news august 12 businessline europe calling: it rms vie for ...€¦ · ing its portfolio with the...
TRANSCRIPT
IT’s changing
■ Covid accelerates
need for digital in
European
enterprise
■ Outsourcing
queries coming in
from Europe;
budgets have
gone up
■ Leadership in
Indian firms needs
to shift to Europe
VENKATESH GANESH
Mumbai, August 11
Even as the US places restrictions on outsourcing, software exporters are seeing arise in business from Europe.
In Q1FY21, TCS Europe revenues grew by 2.7 per cent, whilethe company’s revenues fromNorth America were down 6.1per cent. Europe business forInfosys grew by 4.4 per cent inconstant currency at a timewhen North America reported fl��at growth. For HCL Tech,Europe business grew 11.4 percent on yearly basis.
For Hexaware, Europe wasthe bestperforming geography despite forex (euro)headwinds. Companies exclude the UK when they report revenues from Europe.
Covid ImpactWith the onset of Covid19,many companies in Europe,which have been laggards interms of outsourcing, are left
with few options to sustainand grow their business.Overall, Europe contributesabout $30 billion to exports.
“We anticipate Europe togrow faster as companies arebeginning to shed their outsourcing inhibitions,” said RSrikrishna, CEO, Hexaware.
Apart from the growthnumbers, from a geographyperspective, deals are startingto come in, albeit in a gradualmanner. For example, technology spends have acceleratedacross key European bankssuch as Credit Suisse, UBS, andBanco Santander, accordingto Motilal Oswal.
Jagannathan Chakravarthi,CFO of Sonata Software, is ofthe view that outsourcingqueries have started to comein and budgets of companieshave gone up. The industry,however, is hesitant to put anumber as the pandemic continues to spread .
So far, Indian companies
have not really been able tocrack the European market,apart from the UK andScandanavia. “There are language and cultural issues.There is a union problem inreplacing people. So, companies don't outsource thatmuch,” according to Founderand Lead Analyst, EIIRTrendand Pareekh Consulting.
Chaning dynamicsAll this, however, is slowlychanging. In Q1, TCS’ $6.9 billion deal wins included a mix
of European companies suchas Swiss Financial Services, Rabobank and Tryg Forslkring.
Covid should accelerate theneed for digital in Europeanenterprise. HCL had won a$600million deal with Ericsson recently. Wipro acquired4C, a Belgiumbased companywhich is one of the largestSalesforce partners in the UK,Europe and the Middle East.Some large deals in Europe included HCLVolvo, InfosysABN Amro, among others.
There are also many large
multinationals in diff��erentsectors, which are based outof Europe. In the fi��rst wave ofoutsourcing, deals went toplayers with strong regionalEuropean providers such asCapgemini.
So, can Indiabased software majors capitalise on thisnew found opportunity? Jainbelieves that Indian serviceproviders need to invest morein local delivery and acquireEuropean fi��rms. “Most Indianfi��rms look at Europe from UKbased operations and thatneeds to change. Also, theleadership of Indian fi��rms areeither in the US or India,which needs to move to Germany or France,” he said.
On the ground, however,banks in Europe and NorthAmerica are poised to provision for the greatest increasein defaults since 2009, andunemployment will keeprising as governments will beunder pressure to protectjobs. In July, the EuropeanCommission said that it expects the EU economy toshrink 8.3 per cent in 2020.
With the onset of Covid-19, companies in
Europe showing interest in outsourcing
ISTO
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Europe calling: IT fi��rms vie for big pie
................CMYK
CHENNAI
2 BusinessLine WEDNESDAY • AUGUST 12 • 2020NEWS
OUR BUREAU
Mumbai, August 11
JSW Steel production wasdown 5 per cent in July to12.46 lakh tonnes against 13.17lakh tonnes logged in thesame period last year.
Flat product output increased marginally to 9.40 lt(9.08 lt) while that of long
products used in construction and real estate projectsfell to 2.40 lt (3.16 lt).
The company’s productionhas been hit over the last fourmonths due to rampantspread of Covid near thecompany’s plant at Vijay
anagar. However, it has takenmeasures by restrictingentry of people into the factory and ramping up capacitysteadily.
In a recent interview, Seshagiri Rao, Joint ManagingDirector, JSW Steel, said toclamp down Covid spread,the company accommodated13,000 employees, includingtemporary labours, withinthe company's colony.
“No one is allowed to goout or come in. We have created separate zone for loading and unloading. The virusspread is completely controlled,” he said.
Production was at
12.46 lakh tonnes
against 13.17 lakh
tonnes in the same
period last year
Seshagiri Rao, Joint MD, JSW Steel
JSW Steel output down 5% in July
OUR BUREAU
New Delhi, August 11
Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd (PowerGrid) has posted a ₹��2,048crore consolidated profi��t after tax for thefi��rst quarter of FY2021, downfrom the ₹�� 2,502.80 crore netprofi��t reported by the company in the same quarter offi��scal 20192020.
Rebate to DiscomsThe lower profi��t is on accountof a onetime consolidated rebate of ₹��1,075 crore to powerdistribution companies (Discoms) for passing on to theendconsumers on account ofCovid19 pandemic againstApril 2020 and May 2020billing. This has been recognised by the company as anexceptional item a fi��ling tothe BSE.
Consolidated total incomewas reported at ₹��9,816.72crore in the quarter under re
view, up from ₹��9,361.72 crorein the comparable quarter ofthe previous fi��scal.
Signifi��cant transmissionelements commissioned during the quarter include400kV D/C HiriyurMysoreline and ICTs at Meerut,Koteshwar and Balipara substations of PowerGrid. Further, long pending 400kV D/CRajarhatGokarna transmission line was also commissioned in July 2020, a company statement said.
PowerGrid maintained anaverage transmission systemavailability of 99.83 per centfor the fi��rst quarter. As at June2020 end, the total transmission assets of PowerGrid andits subsidiaries stood at163,695 circuit kilometres oftransmission lines, 248 substations and more than413,950 megavolt ampere(MVA) of transformation capacity, the company said.
PowerGrid posts consolidatednet profi��t of ₹��2,048 crore in Q1
OUR BUREAU
Chennai, August 11
Hyundai Motor India Ltd(HMIL) has said its blockbuster SUV Creta hasachieved a sales milestone offi��ve lakh units in the domestic market.
The company’s allnewCreta, which was introducedin March 2020, has securedmore than 65,000 bookingsso far.
In July, Creta topped the UVsegment with sales of 11,549units. Creta remains the bestselling SUV for three consec
utive months (May, June andJuly 2020), said a companystatement.
HMIL said the companyleads the UV segment withfour performing SUVs —Creta, compact SUV Venue,premium SUV Tucson, andelectric SUV Kona.
Diesel bookings upThe company’s total UV salesstood at 34,212 units duringthe AprilJuly 2020 period.
The contribution of diesel
to the new Creta bookingscontinues to soar and is nowat 60 per cent.
“Hyundai Creta has beenthe blockbuster model in theIndian automobile industryever since its launch in 2015.Redefi��ning the SUV landscape in India, Creta has outperformed the industrybenchmarks in all aspects,said Tarun Garg, Director(Sales, Marketing & Service),HMIL.
With the 500,000 salesmark, the Creta has set yet another benchmark in the industry, he said adding, HMILis continuously strengthening its portfolio with thebestinsegment features andtechnologicallyadvancedproducts.
Hyundai has also beenselling Indiabuilt new Cretaacross 88 countries.
The company’s
blockbuster
has been the
best-selling SUV in
May, June and July
Hyundai Creta
Hyundai Creta drives past five lakh units sales milestone
OUR BUREAU
Mumbai, August 11
Vodafone Idea has informedtelecom regulator TRAI thatits premium tariff�� plan, underwhich some subscribers arebeing given higher speed, hasno impact on the quality ofservice being provided toother subscribers.
In a submission to the Telecom Regulatory Authority ofIndia (TRAI), Vodafone Ideasaid the usage on its premiumplan, called REDX, and thenumber of such subscribersform only a small fractionand, therefore, it has no impact on the overall networkthroughput.
TRAI order stayedTRAI had recently asked Vodafone Idea to explain thepremium tariff�� plan which
the operator had launchedlast year. The regulator hadinitially asked the operator tostop taking in new subscribers under the premiumplan.
The Telecom Dispute Settlement Appellate Tribunal,however, had stayed the regulator’s order even as it allowedTRAI to continue with its investigation. The key aspect ofthe investigation is fi��ndingout whether the promise ofhigher speed to premium customers is impacting the quality of service being providedto other users.
Spectrum is a shared resource and, hence, it is widelyperceived that high usage by aspecifi��c group of consumersin an area could impact othersubscribers in the same location. However, Vodafone Idea
has told the TRAI that it hasbeen able to manage its network in a way that thepremium service did not impact other subscribers on itsnetwork.
“There is an ongoing substantial addition of capacities, optimisation and networkintegration of Vodafone andIdea Networks resulting inmore effi��cient use of spectrum. This all translates intobetter services despite unpre
cedented traffi��c growth. “Asmentioned earlier, variousfactors which are beyond thecontrol of operator can determine actual delivery ofspeed to the customers. Thesame has been duly informedto customers. These factorsare the nature of handset, location of access server locations, server performance, topography etc,” Vodafone Ideasaid in its submission to TRAI.
At the customer level, theaverage speeds experiencedby REDX customer is at least1.5 times that of nonREDXcustomer.
“REDX subscribers have better experience in terms ofspeed as off��ered. No impacton nonREDX due to REDX priority feature, their speedshave overall increased, withno perceptible diff��erencebetween overall networkdownload speeds and nonREDX download speeds,” theoperator said.
Voda Idea tells TRAI that customers who
haven’t subscibed to REDX will not suffer
‘Those subscribing to REDX form
a small fraction of customers’
‘Premium plan won’t affect network quality ’
FORUM GANDHI
Mumbai, August 11
IndiGo has initiated conversations with two lessors for ‘selland leaseback’ of 12 ATR 72600 and its engines.
Two people privy to the information said the talks havebeen on with at least twolessors, including Aergo Capital and DAE. According to oneof them, “Each of these aircraft is likely to generate $1820 million for the lowcostcarrier. The plan is ‘sell andleaseback’ these 12 aircraft toone lessor only.”
Hopes to raise ₹��2,000 croreRonojoy Dutta, CEO, IndiGosaid the airline was planningto sell and lease back some ofits aircraft during the earnings call of Q1FY21 but he hadnot spelt out the details then.
The airline is hoping toraise about ₹��2,000 crorethrough this route.
Responding to a queryfrom BusinessLine, IndiGoconfi��rmed that the airline ismulling to sell and lease backthese 12 ATRs, along with allother ATRs, CEOs and somespare engines.
No timeframe given“We are working to closethese transactions but it willbe diffi��cult to give a specifi��ctimeframe for its completion.Apart from this, we will continue to fi��nance our new aircraft deliveries in the ordinary course as more planes aredelivered,” the spokespersonsaid.
Currently, IndiGo has thelargest fl��eet in India. As ofJune 30, 2020, IndiGo has 274aircraft in its fl��eet, of which itowns 29. The airline has has 25ATRs in its fl��eet.
Currently, IndiGo operates400 fl��ights daily. Due to thepandemic, it had to takeharsh steps, including salarycuts, furloughs for its employees.
IndiGo in talksto leaseback 12 ofits ATR aircraftto raise funds
MEENAKSHI VERMA AMBWANI
New Delhi, August 11
As consumers turn to digitalchannels to buy appliancesduring Covid times, LG Electronics India has formallylaunched the companyowned online store in India.In the fi��rst phase, the company's site will go live in topnine metro cities and willshowcase a select range ofproducts.
Deepak Taneja, BusinessHead, Online & ECommerce,LG Electronics India, said, “Weare one of the fi��rst few brandsthat have launched this directtoconsumer channel,with a fullfl��edged companyownedwebsite, unlike someother players that are relyingon thirdparty sites. We haddone a soft beta launch of this
website about a month agoand now it is being launchedformally."
“Directtoconsumer channel is an emerging channeland this launch in India ispart of the company’s globalstrategy. We believe this willhelp us gain consumer insights to better our productsand off��erings such as membership programme will helpus serve our customers better,” he added.
Shifting preferenceThe company said its onlinestore will complement itspartnerships with other ecommerce marketplaces aswell as its large offl�ine network of dealers and distributors.
“We see a new set of customers who are inclined tobuy online and have a strongpreference to buying directlyfrom the brand....” Taneja said.
It complements
offline dealers
LG India unveils online store
SANGEETHA CHENGAPPA
Bengaluru, August 11
This Diwali, Amazon India is allset to usher in a diverse and inclusive shopping experiencewith over 145 transgenders,800plus persons with disability, 100plus military veteransand 6,000 women associates,who are an integral part of itsfulfi��lment network operationsstaff��.
Amid the disruption causedby the Covid19 outbreak,Amazon India opened up twolastmile delivery stations with100 employees, where everyone from the manager to associates and security is a transgender. Additionally, it runs apilot with 45 transgender associates in a sort centre, wherecustomer packages are sortedbefore delivery.
“What has been a matter ofpride is that Covid has not distracted us from our commitment on D&I (diversity and inclusion). We opened up twotransgender delivery stationsin Gujarat and MP in June with
100 transgender people and apilot with 45 transgender associates in our sort centre in Gujarat in July.
More women hired“For our recentlyconcludedPrime Day sale ramp up, ourseasonal hiring had a signifi��cant intake of women, especially in our delivery partnernetwork. We focussed onbringing in women into seniorleadership roles across our organisation.
“Unlike most organisationsthat hire military veterans insecurity functions, we havehired them for a multitude ofroles at senior and midmanagement levels and have focussed on hiring and improving our pipelines on personswith disability for managerialpositions,” Swati Rustagi, Director of HR, Amazon India Operations, told BusinessLine.
In January 2017, Amazon pioneered the ‘Silent Delivery
Station’ in Mumbai that started as a pilot with four hardofhearing associates, workingalongside associates in anAmazon delivery station. Now,there are 2 Silent Delivery Stations in Mumbai that are completely staff��ed by the speechand hearing impaired.
Covid19 initiativesFor all its frontline staff��,Amazon introduced severalsupport initiatives, including14 days additional leave,Amazon Relief Fund, PartnerFund for subsistence wage,and special fi��nancial incentives during the lockdown.Amazon also paid 20 per centto 50 per cent higher compensation in April and May. A‘thank you bonus’ of ₹��10,000was given in June to all its frontline staff��, including drivers, security, housekeeping. Keepingin mind the pandemic,Amazon temporarily allowedits associates to carry phoneson the fl��oor so that their families can connect with them andviceversa.
“At Amazon India, wealready extend insurance coverage to same gender partners,, we have recently introducedsupport for sex reassignmentsurgery for our regular staff��.Inclusion is the foundation ofdiversity programs, saidRustagi.
Transgenders,
persons with
disability, military
veterans to help
with delivery
of ordersSwati Rustagi, Director of HR,
Amazon India Operations
Amazon to usher in an inclusive shopping experience this Diwali
8/12/2020 Vijayavani:Bengaluru:20200812
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