Integreon Expands, Offers Integrated Legal, Research & Business Services to Global Clients

Integreon, a leading global provider of integrated legal, document, research and business support solutions, today announced its move to a new delivery centre in Noida, India.  

The 2,460 square metre (26,500 square foot) centre, which replaces an older facility, features 400 workstations, and will enable Integreon to better provide clients with its award-winning service offerings.  Increased demand for Integreon’s range of value-add outsourcing services led to a 35% jump in Integreon’s overall India headcount in 2013.

Addressing Integreon’s need for additional, more functional space, the new centre doubles Integreon’s capacity in the Noida (NCR) region. The company has already recruited more than 250 new Associates to fill these seats, primarily for the company’s legal and research functions. The added capacity will allow Integreon to build on its successes in the legal services market, where Integreon was named “LPO of the Year” in 2013 by India Law Business Journal after having been honoured by that publication as a “Top LPO” in the prior three years. Noida will also remain the global hub for clients of Grail Research, the research division of Integreon.  Finally, the new facility will provide continued opportunity for expanding the company’s successful document services and business support services offerings.  With delivery centres in Mumbai and Noida, Integreon is well-positioned to continue to lead its markets in the delivery of LPO, KPO and BPO services from India.

“The pool of talent offered by the Noida/Delhi region, combined with our unique understanding of the financial and corporate sectors, offers a real competitive advantage for our integrated support solutions,” said Bob Gogel, Integreon’s Chief Executive Officer.  “We look forward to continued growth across the company and plan to continue investing in the region to meet increasing client demand.”

Through its Legal Services business, Integreon offers a complete portfolio of legal support services and LPO offerings. Its solutions allow clients to delegate high-volume, standardized legal support work, including document review, contract management, due diligence, compliance and intellectual property management.  Integreon is proud to be the only LPO service provider recognized for excellence in the International Association of Outsourcing Professionals (IAOP) 2013 Global Outsourcing 100, and to receive numerous accolades in Chambers and Partners’ Chambers Global 2013.  For its outstanding efforts providing contract management services to Microsoft, Integreon received a 2013 Innovation Award from the International Association for Contract and Commercial Management (IACCM).

Meanwhile, in its Research Services business, Integreon’s Grail Research division offers a range of custom services that help clients assess market opportunities and customer and competitive landscapes, and make strategic decisions.  Its clients include 11 of the top 50 global brands, six of the top ten technology companies, and eight of the top ten pharmaceutical firms. Research Services offerings include research consulting, strategic research, library and information services, customer analytics, market research, financial services research, competitive intelligence monitoring and knowledge management. 

The increased presence at the new Noida centre is also expected to offer Grail Research increased opportunities for cross-company initiatives with clients of other Integreon business units, such as aiding growth efforts for Legal Services and Document Services clients and supporting consulting projects by clients of the Business Services group.  

The new facility will provide added flexibility for Integreon as it grows its high-quality Document Services business, where its clients enjoy a range of document processing, presentation, transcription and other administrative services, and its Business Services business, which provides critical business support functions and consulting.

The new office features a state-of-the-art IT infrastructure and numerous high-tech amenities for Integreon Associates, including multiple Internet kiosks, Wi-Fi hotspots in recreation areas, video conferencing facilities and a computer-aided training facility that seats 40.  In addition, the office offers lounges, a pantry and gaming areas. 

The new office also pays tribute to India’s culture with a permanent exhibit of more than 100 examples of rare art forms, including Sanjhi, the art of hand-cutting designs on paper, Bastar, a form of lost-wax sculpture, and Madhubani, a style of Indian painting.  Integreon is proud to support artisans dedicated to India’s ancient crafts and help expose them to new global audiences.  Each piece was chosen relate to elements of Integreon’s core values of Teamwork, Performance and Passion, and to the nine strands of the Integreon’s corporate DNA. 

Three Fold Jump In Cloud Computing Spending From 2011 to 2017

An increasing move on the part of enterprise businesses to move their information technology services, applications and infrastructure to a cloud-based architecture will cause market revenue in this segment to surge by a factor of three from 2011 to 2017, according to IHS Technology.

Global business spending for infrastructure and services related to the cloud will reach an estimated $174.2 billion this year, up a hefty 20 percent from $145.2 billion in 2013. And in a sign of the market's vigor, spending will enjoy continued strong growth during the next few years as enterprises everywhere race to come up with their own cloud-storage solutions.

By 2017, enterprise spending on the cloud will amount to a projected $235.1 billion, triple the $78.2 billion in 2011, as shown in the attached figure.

"With the cloud touching nearly every consumer and enterprise around the globe, spending for cloud-related storage, servers, applications and content will be dedicated toward building a framework that is rapidly scalable, highly dynamic, available on-demand and requiring minimal management," said Jagdish Rebello, senior director and principal analyst for the cloud and big data at IHS.

"The robust growth will come as an increasing number of large and small enterprises move more of their applications to the cloud, while also looking at data analytics to drive new insights into consumer behavior."

Spending on cloud services, applications, security and data analytics will account for an ever- growing portion of total information-technology expenditures undertaken by enterprises, valued today at approximately $2 trillion, Rebello noted. And the most engaged among spenders will be those seeking to ensure their continued relevance to consumers in the future.

These findings can be found in the report, "The Cloud: Redefining the Information, Communication and Technology Industry," from the Mobile & Wireless Communications service of IHS.

Why the cloud? The cloud is becoming a critical cornerstone in the strategies of those wishing to offer online storage, computing, analytics and provisioning services.

This is because the vast amounts of media now being consumed on mobile devices like smartphones, tablets and computers require larger storage solutions, which now the cloud can provide. Such developments, in turn, will drive multibillion-dollar investments in cloud-based architectures, Rebello said. 

Already, small and giant companies alike are pushing to provide consumers and enterprise users with their own public or private cloud storage services. Some-like Google, Apple, Amazon and Microsoft-are offering public cloud storage to drive adoption of the individual companies' hardware and content. Others, like Barracuda, Dropbox and Carbonite, are adopting the so-called Freemium model-in which premium storage services are available on top of a fixed amount of free storage-in order to compete with the giants.

The fight for dominance is understandably fierce, Rebello noted. The number of global consumer subscriptions to the cloud will jump to 730 million this year, up from 630 million in 2013, representing a potentially vast base of users to which cloud suppliers can market their products and other non-cloud services.

Amazon, for instance, offers an inexhaustible range of products, and transforming even a casual user of the online giant's cloud services could well bring in an endless stream of future revenue as the user becomes a loyal and permanent client.

Future power brokers yet to be determined

Among the various stakeholders involved in offering cloud infrastructure and services, wireless providers are exceptionally well-situated to offer online cloud storage in order to boost value to their customers.

With the cloud, wireless providers can help reduce churn, a periodic problem as customers defect to other operators. Providers can also use the cloud to seek out demographic information to help them come up with tailor-made offerings for existing clientele. By using big data and sophisticated data-analytic tools, wireless providers could offer truly differentiated services to subscribers, Rebello pointed out.

To date, however, wireless operators have lagged behind in cloud offerings, compared to other stakeholders like Google and Amazon. As a result, the operators are missing out on cloud-related revenue, which is going instead to rival factions of the mobile value chain.

A new cloud paradigm will dictate new ways to manage data. Issues of security and compliance must be addressed, and cloud services need to be able to manage content in an organized fashion. Moreover, issues of data loss, unauthorized access and mining for marketing purposes require deft handling.

All told, cloud services must strike the correct balance between providing convenience to users, while at the same time respecting their privacy, IHS believes.

Royal Philips & Infosys BPO Extend Partnership By Five Years

Infosys BPO, the business process outsourcing subsidiary of Infosys, today announced that Royal Philips of the Netherlands has extended its existing seven-year outsourcing agreement with Infosys for an additional five years. 

Infosys BPO had originally entered into a seven-year contract with Royal Philips in July 2007 to provide finance and accounting (F&A) and transactional procurement services. It has now been extended till June 2019.

ITC Infotech Opens Office In Dubai To Tap The MEA Region

ITC Infotech, a leading global IT services and solutions company, and a fully owned subsidiary of ITC Ltd, has expanded its global footprint in the Middle East & Africa (MEA) region by setting up an office in Dubai. The sales and marketing office of ITC Infotech in Dubai will focus exclusively on the MEA market and look at tapping promising sectors like BFSI, Retail and Oil & Gas, among others. 

Commenting on the development,  B Sumant, Managing Director, ITC Infotech, said, “Our objective is to be able to serve customers across the globe in all viable locations. ITC Infotech is engaged with several large customers in the region and we are providing mission critical services to leaders in the market. It was only appropriate that we open an office in the MEA region to consolidate and expand our presence.”

Said Vishal Kumar, Senior Vice President & Head of the MEA region, ITC Infotech, “We have been closely following this market and feel it is the opportune moment to set up a base here. This region offers immense opportunities in industries like Banking, Retail & Distribution, Manufacturing and Oil & Gas amongst others where we have unparalleled experience and expertise. This geographical expansion is a natural progression for us at ITC Infotech and we are confident of tapping the full potential of the MEA region. Our new office will also help us to work in close partnership with our existing customers in the region.”

In addition to providing traditional IT services like Testing, ERP implementation & Support, Infrastructure Services, Loyalty solutions, Application Development, Maintenance & Support, ITC Infotech will also offer services in the areas of cloud computing, analytics and mobility. The company is already witnessing strong demand for its differentiated services & solutions. 

With the global economy on the path of recovery, the overall business sentiment in the region seems positive. As the banking industry continues to grow, banks and financial institutions in the region are investing heavily in Information Technology and Analytics, Engineering Services in the Oil & Gas sector are also looking up again after a brief slump and the Retail & Airline industries are looking at increasing customer intimacy.  

According to Gartner, in 2014, overall IT spending is projected to grow at 5.3%, with the services component growing at 3.7%. The region will witness similar growth rates in 2015 & 2016 also, indicating a steady & growing demand for IT services.

Government’s Decision to set up Fabrication Unit in India Welcomed: MAIT

  

Manufacturers’ Association for Information Technology (MAIT), the apex body actively representing ICT Manufacturing, Training, IT, Design, R&D and associated services sector welcomed the cabinet’s decision of setting up of two semiconductor manufacturing facilities in India.

Commenting on this much needed approval, Amar Babu, President, MAIT said, “Considering the fact that more than 65 per cent of current demand for electronic products in India is met by imports, the recent policy initiatives of the government to set up fab manufacturing and semi-conductor units will transform the Indian electronics manufacturing sector and create opportunities for Electronic Design and Manufacturing (ESDM). It will cater to the domestic demand for hardware manufacturing and also act as an export hub. We at MAIT, hope that the consortiums chosen to set up fabrication units complete the projects in time. This development would also have a positive impact on our economy and generate employment besides sending right signals to the investors.”

The Cabinet has approved setting up of two semiconductor units entailing investments of Rs. 51,550 crore and will now prepare a detailed project report and has announced to issue a letter of intent to the participants.

Applauding this decision, Anwar Shirpurwala, Executive Director, MAIT, said, “India will play a vital role in facilitating the growth of electronics and semiconductor ecosystem. Recent approval given by the government to set up two semiconductor units with an investment of Rs 51,550 crore gains traction. This would begin an era in India to build technological capabilities, promote innovation and enhance manufacturing capabilities in India. Many members of MAIT have already set up manufacturing facilities and look for local source for the semiconductor ecosystem.”

InMobi Only Second To Facebook In Mobile Advertising

InMobi, the world’s largest independent mobile advertising company, has recently announced its network growth numbers for the period ending December 31, 2013. InMobi now reaches 759 million active users per month through their mobile devices, providing advertisers with the largest global reach, after Facebook. These 759 million anonymous profiles on the InMobi network span 165 countries, bringing a truly global audience to advertisers.

“According to IDC, smartphone shipments are expected to pass one billion for the first time in 2014. Mobile has become the foundation of peoples’ lives, it is now the preferred media platform—overtaking even TV—it is how people obtain necessary information for everyday life,” said Naveen Tewari, CEO, InMobi. “With this growing reliance on mobile devices, naturally, advertising budgets are following consumers. Five years ago, a brand that included mobile advertising in its portfolio was ahead of the curve. Today, if you’re not advertising on mobile, you risk losing an entire generation of consumers.”

Tewari continued, “Our platform processes 240 TB of data per day to make the best possible decisions to deliver the most relevant content to the user. Reaching consumers via mobile has become common, but providing the best user experience, including engaging ad formats, precise targeting, and delivering consistently relevant messaging, relies on the intelligent processing of big data and continued innovation.”

Key InMobi Network Statistics:

* InMobi receives over four billion ad requests per day;

* 9.2 billion events ingested per day;

* The InMobi platform processes 240 TB of data per day to deliver the most relevant advertising content to consumers;

* 5 TB of new data generated daily; and,

* Truly global reach of 759 million active monthly users, across 165 countries.

Microsoft Announces Summer Batch 2014 Of Its Accelerator Program

Microsoft Ventures in India has announced the final list of technology startups that will constitute the 2014 summer batch at the Microsoft Ventures Accelerator Program in India. The 16 startups are Appointy, App Virality, Bookpad, Boutline, Imly, InstaSafe, IntouchApp, Metaome, Sliderule, Voonik, MyBusTickets.in, Praxify, Thinxtream, Touchfone, ZingHR and Zoom. Six of these companies, namely MyBusTickets.in, Praxify, Thinxstream, Touchfone, ZingHR and Zoom, will constitute the newly launched Accelerator Plus Program, which is tailor made for startups that have customer traction and know their market fairly well, whose needs are vastly different from early stage companies.

Welcoming the fourth batch, Ravi Narayan, Director Microsoft Ventures, said, “The good thing about this batch is that most of these companies already have a certain amount of customer traction and the Accelerator Program is well positioned to step in and help them move ahead faster than they would have otherwise. We saw a lot of great applications this time around, which means the startup ecosystem is evolving rapidly. “

Explaining the rationale behind the Accelerator Plus Program, Narayan said: “This program is for more mature companies which are closer to VC funding.  Most of them have made significant progress, so much so that the startup ecosystem is taking their eyes off them. But we at Microsoft Ventures feel this is the time they need the most help, when from an investor standpoint they are getting ready to graduate into the mainstream. Microsoft Ventures is uniquely positioned with resources to help these companies to roll out products and raise serious capital to fund their growth.”

Microsoft Ventures in India partners with industry bodies to support the startup community and widen its reach. Four startups from the latest batch– Bookpad, Praxify, Imly and Boutline - were selected at events organized by one of our industry partners, NASSCOM.

The other participants in the batch came through applications received over two months. All applicants went through a rigorous selection process, culminating in face-to-face presentations to a panel of judges.

Bharati Jacob, Founder-Partner at Seedfund, who was on the panel, said: “It was a great mix of startups – some solving local problems which had global sized opportunities while others were global in nature. Most of the startups came up with original ideas, i.e. they weren’t “copy+paste” of an overseas idea. All teams came with tremendous energy and passion for their idea, which bodes well for the Indian ecosystem.”

Microsoft Ventures in India has graduated 35 startups since August 2012. About 80 per cent of these are funded and two graduates, Adepto and Plustxt, have been acquired.

Vijay Anand, founder, The Startup Centre, said: “Microsoft Ventures is steadily emerging as a key player in the Indian startup ecosystem – working closely by pooling its resources with other accelerators, incubators and other industry bodies with the goal to help startups. The Microsoft Ventures Accelerator Program gives us great insight into young and high potential teams that are building products; raring to go compete in the global marketplace."