Prospect of Job Creation in IT Sector in Nagaland
Imna Imchen
Thank you for this opportunity to make a presentation. Our presentation is in four segments. First we will tell you who we are. Second we will present our vision which will explain everything we do. Third we will explain what we are doing right now and why. Fourth and finally we will show you the bright future that we are working towards.
We represent Cosyne; an US based Information Technology Company. Cosyne has been providing IT services to the governments and large corporations in the US since 1998. Cosyne has also been a niche player in the thriving global marketplace using its Indian affiliations for the progress of both countries, India and USA. Cosyne’s founder, Perry Ram, is a seasoned entrepreneur and an alumnus of Harvard Business School. Cosyne started its Chennai operations in 2000 where it does software development for US businesses. In January 2005, Cosyne made an entry into Nagaland with the intent to bring progressive economic development to the State and the region which leads to our vision for the North East of India.
Our vision for the North East is very simple in words – “Rapid economic progress through education, technology, and entrepreneurship.” Though simple, this vision is very powerful as it is about the transformation of individuals one at a time. We are patient as we know that such transformation does not happen over night. We are committed because we feel for the people of the North East, for their hopes for their children and for the aspirations of all who desire a better future. Mohammed Ali, the famous boxer, once said, “That you are not knocked down, until you stay down.” In the same way, we are diligent knowing that there is no alternative to success and that every failure is but another step towards this goal.
Education opens the minds of the people and makes them realize the opportunities this world has to offer. This education is not from books alone. It is also from peers when you share with each other what you learned. It is through mentors, people who have already accomplished what you are aiming to. A lot of this knowledge today is disseminated through the internet. Thus the internet has become a vital educational tool. We have setup a Center where we are providing Microsoft Systems Engineering training to a 100 students in Nagaland. Our guarantee is to take these trained students and make them productive members of society through gainful enterprise or employment.
That takes us to our next topic about how Cosyne is bringing technology and its related industries for the advancement of the North Eastern people. Outsourcing is predicted to be the dominant business trend of the next few decades. Briefly, outsourcing means that companies will focus all their resources on what they do best and let other companies help them in everything else. The speed of the internet, the increasing literary rates among the worlds population, the cost differentials between countries, the policy of governments to tear down trade barriers, and the favorable conditions for global investment have brought us today opportunities that have never existed before. Combined with the growth of outsourcing this has mutated into the offshore outsourcing phenomena. This has increased the demand for trained IT professionals within India and we would place our students within these organizations in India. In addition to that, what is even more important is Cosyne’s expansion in the North East to provide Managed Computer Services to foreign corporations. Our students would have the right training to provide these services. The best of these students will be finding employment within the next few years in some of the developed countries. That exposure will bring repatriation of funds and new ideas to the North East.
Technology industries are environmentally friendly, have a satisfying work culture, provide excellent remuneration and are mentally stimulating. Cosyne is constantly looking to increase the number of technology industries in the North East. In the US, Cosyne has been vigorously promoting the North East as one of the best places for investing in technology industries. In association with the Guwahati Software Technology Park and NEDFI, North Eastern Development Finance Corporation Ltd., Cosyne feels very optimistic about helping one US Corporation setup a software development facility in Guwahati in 2006.
At Cosyne, we believe in socially responsible businesses creating a culture of profitable service. Small businesses are the engine of employment in USA. Societies that stifle the growth of small businesses are destined to suffer economic decline and we have only to see the former communist countries to have clear examples. Cosyne is right now laying down the plans that will provide the foundation to create thriving small businesses. These plans include providing entrepreneurial education, setting up financial institutions that will provide loans and micro loans, marketing and sales services as well as export guidance. Success will drive further success and we see the future of North East India as a hotbed of economic activity. Entrepreneurship will also make people more responsible, service oriented and confident, characters that will reflect in every walk of our life.
Private sector can accomplish a lot more with the support of Government. Government lays down the policies by which the industries operate. Government directs investment to specific sectors by creating the favorable conditions. Government fosters growth in disadvantaged regions through grants and mandates. Government can be more effective in all this if they were computerized and if the government employees were trained in using computers and the internet. Through our partnership with Reliance Industries and CyberLearning, we are working with the Nagaland Government to provide computer user training to the government employees. The curriculum for this training is the globally recognized IC3 curriculum and on successful completion they can get IC3 certification.
To conclude, with your support of our vision we believe we can create a North East where computer literacy is high, internet access is widespread, governments are computerized, technology industries are booming, clean environments are cherished and entrepreneurship is flourishing. Economic growth will be high, unemployment and disillusionment will be low. The people of the North East will be spread across the countries of the world but will be focused on their region’s growth.
To summarize, our plans for 2006 are to provide managed services to businesses and governments in our region and abroad, to find a college focused solely on IT degrees, to create a BPO center for recruiting, and to setup a software development facility.
CASE STUDIES
In the South, Bangalore and Hyderabad are getting too congested and the infrastructure present has failed to catch up with the rapid industrial growth there. With the Chandigarh Administration and governments of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Haryana luring IT and other industry with attractive sops, the stage seems perfect for industrial revolution here.
Quark, Dell, Infosys, IBM Daksh and IDS have already set up their facilities in Chandigarh and Mohali. Major pharma companies, Fast Moving Consumer Good (FMCG) manufacturers, top real-estate developers are also setting foot in Baddi in Himachal Pradesh, and Dera Bassi and Zirakpur in Punjab. “An investment of Rs 100,000 crore — of which Rs 50,000 crore is expected in Baddi — will be made in this belt during the coming years,” informs Krishan Goyal, Chairman, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Chandigarh Council.
With the neighbouring state of Himachal Pradesh offering a tax holiday, a number of industries have set up operations in the Baddi- Barotiwala belt. As of now, about 200 industries have come up there, including 80 pharmaceutical companies, textile units, forging units and FMCG companies like Godrej, Hindustan Lever and Pan Parag.
Propelled by the thrust of the Information Technology Policy announced in the year 2002 by the Government of Tamil Nadu and building on the foundation of world class infrastructure and human resource, Tamil Nadu continues to remain one of the best Information Technology destinations in India. Continuing on its trajectory of high growth in IT exports with less than Rs.2000 crores before 2001, Tamil Nadu touched Rs.8000 crores in the year 2003-04 and crossed Rs.10,000 crores in the year 2004-05.
(This is a paper presentation done during the workshop held on January 30 - 31st 2006 on 25000 Jobs. The writer Imna Imchen is Managing Director, Cosyne)
