The Real Progress Date:   Wednesday , December 02, 2009 It gives us pleasure to present to you the 5th anniversary issue of the SmartTechie. It is indeed heartening to hear from our readers that the SmartTechie is a different kind of magazine. By design, we wanted it to be that way. We always believed that the industry needed a platform where the leaders and experts could share their wisdom and rich experiences with a larger audience. Such a shared learning will help the growth of professional development of the techies and benefit the industry at large. As always, in this issue too we bring to you the industry wisdom from thought leaders like Sanjeev Bikchandani, founder of Naukri.com, Som Mittal, President of NASSCOM, Keshav Murugesh, CEO, Syntel, Krishnakumar Natarajan, CEO & MD of Mindtree, and many more. Five years ago when we started the SmartTechie, the growth rate of our industry was in double digits, which has now slipped to single digit. Though the genesis of Indian IT industry dates back to the early ’70s, the tipping point came with the Y2K phenomenon; that’s exactly 10 years back when armies of our engineers travelled to the U.S. Getting a H1B visa then was a social pride indeed. The scenario has changed now, with the global players setting up their R&D centers and a flourishing entrepreneurial ecosystem right here in India. The technology industry in India has grown from $4 billion industry in 1999 to over $50 billion in 2009. But are we really progressing as an industry? Progress has several other dimensions. Technological advancements should have a direct correlation to a nation’s progress as a whole. That is possible only when technology growth influences a larger cross section of the society. Despite the challenging times, even now, the U.S. is experiencing a massive explosion of creativity in technology—be it the Google, iPhone, Twitter, or Kindle. Can we stand up and say what has been the single most contribution of Indian IT industry that has had a great impact on the lives of our people? If we can send our own satellite to the moon or produce a Nano car, what stops us from breaking the barriers and building breakthrough technologies that have a wider impact? But sadly, we are not there yet! It reminds me of what the management guru Peter Drucker once said, “We live in an age of unprecedented opportunity: If you’ve got ambition and smarts, you can rise to the top of your chosen profession, regardless of where you started out.” All of us at The Smart Techie wish you the very best of the season. We appreciate your time and look forward to your response as we strive to bring the best that could make a difference to you in your profession. Please do let us know what you think. Pradeep Shankar Editor-in-Chief editor@thesmarttechie.com