership demands when the business faces fundamental challenges?

At this time the first need of leadership is to give confidence to the team and to its stake holders. So leaders have to stay focused in delivering excellent value to customer and attracting and retaining talent.

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What's the next big thing for golf in India?

We would certainly like to see more PGA and European tour wins from Indian professionals. This would depend on our junior golf programme which I believe holds lot of promise.

We should also hope to have more European and PGA events in the country to popularize this sport.

How does TAKE Solutions see itself spreading in the golf scene?

Take Solutions has been sponsoring corporate golf for several years now.  From there onwards we now moved to supporting another professional golf tournament. (Louis Philippe cup) and now to support professional golfers (SSP Chowrasia). As we move ahead we will do our best to popularize professional golf and help create a talent pool that will put India on the golfing map of the world.

Who are your favourite golfers and why?

Tiger Woods and Rory Mcilroy - both are aggressive, back their instinct and go for the kill. Great to watch this aggression when so much is at stake - lessons for life and business.

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Shaili Chopra is on twitter at @shailichopra

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