HCL Technologies localises leadership for global markets

Indian IT firm HCL Technologies (HCL) appointed Fabiano Funari as the country head for Brazil on Thursday. The company employs more than 800 people, serving more than 30 clients, in Brazil.

Last month, HCL Technologies appointed Adolfo Calviño Asensio as country head of Spain and Portugal, which it said is “the first of a number of strategic investments HCL plans to make in Iberia (south-west Europe).”

The $10-billion IT services company has been hiring local leaders aggressively, and plans “to accelerate business growth in the region across all key industry verticals.” About 84.1 percent of HCL Technologies' total services revenue comes from America and Europe.

“We continue to strengthen our capabilities in our key markets where we lead, like the US, UK and Nordics (Scandinavian countries) to sustain the advantages we have,” said C Vijayakumar, CEO and Managing Director of HCL Technologies.

HCL has been widening its geographical footprint in the last few months, looking beyond its key markets to “new frontier countries.”

“As a $10-billion global enterprise, the organisation’s business development ambitions extend beyond large geographies, into growth and frontier geographies for the next wave of growth,” HCL Technologies said its recent annual report.

The first set of frontier countries, which the company identified in its annual report, include Brazil and Mexico in the Americas, South Korea, Vietnam and Taiwan in the Asia-Pacific region, Italy, Spain and Portugal in Europe, South Africa and West Asia.

These countries “would grow our business in the medium term,”  Vijayakumar told equity analysts recently, attributing the focus to “strong economic growth and digital adoption in these countries.”

With a growing IT services industry, readiness of enterprises to adopt new technologies, and long-term socio-economic stability, these countries present a lucrative opportunity. “Some of these markets for HCL are largely untapped by Indian IT outsourcing companies, and represent significant growth opportunities,” the company said in its annual report.

Enterprises across Continental Europe and Asia Pacific are increasingly looking to digitise, as they develop and grow their businesses. HCL is looking to partner with them to implement these technologies.

Further, HCL said it would tap into growth in these countries by appointing local, geographical leaders who coordinate the current sales vertical and technology practices. The IT company plans to invest in domestic delivery centres, hiring local talent, and partnering with consultants in each country.

The company has already chosen Joonho Moon, Terry Tai and Nguyen Ha Tuan to lead and drive the team and grow the company in South Korea, Taiwan and Vietnam respectively. These hires have been country-specific, with experience and expertise of the local marketplace.

The company defines Australia, Canada, France, Germany and Japan as ‘focused markets,’ where it has already been strengthening its presence in the past few years.

In 2018, it acquired Germany’s H&D International Group (H&D), an IT and engineering services provider. In France, Australia, and Canada, HCL has been diversifying its portfolio depending on the nature of services demanded, investing in onsite operations and hiring local talent. 

With the set of frontier and focused countries, Vijaykumar told analysts that HCL Technologies is diversifying its portfolio.