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Last week, tech giant <keyword id="19906778" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Infosys" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Infosys" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="Infosys">Infosys</keyword> was making headlines for delaying onboarding of thousands of freshers for more than two years. It was reported that freshers had been awaiting onboarding since 2022 but nothing was happening on that front. The Nascent Information Technology Employees Senate (<keyword id="20033579" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="NITES" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="NITES" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="NITES">NITES</keyword>) even filed a formal complaint against the company. Now, <keyword id="21949326" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Infosys-CEO" source="keywords">Infosys CEO</keyword> Salil Parekh has said that everyone with a job offer will be a part of the company even though there are “delays.” <h2>Infosys CEO reassures graduates</h2> Infosys has confirmed its commitment to honour all <keyword id="20345755" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="offers" source="keywords">offers</keyword> extended to fresh engineering graduates, despite ongoing delays in the onboarding process. CEO Salil Parekh recently addressed concerns that have been brewing among thousands of freshers, saying that while some joining dates have been adjusted, every candidate who received an offer will join the company. In a statement, Parekh told PTI, "Every offer that we have given, that offer will be honored, and those individuals will join Infosys. We have adjusted some dates, but beyond that, there is no change in our approach." According to a CNBC report, Parekh also said that the rising interest in Generative AI (GenAI) among clients is a positive sign for future growth. He added that while GenAI is driving significant change within the industry, it will not lead to layoffs at Infosys, a point of distinction compared to trends seen at other tech firms. <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="112669758" title="Infosys delays onboarding of 2,000 graduates for more than 2 years, NITES files complaint" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div> Parekh’s reassurances come in response to growing unrest among freshers from the 2022 batch, many of whom have been waiting for nearly two years to start their careers at Infosys. <h2>What is happening with Infosys hiring?</h2> For the unversed, the Nascent Information Technology Employees Senate (NITES), a Pune-based IT employee union, recently filed a formal complaint with the Ministry of Labour and Employment, accusing Infosys of delaying the onboarding of over 2,000 engineering graduates. These graduates were selected for roles such as system engineers and digital specialist engineers during the company’s 2022-23 recruitment drive. According to NITES, the affected graduates received their offer letters as early as April 2022 but have since faced continuous delays, unpaid pre-training programs, and additional assessments that were not initially communicated. Despite fulfilling all the requirements, these professionals have been left in limbo, unable to begin their careers. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/careers/news/work-life-balance-is-a-myth-photo-of-man-working-in-front-of-momo-stall-goes-viral-internet-reacts/articleshow/112516510.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">'Work-life balance is a myth’: Photo of man working in front of momo stall goes viral, Internet reacts</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/article/arrange-or-love-marriage-debate-is-passe-people-are-now-marrying-their-ai-partners/articleshow/112522764.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">Arrange or love marriage debate is passe, people are now marrying their AI partners</a>

Everyone will join, there is no change: Infosys CEO after delaying joining of 2,000 freshers for over two years

<keyword id="19995882" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Berkshire-Hathaway" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Berkshire Hathaway" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Berkshire Hathaway">Berkshire Hathaway</keyword> Inc., the conglomerate led by American Businessman <keyword id="19921921" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Warren-Buffett" source="keywords">Warren Buffett</keyword>, has made history by becoming the first U.S. non-tech company to surpass the USD <keyword id="6852179" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="1-trillion" source="Orion">1 trillion</keyword> mark in <keyword id="20000950" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="market-capitalisation" source="keywords">market capitalisation</keyword>. The <keyword id="19998639" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="stock-price" source="keywords">stock price</keyword> of Berkshire Hathaway surged by USD 3.96 on the New York Stock Exchange, closing at USD 464.59 per share on Wednesday. With this milestone, Berkshire Hathaway joins an exclusive group of six other companies, primarily from the <keyword id="19896148" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="technology-sector" source="keywords">technology sector</keyword>, that have crossed the USD 1 trillion threshold. This list includes Apple, Nvidia, Microsoft, Alphabet (the parent company of Google), Amazon, and Meta Platforms (the parent company of Facebook). The stocks of Berkshire Hathaway have seen significant growth this year, appreciating by more than 28 per cent on the New York Stock Exchange. Despite this achievement, the broader U.S. stock markets faced a downturn on Wednesday. Both the S&amp;P 500 and the Nasdaq indices declined, largely due to profit-taking by investors. This market pressure in the U.S. had a ripple effect across Asian markets, where major indices also faced selling pressure on Thursday morning. In Asia, Japan's Nikkei index fell by 0.45 per cent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index declined by 0.55 per cent. Taiwan's Taiwan Weighted Index emerged as the largest loser among the major Asian markets, dropping by 1.32 per cent. In the Indian markets on Wednesday, the Nifty 50 index at the National Stock Exchange (NSE) touched a record new lifetime high of 25,114.05 during the trading. The sectoral stocks of IT contributed the most to the fresh lifetime high ever of Nifty. Rate cut hopes in the US and subsequent buying from foreign portfolio investors supported the market. The sectoral index of IT was trading with a lead of 1.96 per cent with stocks of major <keyword id="20062339" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="IT-companies" source="keywords">IT companies</keyword> such as LTIMindtree, Wipro, and Infosys are trading as the biggest gainers in the trade. <keyword id="19925636" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="stock-market" source="keywords">Stock market</keyword> opened nearly flat on Wednesday with Nifty starting above 25,000 and BSE Sensex opening at 81,800. Over the past few trading sessions, the Nifty was in the tight range despite the positive global cues. "Finally it has broken through to fresh all-time highs. This opens up possibilities for a strong upmove now. Sector-wise, domestic cyclicals will lead the way while IT is coming back in favour of selective name," said Ajay Bagga, Market and Banking expert.

Warren Buffett-led Berkshire Hathaway becomes first non-tech US company to cross USD 1 trillion market cap

It's impossible to talk about workforce innovation without addressing artificial intelligence.During a virtual roundtable, we asked Business Insider's <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/workforce-innovation-board-tackles-topics-such-as-c-suite-innovation-ai-worker-wellness-2024-8">Workforce Innovation board</a> to tell us how AI would transform companies over the next year.One major topic was reskilling and upskilling employees. BI's Tim Paradis, who focuses on the future of work, asked whether there were any fears that <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/vinod-khosla-universal-basic-income-ai-job-loss-2024-9">dire predictions of AI</a> outpacing human capabilities to learn, like those advanced in a recent article by Sun Microsystems cofounder <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.khoslaventures.com/ai-dystopia-or-utopia/">Vinod Khosla</a>, would prove true."The basic drivers of job creation will change with a technology that does not only augment human capabilities, but also may surpass them altogether," Khosla wrote, "leaving education and upskilling — a historical avenue for retraining and relevance — somewhat impotent."Board members rejected the grim prognostication."I disagree with that statement," said Justina Nixon-Saintil, IBM's vice president and chief impact officer, though she agreed that AI would exacerbate the digital divide."We made a commitment to scale 2 million people in AI by 2026," Nixon-Saintil said. "There's a sense of urgency in making sure we are not leaving people behind."AARP's Marjorie Powell argued that the global labor shortage was evidence of an enduring need for human workers but that no one can afford to be complacent. "You're going to have to relearn how to do your job," Powell said.Others described the importance of communicating clearly with workers about what AI means for their jobs now and in the future."We're trying to figure out how this transformation is going to occur," said Chris Deri, the president of the corporate advisory businesses at Weber Shandwick. "There has to be transparent communications and stakeholder engagement alongside figuring out these enterprise and strategic matters."The following has been edited for length and clarity.<h3 id="4a721470-9d79-4540-a871-62ad779b2870">How will the most innovative companies be transformed by AI over the next 12 months?</h3><h2 id="58f968af-3acb-493b-870e-b8d2bf021db1">Justina Nixon-Saintil, vice president and chief impact officer, IBM</h2><h3 id="a436d836-8481-4230-8a70-68bd3cfe6353">"Any tasks or jobs in the company that could be automated by AI will happen within the next year."</h3>A lot is going to change. Any tasks or jobs in the company that could be automated by AI will happen within the next year. For any jobs that cannot be automated, workers will need to understand how to work alongside AI.You need to understand what AI means for your role, how to use it to <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-use-ai-save-time-work-best-ways-use-chatgpt-2024-9">increase productivity or efficiency</a>, and how to create new products and solutions leveraging AI. That's going to be the big shift, and here we actually continue to upskill our employees to prepare for that shift.Last year, we had an AI challenge across the company, and a huge percentage of our employees participated. They had to get training first, and then they were part of a team to come up with innovative solutions leveraging AI. We did it again this summer. So the company is very focused on how to upskill all employees, because it's going to impact every role in the company.<h2 id="82ccd740-f6d2-4536-8e3d-54d9f225dac0">Anant Adya, EVP, service offering head, and head of Americas delivery, Infosys</h2><h3 id="66cbaa75-725e-4e65-880c-285d5d102e74">"How can we eat our own dog food right before we start telling customers to adopt AI?"</h3>We have two objectives. One is to become an AI-first enterprise. The first task is to see how we can start using AI in everything we do, whether it's in our claims or travel expenses, procurement, or handling invoices.Our philosophy is very simple. AI is not about replacing an individual or replacing an employee but how we can amplify our productivity by using the tools. How can we eat our own dog food right before we start telling customers to adopt AI?Second is that for all the offerings that we have today, we want to make sure we infuse AI into them. When we go and talk to our customers about task-level automation, coding or developing an application, or migrating a workload into the cloud — how can we infuse AI into everything that we do? So it doesn't just become a people-based offering but a people-plus-AI-based offering.<h2 id="961badc0-cb06-4d47-9329-ac1f1b2d70dd">Marjorie Powell, chief HR officer and senior vice president, AARP</h2><h3 id="0aee923e-e647-43c9-bf57-4c2ecc03a872">"It's important that everyone learns how to deal with prompt engineering; we are not going to hire prompt engineers."</h3>We believe there's going to be a greater emphasis on <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ai-will-change-most-jobs-employers-help-workers-keep-up-2024-8">upskilling and reskilling</a> alongside AI technologies.It's important that everyone learns how to deal with prompt engineering; we are not going to hire prompt engineers. It's going to become a skill for employees to craft clear and specific prompts, adjust to the right audience, and utilize elements and problem-solving skills to identify inaccurate responses.It's about adaptability. Employees are going to have to be open to continuous learning and adapting to new AI tools and technologies in their jobs. So we make sure we're providing some kind of atmosphere and culture for being excited and energetic about learning.The workforce will have to problem-solve regardless of the tool and the technology, and it will require test-and-learn approaches. We created a "community of practice" in the company where individuals can join and help with peer learning and have a sandbox to play around with AI, depending on where they are.They can cross-pollinate across business-unit lines, and that has become very exciting. We also use that group to pilot the new technologies we're considering rolling out to the company.Data literacy is going to be very important — understanding how to read and interpret and tell a story of the data.We're also developing power users in the company, people who are really, really good at this that other employees can tap into when they need help.<h2 id="0ef1d87b-57f3-4474-bfdc-21c4f4fc1b74">Alicia Pittman, global people team chair, Boston Consulting Group</h2><h3 id="dd47519b-c973-4a00-b508-f05159afdea8">"Gen AI also offers an opportunity to avoid leakage of human capital, which obviously we all care quite a lot about."</h3>We have 35,000 employees, and north of 70% are active users of <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/companies-using-ai-bain-survey-roi-2024-6">generative AI</a> now. We've taken a full-company approach of upskilling and rolling out both custom and off-the-shelf tools, regardless of the job.The bottom-up innovation power of gen AI is super exciting. For example, our teams and employees have created more than a thousand custom GPTs, mini automation machines, to-do scripts, and dashboards to create bespoke analyses and build newsletters — it's super quick, and it doesn't require big investments or processes.That's one thing that's specific to gen AI versus other types of technology innovation — it's sparking a lot of energy and unlocking human capacity.Gen AI also offers an opportunity to avoid leakage of human capital, which obviously we all care quite a lot about. It really changes the game in terms of the amount of learning you can keep within the team and not lose as people move around.We're also seeing how gen AI is creating an exoskeleton for generalists to be able to take on more technical tasks. It's not going to turn a generalist analyst into an expert coder, but actually our analysis would show that they can get 80%-plus there on some coding tasks, which then you still need the expert coder to do quality control.<h2 id="d130e1cc-4600-48d2-941b-e5e5b1eddc1f">Maggie Hulce, chief revenue officer, Indeed</h2><h3 id="d4c2bf89-e522-4f0d-bbff-d8d4f916c1e1">"Do I have to build this huge team of AI engineers? The answer is no."</h3>We're trying to infuse AI in all our externally facing products and solutions to make them more insightful, intuitive, and delightful to use — and, in many ways, to create experiences that mimic what a personalized human experience might be like, but at scale.We also see most roles and workflows becoming augmented with AI. That's becoming more and more obvious as the months go on and as teams engage with AI and find applications and new ways of working.I was at Dreamforce recently in San Francisco. What Salesforce <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.salesforce.com/news/press-releases/2024/09/17/google-autonomous-agent-partnership/">unveiled</a> was how it wants to help companies essentially launch AI agents in sales, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/verizon-is-using-generative-ai-to-streamline-business-relationships-2024-7">customer service</a>, marketing, and commerce.For many companies to get the full power of what AI can do, you have to be able to link up lots of different datasets that are usually in disparate places. It's hard work, and it's very time-consuming. To hear the stories of companies being like, "Guess what, you don't actually have to move that data around anymore," this is going to change how a lot of companies experiment and start to play with AI-oriented applications that will fundamentally change their operations.There are a lot of companies out there that have already started to light it up. We're thinking a lot about how sales, customer service, marketing, and product have operated for a long time in various silos. When you think about customer experiences, they really shouldn't be that way. They should be much more integrated than they are today. Some of these technologies can be part of the accelerants for how customer experiences can be reimagined.Part of what's been hard for people is like, "OK, but do I have to get all of these disparate parts of my company to all work together in a new way? Do I have to build this huge team of AI engineers?" The answer is no. You don't have to be the tip of the spear in terms of sophistication.<h2 id="8b49bd10-b04d-4857-afbc-b2979d5711e9">Kenon Chen, executive vice president of strategy and growth, Clear Capital</h2><h3 id="550eee1b-ffef-4a90-bbea-a94d7a6ba7a2">"As AI accelerates, you also have to accelerate the handling of data in a way that can produce accurate models."</h3>At Clear Capital, we participate in the highly regulated housing-finance industry. To enable AI to be used in accordance with our clients' expectations of governance and quality control, we've taken a three-pronged approach.First, we've been investing in creating good industry standards and working with the industry to ensure there's agreement on how AI models should be tested, how they ensure compliance with antidiscrimination and fairness practices, and how the data should be handled.Second, we've been investing a lot in higher-quality data. As AI accelerates, you also have to accelerate the handling of data in a way that can produce accurate models. So we've invested quite a bit in better digitization and generation of data.Third is fostering collaboration between innovators, industry players, policymakers, and regulators. We participated this year in the Federal Housing Finance Agency's generative-AI tech sprint, where about 80 leaders from different aspects of the housing industry brainstormed ways to apply generative AI to the lending process to improve borrowers' experience.One thing that became clear after participating in that was where we have more tools and more capabilities to accelerate. We always have to go back to the why: What is the mission? And we have to make the mission at the company level that much more clear so that as we apply these new tools, it's always for the sake of the mission.<h2 id="5e045b5f-3490-4435-8321-bab58740eaa8">Chris Deri, president, corporate advisory businesses, The Weber Shandwick Collective</h2><h3 id="79930c20-445b-4959-b644-53f07e252292">"There's a mega-trend need for all of us to adopt AI and understand it, but that means something different for different parts of our organization."</h3>We're a public-relations firm, so we're looking at AI for ourselves and for our clients.In terms of our own people, one lesson we've already learned is that there was an instinct to take a top-down approach, as in everybody's got to figure out how AI is going to change their business, but we need to take a bottom-up approach.In the simplest sense, we do consumer marketing, healthcare marketing, and corporate advisory work. We really need to design training for each of the different practitioner types.There's a mega-trend need for all of us to adopt AI and understand it, but that means something different for different parts of our organization.Another thing we're doing is creating a futuristic think-tank group in our company — three or four people who have been putting together an ecosystem to give us constant learning. We also have academic institutions, investors, technologists, and other practitioners to help.We're also looking at our business model and how we budget and scope. The classic assignment we get is companies call us and say, "We want to map our stakeholders and what their expectations are of us." That used to be a project that we would figure out with just consultant time. Now we're applying AI to do some of that.We need to figure out how to take advantage of those efficiencies to add new value — that human value. So we need to relook at our entire business and service model, and we haven't figured it all out yet.Anant talked about "eating your own dog food." We've mapped out the implementation of that stack for ourselves to test and learn, and then we will start to use that in how we show up as advisors to our clients on the same journey.<h2 id="3bf33684-0da6-43af-856a-e0d807c42725">Sharawn Tipton, chief people and culture officer, LiveRamp</h2><h3 id="2513253b-1145-4ac9-afad-cb752e1513d8">"What we're trying to do is really keep people at the center of this transformation."</h3>We're thinking a lot about the AI trust gap. I'm in San Francisco today, and I was walking around and I saw all these autonomous vehicles, and it dawned on me that my mother would never ride in one. She just does not trust that technology.As a data company, we're thinking a lot about how do we ensure that our customers, our clients, and our partners trust that we're going to protect their data and use AI when appropriate and be certain that we have safeguards for when it isn't appropriate. And then I think the biggest area that my team is focused on with this trust gap is job security and what this means for the average worker.So what we're trying to do is really keep people at the center of this transformation. We're thinking a lot about employee resource groups. That way we've been able to reach all different types of team members. So how do we target our ERGs and think about who are the slow adapters? Who are the folks that typically get left behind, and how do we give them a little extra push?What we want to do is think about how to continue to have our team members trust their leaders, but also trust AI and where we're going, and get them to understand this isn't about replacing jobs. We are really focused on transforming jobs. That is a huge shift and a huge opportunity for us.<h2 id="c0d7e4c7-96a5-41d7-8c3f-29dee443e291">Shane Koller, senior vice president and chief people officer, Ancestry</h2><h3 id="2fb41060-9718-4c06-940a-5ac8246457b5">"The more people we get thinking about governance, the better AI technology will be used."</h3>There are a lot of different points of view on what AI will and will not do and how quickly.I was reading an article in The Wall Street Journal over the weekend that said for every one person who believes that AI is going to replace everyone's jobs, there are three or four who think there's going to be this boom in AI and then it's going to settle down. And that the promise we think AI is going to deliver will probably take longer than we think to come to fruition.One of the things that we've been doing at Ancestry very intentionally is bringing up the subject of governance, because I think we all think of AI as this steamroller that's going to come and either we're going to step aside from it or we're going to get steamrolled.The more people we get thinking about governance, the better AI technology will be used. And I say that within Ancestry as well as within companies in general and within governments. We have more of a role to play in how this rolls out than we think.We've been building AI into our product for over 10 years now, and we've been giving more thought to how would we govern the use of AI within our own company so that we're not, for example, putting our customers' data at risk. We're very conscious that security and privacy is first and foremost in every discussion. It's really about how you govern such an amazing technology.

Leaders from BCG, Infosys, AARP, and more predict how AI will transform top companies in the next 12 months

New Delhi: After two <keyword id="19945688" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="acquisitions" source="keywords">acquisitions</keyword> this year, India's second-largest IT services company <keyword id="19906778" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Infosys" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Infosys" meta.hostid="268" meta.entityid="Infosys">Infosys</keyword> is on the lookout to scoop-up more firms and says the acquisition matching scale of recent in-tech buy is certainly a possibility. In an interview to PTI, <keyword id="24144" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="infosys-ceo" source="Orion">Infosys CEO</keyword> <keyword id="20115570" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="salil-parekh" source="keywords">Salil Parekh</keyword> said the company is keen on acquisitions in areas like data analytics, SAAS, and may look at some geographies within Europe, and the US. Asked if more acquisitions could be of the scale matching in-tech, which came with a price-tag of 450 million euros, <keyword id="20039787" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="parekh" source="keywords">Parekh</keyword> said, "Absolutely, I think those would be the size that we will look at in terms of scale, and given our structure we could do a few of those." Back in January, Infosys announced a definitive agreement to acquire 100 per cent of the equity share capital in InSemi Technology Services, a semiconductor design services company headquartered in India, for a consideration (including earn-outs, and management incentives and retention bonuses) totalling up to Rs 280 crore. A bigger acquisition followed in three months. In April, Infosys Germany, a wholly-owned step-down subsidiary, entered into a definitive agreement to acquire 100 per cent of the equity share capital in in-tech Holding -- leading provider of engineering R&amp;D services headquartered in Germany -- for a consideration of up to 450 million euros (about Rs 4,045 crore). "We have very good business in engineering services already within Infosys and then we did those two acquisitions, both of them in engineering services, one on semiconductor side and one on the automotive side... very strong businesses, and we feel quite good about expanding that footprint," Parekh said. Infosys is eyeing more acquisitions, he said, adding that the company is evaluating several firms. "We have a good balance sheet and good cash generation and now we are quite comfortable with the integration of acquisition in different areas. We have done engineering services, we will look at other areas... for example data analytics... may look at SAAS (software as a service) areas, and maybe at some other geographies in Europe, maybe the US as well," he said. Parekh, however, said a lot depends on strategic synergies, financial cost, cultural fit and integration aspects. "We are continuing to look, and we have things that are normally in the pipeline but those take their own time... there are a lot of discussions on strategic fit, on financial cost of it and cultural fit into the company and then how will we integrate them. Many of those discussions are ongoing and we will see what comes out," the Infosys top honcho said. On whether he is hopeful of closing more acquisitions this fiscal year, Parekh indicated that it is tough to put a timeline on the outcome of ongoing discussions. "It is difficult to say... we are evaluating several (of them). But to get a fit on the strategic parameters, financial parameters, culture, integration... all of it may not work out. But these two (InSemi and in-tech) happened relatively quickly... before that for some quarters we had not done anything. It is not a predictable thing, but the evaluation is ongoing," he said. According to the Grant Thornton Bharat Dealtracker Q2 2024 report, Indian dealmaking saw overall 501 deals, valued at USD 21.4 billion. The report said the second quarter of 2024 witnessed the highest quarterly volumes since the second quarter of 2022, while values declined due to the absence of big-ticket merger and acquisition transactions. Grant Thornton Bharat Dealtracker further said the merger and acquisition (M&amp;A) activity during the second quarter saw 132 deals worth USD 6.2 billion, marking a slight increase in volumes but a substantial 50 per cent drop in values. As per the report, domestic deals drove growth with volumes rising 29 per cent and values increasing 2.5 times compared to the first quarter of the current year. In contrast, cross-border deals experienced a decline, with volumes decreasing 24 per cent and values plummeting 85 per cent from the first quarter of 2024.

Infosys is keen on more acquisitions, says CEO Salil Parekh

As the results season kicks in, the <keyword id="20097634" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="quarterly-earnings" source="keywords">quarterly earnings</keyword> numbers of several <keyword id="22405488" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="blue-chip-firms" source="keywords">blue-chip firms</keyword> — such as <keyword id="19906778" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Infosys" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Infosys" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Infosys">Infosys</keyword> and Reliance Industries — along with <keyword id="20837523" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="global-trends" source="keywords">global trends</keyword> and <keyword id="20223116" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="trading-activity" source="keywords">trading activity</keyword> of foreign investors, will determine <keyword id="22405487" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="equity-market-movement" source="keywords">equity market movement</keyword> in the holiday-shortened week ahead, according to analysts. The domestic <keyword id="22405489" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="WPI-inflation-data" source="keywords">WPI inflation data</keyword> for June — scheduled to be announced on Monday — will also influence trading sentiments, traders said. Markets will remain closed on Wednesday for Muharram. Among major quarterly earnings to be tracked this week are from HDFC Life Insurance Company, Bajaj Auto, BPCL, JSW Steel, Asian Paints, Infosys, and Reliance Industries. "Q1 earnings will be a key focus this week as numerous companies, including heavyweights Infosys, and Reliance, are set to release their results. Additionally, <keyword id="22194639" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="pre-Budget-discussions" source="keywords">pre-Budget discussions</keyword> are expected to contribute to market volatility," Santosh Meena, Head of Research, Swastika Investmart Ltd, said. On the global front, a significant focus will be on China. The country is scheduled to announce its GDP and Industrial Production (IIP) numbers, Meena said. "Other global factors to watch include the speech by the US Federal Reserve Chairman, US retail sales figures, and macroeconomic data from Japan," he added. Meanwhile, IT services company HCL Tech on Friday posted a 20.4 per cent rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 4,257 crore for the June-ended quarter and gave a revenue growth guidance of 3-5 per cent for FY25 on GenAI diversification and strong operational execution. "On Monday, markets will react to India's inflation data. Key results this week include Jio Financial Services, HDFC Life, Asian Paints, LTIMindtree, Infosys, Wipro, JSW Steel, Paytm, etc. Also globally, investors will take cues from China's GDP numbers, US core retail sales data, and ECB (European Central Bank) interest rate decision," Siddhartha Khemka, Head, Retail Research, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd, said. Retail inflation increased to four-month high of 5.08 per cent in June as food items, including vegetables, became dearer, according to government data released on Friday. Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services, said, "We expect stock-specific moves to gain traction due to the ongoing earnings season; indeed, IT will be in the limelight due to the good start to the earnings and outlook." In the week ahead, economic data like China GDP, EuroZone CPI inflation, ECB policy, and the US Fed chair speech will be watched by investors to get cues on market momentum, Nair added. On a weekly basis, the BSE benchmark jumped 522.74 points, or 0.65 per cent, while the Nifty climbed 178.3 points, or 0.73 per cent. The 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 622 points, or 0.78 per cent, to settle at a record closing level of 80,519.34 on Friday. During the day, it zoomed 996.17 points, or 1.24 per cent, to hit an all-time high of 80,893.51. The NSE Nifty surged 186.20 points, or 0.77 per cent, to settle at a record closing high of 24,502.15. Intra-day, it jumped 276.25 points, or 1.13 per cent, to hit a new lifetime peak of 24,592.20.

Trading activity to hinge on Q1 results, global trends in holiday-shortened week: analysts

<ul><li>TCS and HCL Tech said that they have over a 100 <keyword id="17930214" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="genai" source="Orion">genAI</keyword> opportunities in the pipeline.</li><li>They also won a few projects, most of which are in the proof-of-concept or pilot stages.</li><li>Tech companies said they built large-scale genAI capabilities, and are ready to take on projects. </li></ul>Less than a year after ChatGPT was launched, Indian tech majors have started bagging generative AI projects. Even in times when demand is slow, discretionary spends are elusive, the new-age technology is bringing work as well as excitement into the IT outsourcing market. Although the size of the deals is small at the moment, genAI has ‘captured the imagination’ of clients, say top executives of Indian IT companies. TCS and HCL Tech said that most of their <keyword id="19151325" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="genai-projects" source="Orion">genAI projects</keyword> are proof-of-concept or pilot stages. “Deal sizes are small and are mostly under $1 million where clients are trying them out. But there is potential to convert a part of our Jaguar Land Rover with AI and ML capabilities,” said N Ganapathy Subramaniam, COO of TCS at the company’s Q2 earnings press conference. HCL Tech’s MD C Vijayakumar too shared that most of the genAI deals they are bagging are either half a million or sub-$1 million deals. But they are currently working on a hundred such opportunities. “We have been selected as a partner by this very large software major for their product testing and sustenance efforts. We are providing GenAI on a private language model to improve resolution rate and speed efficiency,” said Vijayakumar. Infosys CEO Salil Parekh also shared that they are working on some proprietary large language models (LLMs). “AI is a part of almost every deal we do. And, GenAI is getting there. As it expands and more and larger enterprises get into it, it will be very exciting,” he added. A catalog of AI opportunities A few months back, all tech majors announced big moves in the generative AI space. Wipro announced that it will spend as much as $1 billion over three years to build capabilities. TCS, HCL Tech partnered with software major NVIDIA to skill their employees. As of September end, TCS said that they have 100,000-strong GenAI-ready workforce. They said they also have as many as 250 Gen AI opportunities in the pipeline. “When we started generative AI, they were all about knowledge discovery. As clients understand more, the genAI is getting more complicated. We are now working for a co-pilot for a financial advisor on what advice to give clients, help underwriting policies,” explaining K Krithivasan, CEO of TCS. TCS said that it has identified opportunities across various verticals, identified use cases and cataloged them per vertical. With that it says that it’s planning to go and engage with clients and have conversations on the same. “With this, we can have conversations with our clients – be in CRM or payments space and wealth advisory and other use cases,” explained Ganapathy. HCL Tech too is working on use cases related to banking and financial sector. “We signed a generative AI deal with a to improve their risk and compliance efforts – which is a very big effort in financial services. There are a lot of transactions happening on this front, and we have discussed how we can help,” said Vijayakumar. The buzz for cost optimization and automation deals has gone up in the last few months. Clients are looking to ramp down their expenses and intend to use tech to help with their overall cost reduction efforts. As automation gains ground, AI and ML will find more use cases – and most tech companies are confident that a little of it can spill into the new and emerging area of GenAI as well.

Beyond just chats: Indian tech majors start bagging deals in GenAI space

In an era where customer experience is a primary business differentiator, the role of service hubs has evolved from merely answering calls to becoming innovation centers. With the infusion of advanced technologies like <keyword id="107950" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="artificial-intelligence" source="Orion">Artificial Intelligence</keyword> (<keyword id="6355999" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="AI" source="Orion">AI</keyword>) and Generative AI (Gen-AI), the service hub industry is now undergoing a transformation that promises to redefine customer interactions, according to experts. “The nature of the industry will change. I think even calling it <keyword id="19945906" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="customer-service" source="keywords">customer service</keyword> or service industry may be a very different outlook 5 years from now,” said Sameer Bapat, SVP and COO of Cognizant IOA, during a panel discussion on “Revolutionsing Customer Experience Innovating Service Hubs Through Technology,” hosted by Business Insider India. Leaders in the industry believe that India is entering the golden age of customer service, one powered by data-driven insights, AI-driven empathy, and evolving human-machine collaboration. “The net amount of venture capital and private equity capital that you’re going to see in the customer service industry going forward is going to 5-10x of what it has been in the last 5 years,” predicted panelist Vijay Narsapur, SVP and Business Head of Infosys BPM. <div type="Youtube" id="E23CeECUh9A" title="Revolutionizing Customer Experience: Innovating Service Hubs Through Technology" thumbUrl="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/E23CeECUh9A/mqdefault.jpg"><url><![CDATA[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E23CeECUh9A]]></url></div> <h2>The evolution of service hubs: More than customer service</h2>No longer just centers for addressing customer complaints or technical issues, today’s service hubs are integrating innovative technologies to become the nerve center of business operations. According to Sanjay Kukreja, Global Technology Head at Eclerx, tools like data engineering and cloud computing have shifted customer service into real-time interactions, allowing businesses to assist customers faster and more efficiently than ever before. For Narsapur, service hubs are now the lifeblood of the business process management (BPM) industry. End customers have become increasingly comfortable interacting with AI and automated systems. However, they still crave human connection, especially when complex or emotionally charged issues arise. Narsapur points out that this blending of technology and human touch is crucial for refining the customer journey. As businesses scale, service hubs are expected to balance these elements more tightly to deliver both efficiency and empathy. <h2>AI and Gen-AI: Disruptors or Enhancers?</h2>Arguably, the most significant driver of change in the service hub industry has been the integration of AI and Gen-AI. Bapat explains that these technologies have transformed how service hubs operate. Automation tools have led to productivity gains ranging between 20% to 60%, primarily by streamlining mundane tasks, improving scalability, and delivering more personalized customer interactions. This isn’t just an incremental improvement—it’s a deep, domain-led transformation of how companies interact with their customers. But, as Abhinandan Jain, Chief Growth Officer at Startek, notes, AI doesn’t just enhance efficiency—it also amplifies empathy. Service hubs are learning how to use AI as an "empathy amplifier," where AI-driven systems handle routine queries, and human agents step in for more complex, emotionally charged interactions. This helps agents focus on delivering the high-touch experiences customers expect when they escalate an issue to a real person. While there has been some anxiety surrounding AI replacing jobs, the experts argue that this technology will instead create more high-value roles. ““There is going to be an increase of anywhere between 2x to 5x in the number of jobs that are going to be created in this particular industry,” said Narsapur. For example, there will be an increasing demand for professionals skilled in data science, machine learning, and algorithm management to maintain and improve AI systems. According to a <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/mgi/our-research/generative-ai-and-the-future-of-work-in-america">McKinsey</a> report, AI will automate 25-30% of jobs in customer service, but the technology will also create new roles in AI supervision, data analysis, and customer experience management. <h2>Data-driven insights and the role of <keyword id="23232621" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="CRM-tools" source="keywords">CRM tools</keyword></h2>One of the most promising developments in the service hub sector is the increasing reliance on data to drive customer interactions. Jain explains that service hubs are now equipped with sophisticated Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tools that can mine both structured and unstructured data, enabling companies to gain a holistic view of customer behavior. This level of insight allows businesses to not only address customer queries more efficiently but also predict future needs, making the customer journey more proactive than reactive. These CRM platforms are evolving, too. Narsapur notes that many service hubs, particularly in industries like banking and telecom, now use platforms that integrate various aspects of customer interaction, from onboarding to relationship management. These platforms provide a unified view of customer interactions, allowing agents to access the information they need quickly, which ultimately drives faster resolution times and higher customer satisfaction. A <a href="https://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2021-01-12-gartner-predicts-80--of-customer-service-organization">Gartner</a> study revealed that by 2025, 80% of customer service interactions will be handled by AI and CRM systems, up from 52% in 2020. <h2>The economic impact of AI on service hubs</h2>The rise of AI and Gen-AI is also fueling an economic boom in the service hub sector. Jain predicts that the influx of venture capital and private equity in AI research for customer service hubs will increase five- to ten-fold in the coming years. This investment is primarily driven by the need for businesses to remain competitive in an increasingly tech-driven market. The economic growth potential is massive, especially in regions like India, where the talent pool for AI and data science is unmatched. Kukreja echoes this sentiment, noting that India’s service hubs are well-positioned to lead this transformation due to their depth of talent in areas such as data engineering, mathematics, and AI development. This gives Indian service hubs a competitive edge as companies look to scale their customer service operations with tech-driven solutions. Global spending on Gen-AI is expected to reach $26 billion by 2027, with Japan and India set to become the most rapidly expanding markets in the forthcoming years, according to <a href="https://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=prAP52048824">IDC</a>. <h2>What lies ahead for service hubs?</h2>As we look to the future, the role of service hubs will likely expand even further. Narsapur warns that while platforms and AI will drive efficiency, businesses should not rely solely on technology. Competitive advantage will come from the integration of human expertise, technology, and industry-specific solutions. Different sectors, such as banking, telecom, and retail, each have unique needs that service hubs must adapt to in order to provide effective, personalized customer experiences. AI will play a central role in this transformation. But as Jain points out, it won’t replace human agents entirely. Instead, it will coexist with them, moving people up the value chain to focus on higher-value tasks. AI will handle the routine, while humans will step in where emotional intelligence and complex problem-solving are required. In the end, the future of service hubs is not just about technology; it’s about blending tech and humanity in a way that elevates customer experiences to new heights. We are at the dawn of a new era for customer service hubs. The infusion of AI and Gen-AI, along with data-driven insights and sophisticated CRM tools, is transforming the industry from the ground up. Far from being a threat to jobs, AI will create new opportunities, leading to a more dynamic, efficient, and empathetic customer experience. With significant economic growth on the horizon, particularly in regions like India, the service hub industry is set to play a pivotal role in the future of business. The golden age of customer service is here, and the best is yet to come. This article is part of a four-part webinar series in partnership with nasscom. These monthly webinars aim to delve deep and offer insights into the evolving BPM landscape. You can watch the full video of the second session <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E23CeECUh9A">here</a>. Disclaimer: This article is generated and published by the Insider Studios team. You can get in touch with them on insiderstudios@businessinsider.in

Customer service hubs: Entering the golden age with Gen-AI and tech-driven solutions

<ul><li>The second quarter has always been a historically strong quarter, but Q2 FY24 is expected to be soft.</li><li>The demand picture is still weak and for most sectors, the slowdown has not bottomed out.</li><li>Vendor consolidation has led to a few large deal wins by the Big 3, but conversion to revenues will be slow.</li><li>Margin expansion will also be tough with a stable Rupee and cost levers yet to kick in. </li></ul>Little has changed for the Indian <keyword id="46964" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="it-sector" source="Orion">IT sector</keyword> in the last three months. The second quarter earnings are expected to be as muted as the quarter before. IT sector clients are continuing with their budget squeezes, cuts in discretionary spending that’s bringing in less into the companies’ revenue kitty. Top-tier IT companies are expected to see a 0.8% fall in constant currency revenues to a tad over 1% growth on a quarter-on-quarter basis. At the highest end of the most optimistic expectations is a 1.3% growth. On a year-on-year basis too, most see lower single digit growth or a fall – showing that the fear of recession has taken over the market. Most analysts expect <keyword id="6354512" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="infosys" source="Orion" topicspecial.url="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/infosys-ltd/stocks/companyid-10960.cms">Infosys</keyword> to retain its FY24 revenue growth, guidance of 1-3.5%. <keyword id="141968" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="hcl-tech" source="Orion" topicspecial.url="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/hcl-technologies-ltd/stocks/companyid-4291.cms">HCL Tech</keyword> is widely expected to cut its 6-8% growth projections. Most others are expected to veer towards the lower end of the guidance as the first half remains muted. Where is the budget flush? The much awaited budget flush that could have changed the fortunes of the sector is still evasive. “The second quarter of FY24 is likely to be incrementally better than the first quarter. But nowhere close to what most players envisaged at year-beginning. Hopes of finding a bottom in the first half has not materialised, we believe, as project ramp downs/cancellations continue,” says a report by J M Financial. The second quarter has always been a historically strong quarter. And, this theory is all set to change. “Most of the demand indicators are trailing 10-15% below levels at the beginning of the year and only slightly better than the July lows,” said HDFC Securities. Across sectors, budget cuts have played out differently. For the key BFSI sector, spend cuts have bottomed out. The recovery however is gradual and may not be visible before FY25, says HSBC. Telecom sector which was one of the worst affected, along with high-tech and retail, could also bottom out in the second quarter. “We think the spending cuts have been unsustainably aggressive. Hi-tech demand has already started to improve from 2Q. Further, verticals like O&amp;G and manufacturing continue to do well,” says HSBC, which believes that Q2 will see a slight positive growth. It however does not see any major budget flush or V-shaped recovery. Expected change in Constant Currency Revenues (QoQ) <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; table-layout: fixed; width: 468pt;" class="redcator-table-advance"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Company </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Kotak </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">J M Financial </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">IIFL Securities </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">TCS </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">0.5% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">1% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">1.2% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Infosys </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">0.6% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">1% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">1.3% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Wipro </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">-0.6% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">0.8% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">-1% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">HCL Tech </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">0.8% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">0.8% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">1.1% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">TechM </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">0% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">-1% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">-0.5% </td></tr></tbody><tbody></tbody><tbody></tbody></table>Source: Research reports Big deals, slow conversion Budget squeezes led to consolidation, with IT clients going in for mega deals. All the big three made top deal announcements in Q2. Infosys bagged a EUR1.5 billion deal from Liberty Global, in addition to a $454 million deal from Danske Bank. <keyword id="6357150" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="tcs" source="Orion" topicspecial.url="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tata-consultancy-services-ltd/stocks/companyid-8345.cms">TCS</keyword> bagged a £800 million deal from Jaguar Land Rover. It also won a NEST € 810 million deal from NEST. HCL Tech also won a $2.1 billion deal from Verizon. “We believe deal flow has steadied after the transition from discretionary spending-powered short-tenured programs to larger programs fueled by cost take-outs, which have longer sales cycles,” said Kotak Institutional Equities. These kinds of deal wins are expected to continue and grow through the financial year, as discretionary spending. “While most IT services firms saw a further moderation in year-on-year revenue growth in the June quarter, deal wins accelerated. Since then, the large and mega deal win momentum has quickened, giving us confidence in strong growth for FY25,” said BNP Paribas. Large deals, however, are spread across five years, and tend to convert slowly into revenues. “Barring re-badging deals, ramp-up and hence revenue conversion of mega deals tend to be long drawn,” says J M Financial. The most watched metric for the IT sector this season would be Total Contract Value-to-revenue conversion pace. The others would be the extent of compression in the existing book of business, and greater-than-normal furloughs, says a report by Nirmal Bang. Rupee, salaries &amp; margins One advantage of a soft macroeconomic environment is Rupee depreciation that adds to the margins of IT companies. Rupee depreciated only by 1% on a quarter-on-quarter basis, adding little to the sectoral margins. “This slowdown is different. Indian Rupee is relatively stable and Covid-19-led cost rationalisation is still unwinding like travel costs and onshore mix,” says HSBC Global Research. Margin management is also expected to be tough going forward as the operating environment has turned hard. Unplanned benching due to sudden ramp-downs, shift in revenue mix towards cost-takeout deals and lower growth will add to the pain on the profitability end. Kotak also expects a marginal decline in the EBIT margin on year-on-year comparison, except TechM where the decline will be sharp. Increase in costs such as travel and back-to-office expenses will hurt. “Cost levers are yet to fully kick in,” the research firm adds. On the other hand, net hiring has been all but flat for most IT sector companies. Moreso, Infosys, HCL Tech and <keyword id="10862" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="wipro" source="Orion" topicspecial.url="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/wipro-ltd/stocks/companyid-12799.cms">Wipro</keyword> have all delayed wage hikes which can help, along with other cost rationalization programmes. <div type="javascript" title="Custom" contenttype="Text"><cdata><![CDATA[]]></cdata></div>

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