Static and Dynamic Patterns
In his brilliant novel ‘Lila,’ author Robert Pirsig makes the point that all good systems are the result of a harmonious balance between static and dynamic patterns. Static patterns represent forces of continuity and predictability. Dynamic patterns represent forces of change and experimentation. Too many static patterns in your system and you are headed for obsolescence. Too many dynamic patterns and you may descend into chaos. You need a healthy amount of both, but not too much of either.

Far fetched, as it may seem, the time is ripe for Indian IT organization to heed to this profound observation. The success of the IT services industry over the last decade has been based entirely on static patterns - the entire value proposition of our industry has been built on a foundation of process, repeatability, quality, and low cost. Rarely do we hear of Indian IT companies built on the dynamic patterns of intellectual property, innovation, and technical experimentation. Is this single-minded devotion to static patterns good for the industry? I would humbly suggest that it is not.

I believe Pirsig is right, and the most exciting IT companies of the near future will be those that focus on a blend of process and innovation, repetition and experimentation. Companies that build new products, or offer innovative services based on superior intellectual property, or allow employees the flexibility to experiment with new ideas while relentlessly focusing on customers are likely to be more successful, and therefore more exciting to work for. The days of IT services companies succeeding in the global market by simply waving the flag of process excellence and low cost are over.

Outsourced Product Development
Speaking of new IT, one phenomenon that is on the ascendant is outsourced product development (OPD). While most early outsourcing to India occurred with enterprise applications, large global independent software vendors (ISV) such as Microsoft, Oracle and SAP too have gone offshore with their core R&D activities. In the last few years, medium and emerging ISVs have embraced the offshore movement as well, and a growing number of specialized offshore service providers have appeared to service this nascent market. IT trade body NASSCOM estimates that close to $1 billion worth of product development is happening out of India today; it will rise to $6-7 billion by 2010.