Expanding its footprint in Latin America, the country's largest software exporter TCS today said it has opened a new delivery centre in Buenos Aires for providing consulting, BPO and IT services which will employ 250 professionals.
"Our growing presence in Latin America continues to be of strategic importance to our overall business growth and we remain committed to working in close collaboration with institutions and universities (here) to help foster the development of local talent in Argentina and provide our customers with IT solutions from this location," TCS CEO S Ramadorai said.
The new centre would provide consulting, advanced IT solutions, BPO services and IT product implementations besides, housing the company's first regional SAP centre, the company said in a statement.
This is the eighth global delivery centre of TCS in Latin America, in addition to centers in Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Mexico.
Indian IT companies have been focusing on South America and countries such as Argentina and Brazil as a destination for offering services to clients in the US time zone.
Shares of TCS were trading at Rs 568.50, down 0.42 per cent in afternoon trade at the Bombay Stock Exchange.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Cost cutting, H1-B, IT market, NRIs, Recession
Companies continue to send employees overseas amid cost cuts: KPMG
Companies across the world have continued to send employees overseas to take advantage of business opportunities, despite a reduced budget for international assignment programs during the economic downturn, a KPMG survey says.
According to a survey of 470 human resources (HR) executives by the global consultancy, firms are implementing a variety of options to potentially save costs associated with long-term or standard assignments.
Some of these options include short-term assignments (STAs), currently being used by 79 per cent of firms, while permanent transfers is being utilised by 45 per cent of organisations, the survey said.
"KPMG survey results mirror our experience with clients. We saw that companies/employers often adjusted parts of their programs and examined alternate assignment types based on their business needs, but continued to send assignees to work on long-term business opportunities overseas," KPMG LLP managing director of Global Mobility Advisory Services Achim Mossmann said.
"As the decline in global economy affected almost every area of business and most firms assessed cost-effectiveness of their operations, international assignments were no exception," Mossmann added.
The KPMG survey also revealed that firms made changes to various policy provisions to save costs.
For example, to help determine the cost of living adjustment (COLA) calculation on their assignee packages, 31 per cent of the firms surveyed are using an "efficient purchaser index".
The index is a sliding scale measurement of the ratio of the cost-of-living between the home and host locations, which assumes that an experienced assignee is a 'smart shopper' and is able to purchase goods and services more economically than the average assignee.
The KPMG survey revealed that 49 per cent of respondents find assignees take too much time to administer. Perhaps in response to this view, almost half (47 per cent) of the respondents outsource parts of their international assignment programs to gain access to a service provider's global resources and expertise.
"In some cases, HR departments have been downsized leaving fewer people to manage more work. In these situations, administrative models are often reviewed to achieve efficiency and cost savings," Mossmann said.
The KPMG report stated that outsourcing certain program elements can help reduce the time and effort spent by HR professionals and allows the organisation to tap into the economies of scale in an outsourcing environment.
"As organisations continue to utilise international assignments, they also need to make sure there is a mechanism in place to measure how these assignments provide long-term benefits to the organisation," it added.
According to a survey of 470 human resources (HR) executives by the global consultancy, firms are implementing a variety of options to potentially save costs associated with long-term or standard assignments.
Some of these options include short-term assignments (STAs), currently being used by 79 per cent of firms, while permanent transfers is being utilised by 45 per cent of organisations, the survey said.
"KPMG survey results mirror our experience with clients. We saw that companies/employers often adjusted parts of their programs and examined alternate assignment types based on their business needs, but continued to send assignees to work on long-term business opportunities overseas," KPMG LLP managing director of Global Mobility Advisory Services Achim Mossmann said.
"As the decline in global economy affected almost every area of business and most firms assessed cost-effectiveness of their operations, international assignments were no exception," Mossmann added.
The KPMG survey also revealed that firms made changes to various policy provisions to save costs.
For example, to help determine the cost of living adjustment (COLA) calculation on their assignee packages, 31 per cent of the firms surveyed are using an "efficient purchaser index".
The index is a sliding scale measurement of the ratio of the cost-of-living between the home and host locations, which assumes that an experienced assignee is a 'smart shopper' and is able to purchase goods and services more economically than the average assignee.
The KPMG survey revealed that 49 per cent of respondents find assignees take too much time to administer. Perhaps in response to this view, almost half (47 per cent) of the respondents outsource parts of their international assignment programs to gain access to a service provider's global resources and expertise.
"In some cases, HR departments have been downsized leaving fewer people to manage more work. In these situations, administrative models are often reviewed to achieve efficiency and cost savings," Mossmann said.
The KPMG report stated that outsourcing certain program elements can help reduce the time and effort spent by HR professionals and allows the organisation to tap into the economies of scale in an outsourcing environment.
"As organisations continue to utilise international assignments, they also need to make sure there is a mechanism in place to measure how these assignments provide long-term benefits to the organisation," it added.
Infosys, new openings
We over-hired: Infosys COO
Infosys Technologies Ltd, India's second-ranked software exporter, said the business environment is challenging and clients are cautious in spending, although pressure for price cuts has eased.
The company, which employs more than 100,000 people, is not seeing any reason to accelerate hiring at this point of time due to the uncertain business environment, Chief Operating Officer Shibulal said.
" We are very honestly over-hired ," he said. "There is a very slight blip of activity, but there is nothing to tell me it (a recovery) is secular in nature."
Hopes of a pick-up in demand for outsourcing, which had been hit by the global downturn, increased after major Indian IT firms including Infosys beat street estimates in their April-June earnings and announced some large deals in the recent months.
But Infosys officials said that decision making by clients continued to be slow. "The situation is still quite challenging," S D Shibulal said. "If you look at our customers, they are not really seeing any increase on their revenue side. And because they are not seeing any increase on their revenue side, they will continue to be concerned."
The head of Nasscom, India's leading IT industry lobby, said signs of recovery in the United States were yet to translate into real business growth for outsourcing firms, though a pick-up was expected in the second half of the year.
Infosys Chief Executive S Gopalakrishnan said he expected technology spending by the company's clients to be flat in 2010 from the previous year. Ahead of the news, shares in the company valued at about $27 billion, closed up 0.9 per cent, underperforming a 1.5 per cent rise in the benchmark index. The company's shares have doubled so far in 2009, outperforming a 70 per cent rise in the broader market.
Large deals yet to come
Infosys has forecast its first annual revenue fall for the year to March 2010 on demand for fee cuts by its overseas clients. Most negotiations with clients on price cuts was over and the company was not seeing a second round of such talks, Shibulal said, but large deal flows were yet to resume.
"Overall, deals above $500 million which used to be there before the downturn, they have not reappeared in significant manner," he said. Infosys and local rivals Tata Consultancy Services and Wipro last month won IT services contracts from oil and gas major BP Plc.
Shibulal said Infosys' share of the contract was worth $116 million over five years.
The company, which employs more than 100,000 people, is not seeing any reason to accelerate hiring at this point of time due to the uncertain business environment, Chief Operating Officer Shibulal said.
" We are very honestly over-hired ," he said. "There is a very slight blip of activity, but there is nothing to tell me it (a recovery) is secular in nature."
Hopes of a pick-up in demand for outsourcing, which had been hit by the global downturn, increased after major Indian IT firms including Infosys beat street estimates in their April-June earnings and announced some large deals in the recent months.
But Infosys officials said that decision making by clients continued to be slow. "The situation is still quite challenging," S D Shibulal said. "If you look at our customers, they are not really seeing any increase on their revenue side. And because they are not seeing any increase on their revenue side, they will continue to be concerned."
The head of Nasscom, India's leading IT industry lobby, said signs of recovery in the United States were yet to translate into real business growth for outsourcing firms, though a pick-up was expected in the second half of the year.
Infosys Chief Executive S Gopalakrishnan said he expected technology spending by the company's clients to be flat in 2010 from the previous year. Ahead of the news, shares in the company valued at about $27 billion, closed up 0.9 per cent, underperforming a 1.5 per cent rise in the benchmark index. The company's shares have doubled so far in 2009, outperforming a 70 per cent rise in the broader market.
Large deals yet to come
Infosys has forecast its first annual revenue fall for the year to March 2010 on demand for fee cuts by its overseas clients. Most negotiations with clients on price cuts was over and the company was not seeing a second round of such talks, Shibulal said, but large deal flows were yet to resume.
"Overall, deals above $500 million which used to be there before the downturn, they have not reappeared in significant manner," he said. Infosys and local rivals Tata Consultancy Services and Wipro last month won IT services contracts from oil and gas major BP Plc.
Shibulal said Infosys' share of the contract was worth $116 million over five years.
IT market, NRIs
Chinese investors asked to hire Indians
Chinese investors should employ more Indians to run their projects in India instead of bringing large number of workers from China. This is New Delhi's latest response to complaints concerning India's reluctance to grant enough visas for Chinese workers.
An India-specific approach will have to be thought over by Chinese companies, S Jaishankar, India's new ambassador in Beijing told a conference attended by Indian and Chinese businessmen and officials. He pointed out that companies from other foreign countries did not feel the need to bring their own workers to projects in India, which has a vast reservoir of skilled workmen and a long history of industry and entrepreneurship.
"I have personal experience in working with many of India's other major economic partners. I cannot recall their investments and projects requiring such large manpower support from home," Jaishankar, who was earlier ambassador in Singapore, said.
The statement comes at a time when several Indian companies have joined the chorus along with their Chinese partners about increasing the issuance of visas for Chinese workers. But the Indian government is not encourahing this because large inflow of foreign labour can thwart skill development and cause heart-burning among Indian workers.
It is possible that business models of non-Chinese investors are based more heavily on collaborating with local Indian capabilities, he said, while speaking at a seminar organized by Ficci and the China Council for Promotion of International Trade.
Indian companies sourcing equipment and services from China should advise and assist the sellers on reducing their dependence on Chinese workers and using more of Indian skill, Jaishankar said.
No Easy Visas
Companies from other foreign countries do not feel the need to bring own workers to projects in India, says ambassador Jaishankar His statement comes at a time when Indian comapnies have also joined the chorus with their Chinese partners for increasing the issuance of visas Indian govt is not encouraging this as large inflow of foreign labour can hit skill development and welfare of Indian workers.
An India-specific approach will have to be thought over by Chinese companies, S Jaishankar, India's new ambassador in Beijing told a conference attended by Indian and Chinese businessmen and officials. He pointed out that companies from other foreign countries did not feel the need to bring their own workers to projects in India, which has a vast reservoir of skilled workmen and a long history of industry and entrepreneurship.
"I have personal experience in working with many of India's other major economic partners. I cannot recall their investments and projects requiring such large manpower support from home," Jaishankar, who was earlier ambassador in Singapore, said.
The statement comes at a time when several Indian companies have joined the chorus along with their Chinese partners about increasing the issuance of visas for Chinese workers. But the Indian government is not encourahing this because large inflow of foreign labour can thwart skill development and cause heart-burning among Indian workers.
It is possible that business models of non-Chinese investors are based more heavily on collaborating with local Indian capabilities, he said, while speaking at a seminar organized by Ficci and the China Council for Promotion of International Trade.
Indian companies sourcing equipment and services from China should advise and assist the sellers on reducing their dependence on Chinese workers and using more of Indian skill, Jaishankar said.
No Easy Visas
Companies from other foreign countries do not feel the need to bring own workers to projects in India, says ambassador Jaishankar His statement comes at a time when Indian comapnies have also joined the chorus with their Chinese partners for increasing the issuance of visas Indian govt is not encouraging this as large inflow of foreign labour can hit skill development and welfare of Indian workers.
IT market
Adobe buys Omniture for $1.8 bn
Adobe Systems plans to pay $1.8 billion for fast-growing business software maker Omniture as the maker of Photoshop and Acrobat looks to turn around declining sales.
Adobe, which announced the deal on Tuesday as it reported lower quarterly sales and profit, has been struggling over the past year as the recession hurt technology spending and customers declined to upgrade older versions of its programmes.
The acquisition would give Adobe a new stream of revenue to offset that decline. Omniture charges customers fees based on monthly website traffic, so sales are less sensitive to economic swings than Adobe.
“There is no way Adobe can grow organically. This is a smart move,” said Global Equities Research analyst Trip Chowdhry.
Adobe, which announced the deal on Tuesday as it reported lower quarterly sales and profit, has been struggling over the past year as the recession hurt technology spending and customers declined to upgrade older versions of its programmes.
The acquisition would give Adobe a new stream of revenue to offset that decline. Omniture charges customers fees based on monthly website traffic, so sales are less sensitive to economic swings than Adobe.
“There is no way Adobe can grow organically. This is a smart move,” said Global Equities Research analyst Trip Chowdhry.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Layoffs in USA
Verizon to axe more jobs
Verizon's Chief Financial Officer John Killian is not sugarcoating what's in store for the ILEC's workforce: more job cuts are coming. During an investor conference late last week, Killian said additional employee reductions are necessary, but would not offer a specific timeline when these cuts would occur. Over the past year, Verizon laid off 8,000 workers with plans to cut another 8,000 in the second half of 2009.
The recent economic downturn, ongoing voice line loss and accelerated growth of its wireless and FiOS video services drove these job cuts, according to Killian. To extract more savings out of its wireline business, the company also will consolidate its call centers and integrate some services.
"We've been steadily reducing our overall work force size," Killian said to analysts during an investor conference. "But, we realized that we need to do more and in an accelerated pace."
The recent economic downturn, ongoing voice line loss and accelerated growth of its wireless and FiOS video services drove these job cuts, according to Killian. To extract more savings out of its wireline business, the company also will consolidate its call centers and integrate some services.
"We've been steadily reducing our overall work force size," Killian said to analysts during an investor conference. "But, we realized that we need to do more and in an accelerated pace."
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