India’s GCCs now turning into mega centres

The global capability centres (GCCs) in India are entering a new phase of scale and are expected to grow further as more than 200 GCCs are projected to move into this category, reflecting the maturity of this segment.

Currently, India is home to more than 1,700 GCCs, of which around 5% fall under the mega GCC category, i.e., employing more than 5,000 professionals.

“Over 230 companies are on track to become mega GCCs in the next five years led by software & internet, retail, and healthcare sectors,” said a report by Zinnov, a management consultancy company.

The report, titled ‘Unlocking the mega GCC advantage’, highlighted how India now possesses all the elements to scale, not just in terms of volume but also in value.

Namita Adavi, Partner at Zinnov and heading the India GCC consulting practice, says, “Scale has been a qualifying factor, but this also enabled us to bring more high-quality work to India.”

Today, India offers multiple advantages for the global corporations to set up their GCCs. It is not just the availability of engineering tech talent in the country, but also skilled professionals in segments such as IT, finance, HR, operations, inside sales, etc.

Adavi mentions that there are other intangible elements such as the depth of technology and managerial perspective, which play a key role in strengthening the GCC ecosystem.

The report notes that 50% of GCC talent in India is housed in these mega GCCs. This is something that has happened by design as there is a growing confidence about the capabilities of the GCCs in India.

“Mega GCCs have scaled consistently by delivering high quality outcome to the headquarters which has led to transition of more work to India GCC,” the report notes.

Today, the definition of value for mega GCCs has also evolved. Adavi says, rather than focusing solely on cost reduction or higher efficiency, companies now measure success through innovation output, which is leading to topline impact and improved customer experience for the parent companies.

As a result, mega GCCs are driving a growing share of leadership and specialised roles, anchoring nearly 25-30% of India’s niche positions.

Most mega GCCs now have technology centres of excellence (CoEs) in cutting edge areas such as artificial intelligence (AI) , machine learning, internet of things, cybersecurity, etc.

Adavi remarks that there is a big focus on AI by these mega GCCs given the disruptive nature of this technology and the CoEs are becoming a big differentiator.

This also means that the mega GCC are also creating a pipeline of leadership so that there is a strong succession plan. These centres are actively developing future leaders with proven global exposure, an AI-first approach, a recognised thought leader, enterprise operator, and someone with a CFO mindset.

Many of these leaders not only head the India site operations but also oversee certain business units of their parent companies.

Traditionally, companies took nearly two decades of presence in India to evolve into mega GCCs. However, the report suggests that this model might change as there is a clear playbook for others to learn how they scale faster both in terms of adding more people and also delivering very impactful work from India.

In contrast, less mature GCCs often find it challenging to scale their value proposition due to limited access to specialised talent and leadership maturity.

According to Adavi, India has become the centre for experimentation and innovation for the mega GCCs and this has shortened the time taken for those aiming to enter into the category.

“The playbook of mega GCCs provides the context for a sustained impact,” says Adavi.

Looking ahead, India’s GCC ecosystem is projected to expand rapidly over the coming years, reaching over 2,400 centres and generating over $100 billion in revenue by 2030. This growth has led to the entry of mid-tier and nano GCCs. These newer entities have their own specialised requirements and this reveals the depth of India's GCC ecosystem.