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New Jersey Bill will not affect Indian ITES sector
NIIT recently forayed into the ITES (IT enabled services) sector. This IT-education company is investing Rs 50 crore to provide training in the ITES sector. Training would be provided at more than 80 centres in the Chandigarh region according to Rajendra Pawar, Chairman, NIIT Ltd. The following are excerpts from an interview: NIIT is entering into ITES education sector? Is it because regular courses are not finding any takers while ITES is the latest buzzword? From a player focused on IT education, to one that will be catering to the comprehensive learning needs of India’s youth, NIIT is gearing up to address a much wider canvas. Whether in school, or out of it, students will have access to training that prepares them for virtually every emerging career destination. In the last one year, NIIT, has launched several new products for non-IT career seekers and those looking for employment in the growing IT Enabled Services (ITES) sector. ITES training offerings under the brand Planetworkz has enabled relationships with leading ITES industry employers and technology creators to service in the manpower needs of the sector. The state of New Jersey in the USA has restricted outsourcing and others might follow suit. What future does ITES have now in India? As the New Jersey Bill does not cover private sector it will not affect the growing Indian ITES industry that has grown at over 70 per cent in 2001-02 to record revenues of Rs 7,100 crore and is still growing. According to a Nasscom-McKinsey study, ITES sector will grow to become Rs 81,000 crore industry in India and generate over 1.1 million jobs by 2008. How dear are Chandigarh and Punjab as a market to you? North India, including Chandigarh and Punjab, are very important markets for us as they have an excellent educational hub. We believe that they can be an important source of talent, catering not only to the needs of the ITES sector locally, but nationwide as well. Which city or town will be the next as far as ITES training institutes go? Our focus is on metro and non-metro cities like Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Amritsar, Chandigarh and Dehradun. How has NIIT geared up to face challenges from those already into ITES training? We have continuously expanded our product offerings and introduced new technologies. Our foray into the ITES sector is yet another step towards meeting the changing market needs and using appropriate technology. In the last 18 months, NIIT has launched nine new products and four new technologies for career seekers, Internet and computer literacy seekers or those looking for an opportunity in the promising ITES sector. Has NIIT thought of entering animation sector as well since that too is on the verge of takeoff? Any future plans on this aspect in the pipeline? We are studying this area and will share details once we decide to go to the market. Some of the NIIT franchicees have been facing rough weather lately here in Chandigarh and its satellite towns. Is it due to overall recession or due to a shift towards tailor-made courses rather than one-course-fits-all approach? The global economic
slowdown did pose challenges for the entire IT education industry. As
leaders we focused on market share gain and did achieve through QoQ
(Quarter on Quarter) growth in enrolments as well as revenues in the
last three quarters. The period of slow down has been a ‘cleaning up
process’, bringing fundamentally strong companies to the fore, while
at the same time eliminating the weak ones. As in the past in the 15
months, NIIT has had a series of intensive interactions with its
channels to prepare them for the challenging times. Needless to say, the
pressures are being felt, in those few education centres who have not
been able to cope proactively with this situation. An overriding
majority of our centres have improved their overall position. (As told to Peeyush
Agnihotri) |
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