Career Opportunities in Information Technology Field - Guidelines for Getting a Job Offer in IT Industry

ByV Uma Maheshwar Placement Officer University College of Engineering Osmania University, Hyderabad Information technology (IT) deals with design, development, operation, and maintenance of software/ hardware usually involved in the context of a business/process and are often used to automate manual tasks as well as improve efficiencies within an organisation. By involving computer systems, IT has helped industry reach new markets and offer new services to customers and clients. Information Technology is a key ingredient for businesses trading in the 21 century. Through better use of communication and IT infrastructure, businesses can now open their doors to international markets as well as competition. Its reach cuts across industry segments and geographical locations. This has fueled the need for well-qualified and skilled information technology professionals. This is a fast-growing and fast-changing field and lakhs of graduating engineers from engineering colleges in India have a great opportunity to aspire for a challenging career in the IT field. In fact, there are a great number of openings in the IT field and it accommodates freshers from all branches of engineering from Biomedical engineering to Civil engineering, Mechanical to Chemical engineering although few IT organisations prefer freshers from Circuit branches like CSE, ECE, EEE and CSIT only. Different specializations of jobs available in information technology are in the areas of databases, office information systems, local area networks (LANs), wide area networks (WANs), the internet and programming. Within the IT sector, there are hundreds of different types of jobs ranging from programming to web design to project management to IT-support. In order to get your first foot on the ladder in the IT industry it is likely that you will require an IT-related degree. Many new entrants into the IT need to learn and master the subjects like Web development or web design, Multimedia design, Digital media development, Web content management, Computer Architecture, Networking, Business information systems and Computer programming etc., Some of the career options that can be opted by Information Technology professionals are briefly outlined hereunder: Software and Hardware Engineers  Information technology engineers work on various processes, both hardware and software. They aid in creating the hardware equipment needed for creating the computer systems. Hardware engineers create, test and supervise systems that run the computers and enable processes. They ensure that hardware systems are up and running at all times without interrupting the flow of work. Software engineers design and develop software applications that aid businesses, run multiple processes in an automated manner. The discipline of software engineering covers tools, knowledge and methods to define software requirements and to perform computer programming, software design, user interface design, software maintenance tasks and software testing. Software engineering also encompasses the knowledge from different fields like computer engineering, computer science, mathematics, management, quality management, project management, system engineering and software ergonomics. A career in software engineering can be very rewarding as there is demand for software engineers across the industries. The above jobs may involve the activities such as studying client processes to determine their needs for software and hardware, managing a team of developers and engineers involved in design and development of software processes, monitoring systems, controlling quality, maintaining supplies and evaluation of various flows and processes. Fresh Graduates can start as junior or support engineers. Candidates with over 3-4 years of experience can be considered for the role of Project Leader/Manager. Project Managers generally play a supervisory role and mange a team of computer engineers and information technology specialists. Most technology firms also offer comprehensive internship program that serves as a breeding ground for aspiring information technology professionals. IT Consultants  Information Technology professionals are increasingly being sought to play the role of consultants to various businesses. They study the processes like supply chain, inventory management etc and recommend information technology based solutions that will basically make the process error free, simpler and quicker. Information technology based consultants are required across various industry segments right up to government organizations. Entrepreneurial information technology consultants can also set up their own consulting firms and advice clients independently on how the information technology can help their business and augment profits. Information technology professionals can branch out with their own consultancy after a minimum of 5-10 years of experience in the related areas of information technology. Network Administrator  A Network Administrator can work from high schools to big corporations. Their role can be very challenging with multitasking components. Their goal is to run a smoothly functioning computer network—free of bugs, glitches, and interruptions. Example of what a network administrator may do during his day can include computer software; get computer/network up and running it again after it crashes; set up new devices and solving computer problems on a consistent basis. This job provides hands on experience on working on networks and administration. Database Specialist  A database specialist creates, customizes and maintains database applications for businesses. They incorporate not only programming but also planning and design working with popular database applications such as SQL and Access. Their database programs may range from reporting POS transactions, customer details or web-based applications. Database specialization is a growing area of expertise within IT as well as one very well paid. Job Designations in IT Companies  Broad categories of career options in IT field are Information Technology- Hardware, Information Technology- Software, IT enabled Services (ITeS), Business Process Outsourcing ( BPO) and Knowledge Process Outsourcing(KPO) etc., Typical designations/roles of Jobs available in IT field are Business Analyst, Database Administrator (DBA), Database Architect/ Designer, ERP, CRM - Functional Consultant, ERP, CRM - Technical Consultant, Graphic Designer/ Animator, Game designer, Web administrator, Network Administrator, Project Leader/ Project Manager, Quality Assurance - Manager, Software Engineer/ Programmer, Software Test Engineer, System Administrator, System Analyst/ Tech Architect, Team Leader/ Technical Leader, Technical Support Engineer and Quality Assurance etc., Job opportunities in software engineering are available in many software companies in India. Some of the well-known software companies include Accenture, ADP, Apps Associates, Birlasoft, Broadridge, Cap Gemini, Capital IQ, Caritor, CMC Ltd, Cognizant Technology Solutions, Computer Associates, Cordys, CSC, Cybage Software, Dell, DST Global Solutions, Google, HCL, HP, IBM, IGate Global Solutions, Infosys, Larsen & Toubro Ltd, NIIT Ltd, Microsoft, Oracle, Patni Computer Systems (P) Ltd, Persistent Systems Ltd., Sasken Communications, Sonata Software, Tata InfoTech Ltd, Polaris, Tata Consultancy Services, Verizon, Virtusa Technologies Wipro Technologies Ltd, and Yahoo etc. Although the software engineering sector is currency dependant, highly competitive and hectic, it is a lucrative career option. It surely offers a bright future for the IT professionals. Average salaries for freshers vary between 2.4 to 4.5 lakhs per annum depending on the recruiting company and college they are studying. High salaries upto Rs 13 lakhs for annum are paid by high profile companies who generally recruit few numbers of highly talented performing candidates. It is important to note here that performance in the recruitment process is important rather than academic percentage gained during their study at college. Many a times, class toppers do not get recruited in the initial few companies at campuses. Hence, it is important for parents not to pressurize their wards to aim for top ranks in the class. It is just sufficient if they are in the top 20% in the class and they participate in extra and co-curricular activities which add value to their resumes. Guidelines on securing an IT career offer  The graduate job market is highly competitive and securing the right job is not easy. There are literally thousands of jobseekers looking for graduate jobs in IT everyday. Apart from on campus and off campus recruitment drives by IT Companies, there are a number of different ways of searching and applying for jobs, one of the effective ones being online. Due to the inherent benefits associated with online recruitment, more and more recruitment agencies and employers are posting jobs online. Let us look at some of the important guidelines on how one can prepare well for securing a career, not just a job, in the IT Sector. Writing a Resume  The application process for almost every job in the IT sector requires a candidate to submit his resume/CV. Many employers will discount a potential candidate based on the visual appearance of their CV. It is therefore crucial to structure and present your CV in a professional manner and keep a description of any work experience or previous employment history concise. A CV should not be more than two A4 pages long and should clearly highlight ones IT and technical skills. Tailoring ones IT CV to each company is essential. A generic CV will not fully demonstrate ones suitability to the job nor will it show an employer any enthusiasm. Resume writing can seem like an intimidating task, but it’s actually easier than one thinks. A resume only has one job to do: It must pique the interest of the potential employer. That’s it. It doesn’t have to tell ones life story and it doesn’t have to answer every question a potential employer might have. Start by researching the companies that interest you. Next, read publications or websites directly related to your target industry. Are there particular requirements that are frequently mentioned? If so, use these requirements as keywords throughout your resume. Detail your previous project/internship or job experience. Think about your background and past experiences. Take what you learnt in your institution and apply it to the job you seek. Emphasize relevant skills and related accomplishments. If you have degrees, certifications, or specialized training, note it. Try to include any related unpaid work that you have done, such as internships. Whatever you do, don't list your hobbies unless they directly apply. Concentrate only on what demonstrates your value; leave everything else out. As you are writing, try not to use the same words over and over. Avoiding repetition will make your resume more exciting. Use of action words in the resume is recommended. words like accomplished, achieved, attained, completed, created, delivered, demonstrated, enhanced, expanded, improved, increased, managed, obtained, performed, produced, secured, succeeded and surpassed etc., may be used. Next, make sure everything is neatly typed and spelled correctly. Your resume should be eye-catching without being flashy. Above all, it should be easy to read. If you need ideas for layout and structure, find resume samples online or go to the library and study a book. When your resume is finished, read it over carefully and make sure that it properly demonstrates your value as an employee. If so, you have written an effective invitation to the employers. All you need to do now is sit back and wait for the call for an Interview. Selecting your First Company  When looking for your first main job in IT, there are many different aspects that you need to consider. The following are commonly viewed as important as a starting salary: Scope for additional skills training and development, the opportunity to work closely with a mentor enabling you to discuss any problems you may have, the chance to study for further qualifications funded by the employer, the opportunity to work within various different departments of the company giving you a wider range of experience and the ability to fast track your career. Remember, it is important to get ones foot at the door of a company that can offer good career prospects. Training is a good way of improving your skills and furthering your career. Cisco training, Oracle training and Adobe training etc., are representative list of courses one can attend based on their career plans. Study about the company and job profile before applying to the job:  Before attending the interview, one need to do a good amount of homework on the job profile and the company profile. Even if the company is big, if the job profile offered does not interest you, there is no point in attending the interview. If the job profile is appealing to you, then do not hesitate even if the company is a startup or a small one as long as the management is good. Study about the performance of the company in the last 2-3 years. Know about the kind of work environment provided. You may use your social networking to get in touch with employees already working in the company and get their views on the career options at the company. Gather online information using search engines about the profile of the management of the organisation. Know the company's market, products and goals. Memorize some facts about the company and be prepared to cite them during the interview. Find what other businesses they have and understand where the company stands with respect to other competitors. Read and understand the financials of the company on various stock market related websites and understand how they have progressed during the recent quarters /years. Attending the tests:  Generally IT companies conduct aptitude tests for eligible freshers which tests the candidates on English language, quantitative ability, logical reasoning and programming ability etc., The tests may be written type or online tests. Few companies conduct Group discussions/ Case study dicussions as elimination rounds for candidates shortlisted from aptitude tests. Product companies may opt for rigorous programming tests to test the coding ability. After successful passing of the tests, candidates are shortlisted for one or more rounds of technical and HR Interviews. Proper dress code for interviews needs to be followed. Jeans and T shirts are strictly a no-no for Interviews. Preparing for an interview  Preparation is the key for success at an interview. Getting a call for an interview is not easy and once you have secured one it is important to make the most of it. Prior to attending an interview it is important to have a clear understanding of what the job is, how and why you would be suitable for the job, what the company does, who its competitors are etc. Many graduates frequently forget under pressure that an interview is a two way process. An interview is a chance for the employer to find out more about you and your suitability of the role for you to find out more about them, the roles suitability for you. In order to take advantage of this opportunity it is advisable to have a set of questions that you would like to ask. Questions could be about the company culture and how they might think that you would fit in, what would be expected of you in the first 6 to 12 months, possible career paths available etc. Preparing for Common Interview Questions  While you'll never be able to anticipate every question you might be asked in an interview, you can get a head start by developing strong, concise answers to commonly used questions. Most interviewers ask similar questions like these to gain knowledge about a candidate's abilities and qualifications and compatibility with the job and the company. Let us look at few typical questions which needs good preparation. Tell me about yourself.  This is often the opening question at an interview. It's also one of the most difficult if you're not prepared. Remember, the interviewer does not want to hear about the football team you support or your unusual hobbies. This question calls for your one-minute advert that summarises your profile, experience, skills and your personality in the context of the job for which you are being interviewed. Get to the point and sell your professional self. Develop a few brief sentences that demonstrate that you have what it takes to do the job. Summarising briefly about ones project/ internship/ job experience with examples of proven results and desire to contribute is recommended.  Why should we recruit you?  The key to answering any question about you versus your competition is using specifics. Everybody is going to speak in generalities, so you need something that will make you stand out a bit. Give real examples that show them that you are best-suited for the job. Point out to your achievements and accomplishments that are relevant to the open position, as well as experience in dealing with different types of situations. Pinpoint the qualities you have that are truly valuable to the company.  Why do you want to work here? What do you know about our company?  Use this opportunity to show off what you know about the company and, more importantly, how you would fit in. Address issues and challenges in the company to demonstrate the depth of your knowledge. Talk about revenue, number of employees, and also challenges in their type of business.  What are your weaknesses?  The secret to answering this question is using your weaknesses to your advantage. Turn my weaknesses into strengths. For example, if your weaknesses include lack of patience, state that because of this, you have learnt to take special measures to ensure that you remain calm and attentive. Just make sure that you give a real answer to this question. None of us is without faults, so don't pretend that you do not have weaknesses.  What did you dislike about your last job? Why did you leave your last job?  Candidates with experience need to be cautious about these kinds of questions and make sure that one does not end up sounding bitter. Never criticise your former company, the boss, or former colleagues. You need to have a good understanding about the job for which you're applying to turn this question into a positive one. It may be best to say that you really enjoyed many aspects of your job, then focus on how this new job will give you the opportunity to contribute more in a particular area that is key to the position.  Where do you see yourself in five years?  An interviewer does not want to hear that your five-year aspiration is to be climbing Mt. Everest in the Himalayas or working in a different industry. You need to talk about goals you have that relate to the job. This will demonstrate that you understand the industry, the company and are motivated to succeed there. Keep the answer specific to your field. Preparation is the key to answering any question with poise and confidence. Always keep in mind – whatever the question is – the interviewer is trying to find out if you are a good fit and can make a positive contribution in the job. Things to remember at the location of Interview  A job interview can provoke anxiety. Here are some practical things you can do to make your interviews run smoothly. Going to a job interview can be stressful. Be prepared by practicing responses to sample questions. Have patience when you are waiting for your turn near interview venue. Sit in the waiting place in a relaxed mode. It is preferable that you are quiet and calm. Mentally rehearse how you would answer the question “tell us about yourself”. Be prepared to pick 1-2 subjects of your interest in your domain when asked by the Interviewers. Do not allow other friends or candidates who are along with you to continuously engage you with some useless talk. Unnecessarily, other candidates attending the interview may pass on their tension to you. Also, the candidates who have come out of the interview room may volunteer to give away loads of information about how their interview went off. They may also disclose what questions were asked and how they answered. Listen to them only to get a brief overview of the kind of interview you may face. But, do not indulge in continuous talk with them as it would make you more anxious. While attending an interview, one should remember a few important etiquette points. When you are called inside the interview room, before entering the interview room, tell yourself that you are going to meet new elderly friends and whatever they ask; you are ready to take the questions confidently with a smile on the face. Ask for permission before entering the room and take the seat very elegantly without making much noise. 80% chances are that the first question that you will be asked is “Tell me about yourself”. And you must feel fortunate on getting that question, as it will give you the best opportunity to present yourself to the interviewers. Use a forceful voice and talk with good clarity. There is no need to answer all the questions. If you surely do not know the answer to the question, politely tell the interviewer that you really do not know the answer so that they can move on to another question. Always answer to the point. Do not beat around the bush. For yes or no type questions, justify why you say yes or no. Do not try and pretend that you know the answers for all questions. There will be some questions for which even the interviewer also does not know the answers. Do not try to justify your wrong answers and never argue with the interviewers. Use good body postures and always make eye contact with the members of the interview board. Pan your eyes at all of the interviewers from time to time while interacting with them during the interview. Plus if they make a joke and you don't "get it" just laugh anyway, if you don't they'll think either you are a stupid or that you think they are. IT Job Prospects in India  Today, among all the Asian countries in the world, India has some of the most promising and bright job prospects to its fold. It is a great fact to be acknowledged that India is the only third world country to have such a boom in its employment and hiring industry. It is no wonder that in the present scenario even with a high rate of inflation, the job prospects here are still to rise. At present, even with the economic slowdown, India has flooding employment opportunities while having a tremendous scope of widening its career and job prospects. India has the most appealing and striking job opportunities in countless number of fields from BPO and KPO services, IT (Information Technology) jobs, sales and marketing, HR executives, administration jobs, banking and finance, insurance, media, aviation and hospitality to outsourcing and content writing jobs. All these wonderful job opportunities are drawing not only the Indian youth but also the youth from the highly advanced countries and even from the far flung corners of the world. The capital city of India , New Delhi is known for having the best BPO and KPO job prospects with the largest number of leading BPOs such as Wipro, Global Vantage, Teleperformance, HCL, IBM, Converges, Genpact as well as the best KPO companies. As seen from the point of view of other metropolitan cities like Bangalore, Pune, Mumbai, Chennai, and Hyderabad; you can find the most advanced and well paid job prospects in all of these cities. While looking forward to the best Call center, IT and software jobs you can most certainly land up in Bangalore as it has some of the best companies such as CCE Software, ADS Solutions, CCM Software and Ansata Computer Solutions with Pune and Hyderabad also having some of the best career growth opportunities in the IT sector. Mumbai and Chennai can offer you the best pay package marketing, financing and media jobs. On the whole, the current job scenario in India is one of the best as compared to the other developing countries in the world. With a large number of online job portals having come up to the shore, you are most likely to find your desired type of job there itself. A strong economic outlook is fueling in hiring among Indian employers in the year 2010-11. India's need for more human capital is being driven by the recent economic growth. As companies look to grow their headcounts, they plan to focus on areas that have a direct impact on revenue such as sales, customer service, information technology, marketing and business development. In addition to adding to their staff levels, companies may also add to their employees' salaries. The IT employment prospects for India continue to grow as the Indian Companies have successfully shown signs of business growth despite global economy. However, Indian software product companies struggled in the fiscal year 2010 to keep their business growing. Nearly 100 software product start-ups downed their shutters last year, while the combined revenue of many other companies have slipped, research by a Bangalore based firm shows. The Indian product firms revenues fell to $1.64 billion during the year ended March 2010, says Browne & Mohan, which analyzed 418 top product companies across Chennai, Bangalore, Pune, Delhi, Trivandrum, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh, Ahmadabad and Hyderabad. High software piracy in India apart and lack of adequate marketing strategies are among the reasons for the failure of the product companies. Product firms across the areas of life sciences, telecom, education and others sectors saw their revenues dip by 15% during financial year ended March 2010, as large multinational rivals such as IBM and storage vendor EMC increased their share of the domestic market and the growing e-governance industry failed to encourage smaller vendors to bid for big contracts. According to the research, nearly 37 companies which focused on open source technologies such as Linux had to shut even though market for such solutions reached $4.6 million. Nearly 26 firms developing solutions for the local mobile telephone market went out of business. Mobile products and life science software product companies were the highest hit primarily as telecom service providers postponed investments. Bangalore and Pune were the two regions that had the highest impact in terms of closures,the research added. Nearly 53 firms focused on the mobile market shifted entirely to services last year. The internet industry has emerged one of the most promising sectors in the computer industry. This has lead to popularity of software firms (big and small) across the world. There is a wide diversity in the kind of computer software companies that are coming up. They can range from a group of friends developing games in their home to a major firm that specializes in educational software for schools, colleges, different firms etc. With the software industry involving very high financial stakes and strong competition in the market, companies are looking for IT professionals with all the right job skills to help them rise above their competition. IT professionals who aim to become a part of the computer software industry need to learn a number of important skills. Developers, programmers, and technicians need to be creative and innovative enough to develop software methods and materials that are unique and exclusive in the saturated software market. Besides that, IT professionals need to be technically expert in programming software and computing equipment that are on the cutting edge. IT professionals should also have a keen business sense to understand how the end user is going to use the product. While there are many IT professionals who have such skills, it can be difficult for one to stand out among many applicants to open positions in software companies. The job market is thus becoming more and more unpredictable. One has to possess many skills and be efficient in this age of cutt hroat competition. Also, the skill set has to be continuously upgraded and updated to survive the onslaught of job cuts. The field of Engineering is regarded as one of the most significant components of the Indian economy. Considered as the backbone of Indian employment market, the engineering sector jobs have paced up with the current transforming the global scenario. Indian IT market is touching limitless horizons thereby generating tremendous employment opportunities for engineers. Engineers are expected to perform the skillful tasks that can help run the basic machinery of any firm. India is famed for producing some of the most competent and skilled engineers at a global platform. Engineers are offered good salary packages and are paid with additional incentives which further intensify the growth graphs in the particular field. As the competition is pacing up globally, India is not far behind in latching on to the most rapid and progressive resources for substantial growth prospects. Engineering, being the field that serves all technical and scientific purposes that help run the fabric of an industry smoothly and firmly, is immensely capturing the expanding economic market. IT Industry in India- Future Trends  As per the Department of Information Technology (DIT), Govt. of India reports, by the year 2010-11 our software and services export is expected to reach US $ 60 billion and by 2011-12 which is also the terminal year of the eleventh five year plan, the figures are expected to touch US$ 72 billion., this is assuming a 20% growth rate YOY (year over year) for 2011-12. Globalization has a profound impact in shaping the Indian Information Technology (IT) industry over the years with India capturing a sizeable chunk of the global market for technology sourcing and business services. Over the years the growth drivers for this sector have been the verticals of manufacturing, telecom, insurance, banking, finance and of late the fledgling retail revolution. As the new scenario unfolds it is getting clear that the future growth of IT and IT enabled services will be fuelled by the verticals of climate change, mobile applications, healthcare, energy efficiency and sustainable energy et al. Traditional business strongholds would make way for new geographies, there would be new customers and more and more of SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises) will go for IT application and services. Rising up to the new challenges will only be possible when we scale-up the value chain and put in efforts toward providing more and more of end-to-end solutions to the clients. Indian IT firms will have to strive for that extra mile and put in smart work to survive in the newer growth opportunities. The Indian software & services industry has grown at a remarkable pace since 2001-02. The overall Indian Software & Services industry revenue has grown from US$ 10.2 billion in 2001-02 to reach US $ 58.7 billion in 2008-09 translating to a CAGR of about 26.9 per cent. Despite the severe global recession, the industry grew at a modest rate of 12.9 % in 2008-09. As per NASSCOM, the industry is diversified across three major focus segments – IT Services, BPO and software products & Engineering services. While IT Services have been the mainstay of the industry, BPO and Engineering services sector has built upon the India value proposition and today there exist integrated service providers across the three focus areas as well as niche providers. The major three components of IT Services sector are custom application development, application management and support and training. Other significant components are IT consulting, systems integration, Infrastructure Services (IS) outsourcing, network consulting & integration and software testing. Among the verticals serviced by India’s IT-ITES-BPO industry those that account for the largest share of revenue are banking, financial services and insurance(BFSI-41%), Hi-Tech/Telecom(20%), manufacturing(17%), retail(8%), with smaller contributions coming from media, publishing and entertainment, construction and utilities, healthcare and airlines and transportation. Important industry verticals being serviced by the BPO segment are insurance, retail banking, travel and hospitality, auto manufacturing, telecom and pharmaceuticals. Horizontals such as Customer Interaction and Support (CIS), Finance and Accounting (F&A) and Human Resource Management (HRM) are important areas in the BPO segment. USA & UK continues to be major markets for the IT software and services exports. However the share of USA has declined from 68.3 per cent in FY2005 to 60 per cent in FY2008, whereas that of Europe has increased from 23.1 per cent to 31 per cent over the same period. Markets across Continental Europe and the Asia Pacific are also witnessing significant year-on-year growth. This trend towards a broader geographic market exposure is positive for the industry, not only as de-risking measure but also as a means of accelerating growth by tapping new markets. The Future of outsourcing in India  Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) expenditure is likely to grow worldwide. India has established itself as a major outsourcing hub. India is the world’s favorite outsourcing destination. India's share of the global offshore outsourcing market for software and back-office services is more than 45 %. Outsourcing in traditional areas like customer care, financial services, manufacturing, IT, ITES is growing. Large multinational companies are investing in captive BPO units in supplier countries in multiple locations, to reduce risk and control quality. Outsourcing is becoming more sophisticated. Customers are looking for business process excellence, speed to market, improvement in quality, benchmarking to world-class standards. CEOs are involved to ensure the long-term success of strategic off shoring decisions. On their part, suppliers understand that they must compete globally and that outsourcing will play a more transformational and strategic role for the client. For the past two decades, China has been growing at an astounding rate of 9.5% a year and India by 6%. They are impacting the global economy and leading the outsourcing revolution. Political backlash over outsourcing is likely to lessen over time as economies strengthen and companies continue to reap the benefits of off shoring. Technological power will shift from the West to the East as India and China emerge as big players in the global outsourcing market. The two countries have the size and weight to transform the 21st global economy. By 2015 China might become No.1, and India No:2 in the global top five outsourcing destinations. India can collaborate with other countries to leverage local knowledge of the business environment and language skills while providing its domain knowledge and technological expertise for successful outsourcing. For example, TCS has a Latin American arm based in Mumbai, India which serves an insurance client in Chile with a center in Uruguay as a near-shore location. Outsource2india has collaboration with a company in NE India that leverages the unique talents of the people of this region. Opportunity areas  According to NASSCOM, today more industries are where IT was in the 1990’s - knowledge based. Research and analysis outsourcing may soon be the biggest revenue grosser in India as BPO companies move up the value chain in their service offerings which includes Research and Development, and product innovation. Companies are going beyond basic research to invest in innovation and new product development. Companies that have invested in R&D in India are Cisco Systems, Motorola, Hewlett-Packard, Google, General Motors Corp. and Boeing Co among others. In pharmaceuticals, India has the opportunity of co-development and ownership of new patented drugs through drug research, clinical trials and manufacturing. Indian pharma major Ranbaxy has an agreement with MNC GlaxoSmithKline to commercialize compounds they develop together. India’s large pool of qualified English-speaking lawyers with experience in the British legal system can offer paralegal support, legal support and patent services. A few Indian companies affiliated with American law firms are now able to capture a tiny piece of the American market. They are now doing legal research at very high rates by Indian standards but yet 50% below typical American rates. India can provide high-quality engineering services in the fields of Mechanical & Electronic engineering - analysis and design, embedded software, Plant Design, Process Engineering, Plant Automation Services, Enterprise Asset Management and OEM solutions. India can offer management services for IT infrastructure, applications operations, IT security and maintenance. This sector presents great potential through large-value multi-year contracts. We are in the initial stage where payroll processing services and some accounting is being done for large American companies. This trend will continue and soon a full range of accounting and tax services will be provided by Indian companies. Outsourcing opportunities for India exist in other fields like Financial Research, content development, medical writing: animation, film, publishing, web services; Human Resource outsourcing: recruitment, training, Education, Nanotechnology and many others. Challenges for India  In the next five years, China might replace India in its number 1 position in the global ITES-BPO industry. Rising costs and low efficiency in many cities like Bangalore will make software outsourcing less attractive in future. The giants may show a drop in earnings. India’s terrible Infrastructure will continue to be a drag on the potential of India giving other countries the competitive advantage. Other competing countries providing low-cost outsourcing options will exert a downward push on costs – East Europe, Latin America, and South Africa. On the infrastructure front, India’s ability to develop infrastructure is far outpaced by neighboring China. Metro cities are getting saturated and costs are rising -- Tier II towns need to develop infrastructure but India’s track record does not bode well for fast development. The education system needs transformation to produce people with skill sets that match the industry needs. The transition to knowledge processing will be a much bigger challenge for the Indian company and employee than it was for the BPO services. The typical college graduate many not have background or flexibility to understand global issues required by this type of service. Indian companies are now trying to adopt a culture that encourages innovation, embrace new trends such as Green IT, and deliver solutions that are focused on re-engineering and transformation. India is emerging as a leading innovation hub with increasing number of patents being filed and granted from India. The silver lining of the economic downturn is the opportunity for the industry to enhance its overall efficiency. Companies are increasingly looking inwards and focusing on process benchmarking, enhanced utilization of infrastructure and talent, increasing productivity and greater customer engagement. As per NASSCOM estimates, services and software segments are estimated to cross USD 1.2 trillion by 2012. This is more than the 5.2 percent growth expected in the total IT spending. Lack of working age population in the developed economies and a significant long term cost arbitrage indicates India’s sustained cost competitiveness. India is a great place for availability of smart people - it just needs to channelise the resources in a proper manner so that “skill set gap” between industry requirements and graduating students is removed.