![\"Student](\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/jackhedley\/files\/2012\/08\/Infosys-Theatre-2.jpg\")
<\/a>The theatre at the Infosys training facility drew immediate comparisons to Science World<\/p><\/div>\n
Our visit to Infosys came near the end of our trip, but I’d like to address it first because it was the largest and most internationally-renowned company that we visited. \u00a0We spent the day at the 300-acre Infosys training facility in Mysore. \u00a0The magnitude of the Infosys\u00a0architecture was the first thing that really shocked us; the on-campus theatre looked like a more modern version of Science World,\u00a0while the main classroom centre was so grand that several of our students immediately compared it to a modern Vatican.<\/p>\n
<\/a>The grand classroom centre at Infosys<\/p><\/div>\n
The majority of our time at the Infosys campus was spent touring the facilities, followed by a discussion of the sustainable innovations used in the company’s building practices and an overview of its typical recruitment methodology. \u00a0The scope of the visit really blew us away – the facility can train up to 15,000 new recruits at a time – and we were also struck by the compensation offered to new employees. \u00a0Typically, standout Software Engineer undergraduates would receive a maximum salary of 30,000 rupees, which translates to about $7,200 dollars a year. \u00a0This is on the high end of the pay scale for this industry in India right now, and is plenty to live a very comfortable life in that country, but it certainly doesn’t impress on an international level. \u00a0This led, of course, to the “a ha!” moment that we all should have seen coming: Infosys is effectively one of the world’s biggest outsourcing companies, and has created revenues upwards of $4 billion\/year by bridging the gap between North America’s software development needs and India’s dearth of relatively inexpensive development talent. \u00a0The whole trip immediately transformed into a massive, in-your-face testament to the “flat earth” theory in action.<\/p>\n
Our visit to 2adpro was early in our trip, on our second day in India. \u00a0The business was similar to Infosys in the sense that it offered digital outsourcing solutions to North American companies. \u00a02adpro specializes in creating advertising – including digital and print – for North American companies, and proudly holds a large and diverse client base that includes Macy’s. \u00a0The company is jointly owned, and shares an office space, with another major outsourcing solutions provider that focuses on the digitization of print media (like newspapers). \u00a02adpro was listed second in a Deloitte study of India’s fastest-growing tech companies in 2010, having posted revenue growth of 1,649% from 2008-2010. \u00a0The company continues to grow, and is developing its salesforce throughout the United States other developed nations around the world.<\/p>\n
<\/a>2adpro explains their business<\/p><\/div>\n
2adpro gave us direct access to their Chief Digital Officer Allan McCulloch for the afternoon, and he provided a much clearer picture of the strengths and weaknesses of his company than what we were able to learn from Infosys. \u00a0After understanding the root of the business – which although diverse, is relatively easy to understand at face-value – I was interested to analyze the company’s current challenges in the context of Friedman’s flat-earth theory. \u00a0After building on the competitive advantage of India’s access to cheap development talent, the firm is now being undercut by less-developed nations like the\u00a0Philippines. \u00a0No longer the lowest-price outsourcing option, 2adpro is now forced to leverage its experience in the industry and relationship with its clients, and move into a more creative-focused space, adding value and providing a more sophisticated degree of marketing planning for its clients. \u00a0Later, at Infosys, we witnessed a similar phenomenon; Infosys was moving up the value chain to provide additional consulting services beyond just low-cost software engineering solutions. \u00a0I was left with as many questions as answers, but wasn’t sure that 2adpro were the best ones to address them – certainly, in their eyes, they were well-equipped to go beyond the moniker of “lowest-cost provider”, but I wanted to continue exploring the question as an outsider. \u00a0My\u00a0preconceived biases caused me to be sceptical. \u00a0My thinking was that North American companies outsourced to India as a means to save money, but would otherwise prefer to use North American agencies to plan their marketing and develop advertising messages. \u00a0I was interested to keep this question in mind during my later project with Bangalore’s leading MBA factory, IIMB. \u00a0I’ll explore my answer to that question in my next blog post.<\/p>\n
In conclusion, my experience has suggested that Friedman’s theory holds – if the world isn’t flat now, it’s rapidly flattening. \u00a0Certainly, the effect isn’t all positive – India has long held a dramatic division of wealth, and this division is getting worse as the country’s inflation spirals upwards, causing additional need for change in government policy – but the process isn’t finished yet, and likely won’t be for decades to come. \u00a0Nevertheless, many of India’s largest and fastest-growing companies are sprouting from the newfound ease of communication across the globe, and this network is continuing to capture additional nations in its web. \u00a0Both Infosys and 2adpro are moving up the value chain, and the Indian educational system might need to adapt to this trend amongst employers. \u00a0The very nature of this issue, however, validates the theory that nations around the world are being drawn together<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
My MBA education at the Sauder School of Business has provided me with a number of remarkable opportunities, and none have been more eye-opening than my recent trip to India. \u00a0The entire student body is now required to travel abroad … Continue reading