IT start-ups ill-equipped to address changing customer needs: Nasscom

The landscape of the IT industry is changing rapidly and many start-ups and emerging companies are finding themselves ill-equipped to address the changing needs of their customers, Nasscom President Som Mittal said on Tuesday in Delhi.

Aiming to provide emerging firms insights on the changing user environment, IT-ITeS industry body Nasscom organised Emergeout Conclave 2013, showcasing the evolution of the Indian IT Industry and its future roadmap.
 

Mittal said that these start-ups and new players are uncertain about the ways and means to tap the emerging SME customer base, gain deeper knowledge about their prospective buyers and enhance their engagement mechanisms with them.
 

"Keeping this in mind we have designed the sessions of today's conclave, to evangelise and support emerging IT companies to out-compete and perform in such a dynamic environment," Mittal said.
 

He said that the $108 billion India IT-ITeS industry faces challenges like employability, infrastructure, favourable policies and competition from other low cost countries.
 

Low employability of existing talent with only 10-15 per cent employable graduates in business services and 26 per cent of employable engineers in technology services continues to be a major bottleneck, Mittal said.
 

The infrastructure development is largely constrained to about nine cities, which contribute more than 95 per cent of the country's exports and development of tier 2 and 3 cities has not taken off in a planned manner, he added.
 

The lack of a supportive fiscal environment with a long- term policy framework is also leading to competition from other low-cost countries including China, Philippines and from Eastern Europe with potential erosion of India's opportunity, he said.
 

"Another major issue is funding. Many start-ups require small funds to start and complete the first phase of their growth, fund like about Rs 20 lakh. Getting such small amounts is difficult," Mittal said.
 

Emerging IT players are not only setting new benchmarks in operational excellence, they are drawing vital VC and angel funding, building diverse product portfolios and foraying both the domestic and overseas markets, including non-traditional regions, Mittal said.