India to lead second wave of IT adoption

By siliconindia   |   Tuesday, 22 September 2009, 15:37 IST   |    3 Comments
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India to lead second wave of IT adoption
Bangalore: According to IBM, India may lead the second wave of IT adoption as companies kept up investments despite the recession and seemed more forward looking than their counterparts around the world. About 40 percent of Indian companies surveyed by IBM in July, stated that they wanted to be first to adopt a new technology, as only 11 percent said they would wait till technology was widely available. "In India, companies have cut back less and have really continued their investments. I think India is poised to lead the second wave of IT adoption and Small and Medium Businesses (SMBs) are the engines driving this economic growth," said Surjit Channa, Vice President, General Business and Marketing, IBM. "I know of many companies that suffered from the recession but Indian companies have continued and survived because they seem to be more forward looking than their counterparts in the west and round the world," said Channa. The survey stated that the recession forced 37 percent companies around the world to slash their IT budgets compared to 15 percent in India. The U.S. based multinational has identified India as one of its major growth markets and will continue to invest here along with Brazil, China and Russia. "We embarked on a geographical expansion in India and opened 13 new offices in Tier Two cities. We will continue to invest here and in other growth markets, mainly in Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRIC) countries," said Ramesh Narasimhan, Director, India and South Asia, IBM. The company intends to get business from the SMBs, which represent more than 90 percent of all businesses and employ over 90 percent of the world's workforce, producing more patents than large firms. Its general business unit accounts for about 20 percent of the company's total revenue worldwide and is one of the fastest growing units for IBM India. "The SMB market will remain a key focus for IBM India. Midsize business is important to IBM as 75 percent of the world's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) comes from SMBs," said Channa. "Today, the companies are under pressure to act quickly in response to economic uncertainty and maximize returns on their investments while improving service to customers at lower risk and reduced budgets. We are reducing cost, improving service delivery and enabling business innovation for SMBs. IBM will continue to invest in the mid market," added Channa.