Atlanta CEO discusses with Graham Clark, executive vice president and head of NIIT Technologies Digital Services in Atlanta, about the focus of his new job responsibilities, benefits of having its U.S. headquarters in Atlanta, and future development in digital services.

Q: Can you give a brief introduction to NIIT Technologies, and what the company does?

NIIT Technologies is a global IT solutions organization that addresses the technology needs of companies across the Americas, Europe, Middle East, Asia and Australia. We focus on helping companies achieve the highest operation efficiency possible through our solutions, which include application development and maintenance, infrastructure managed services, digital services and business process management.

Our strategy of “Focus and Differentiate” has helped us to build a robust portfolio of marquee customers in key verticals which include Travel and Transportation, Banking and Financial Services, Insurance, Manufacturing and Media. Specialization has provided us with the ability to deliver exceptional value to our customers.

Our highly developed offshore and near-shore facilities, experienced team of domain specialists and innovative approaches to customer experience management and delivery has been a catalyst in sustaining long-term customer engagements - many spanning more than 10 years.

Q: Why did NIIT Technologies select Atlanta as the U.S. headquarters?

We selected Atlanta as our U.S. headquarters because of the city’s unique position within the Southeast and the nation. Atlanta offers quick travel opportunities throughout the United States as well as connections to the rest of the world, which is an important facet for any global company. Additionally, the city is emerging as technology hub due to a steady influx of major companies establishing a presence in the area. This also provides us with major business opportunities.

Q: What are some of the benefits being headquartered in Atlanta?

There are numerous benefits to being headquartered in Atlanta – and we see that the opportunities grow each year. Atlanta’s airport is instrumental in creating domestic and global connections for our business, and allows us to have a truly global presence. A thriving and continuously developing technology scene provides a great environment for our corporation, and also offers a wide variety of diverse talent in the region, as does the presence of both Fortune 500 and smaller, incredibly innovative companies. Simultaneously, Atlanta and Georgia’s research institutions and universities prioritize a focus on research and offer a great amount of local talent. 

Q: Over the years, how has the Atlanta economy changed and how has that helped your organization grow and evolve?

Atlanta’s economy has definitely grown tremendously over the last twenty years, and we have continued to see more companies move here. We’re particularly thrilled with the increased presence of global companies such as our own.

We’ve also seen a shift in the city’s technology scene. While we’ve had an ongoing focus on technology in the past, the continued growth of local companies and start-ups is a refreshing reminder of how the city continues to be seen as a tech capital within the Southeast. This transition has sparked an excitement in the economy that feeds on itself.

Q: As head of the digital services for NIIT Technologies, what are some of your roles and responsibilities?

Primarily, I’ll be responsible for managing the growing portfolio of NIIT Technologies’ digital services offerings. I will be working towards creating an ecosystem for delivering sustainable and optimizable digital operating models for business agility, scalability and flexibility.

We have clearly articulated our digital strategy around four elements: 

1.           Digital Experience: multichannel offerings and mobility solutions

2.           Analytics: supporting the traditional and New Data Analytics needs of enterprises including predictive analytics. 

3.           Cloud: end-to-end tailored services that deliver key Cloud benefits to customers enabling highly agile, access anywhere, anytime digital business models. 

4.           Digital Integration: Integrating complex legacy systems with digital front-ends; Digitalization of processes; and intelligent business process management services.

Another major undertaking in this role will be innovation. We are continuously evolving our innovation services to help our customers obtain value from digital innovations such as Artificial Intelligence, the Internet of Things, digital ecosystems, virtual or augmented reality, the API economy and even 3D printing.

We work closely with our customers to understand their business needs and deliver business agility, scalability, and flexibility, in a robust and secure environment.

Q: How has your previous experience prepared you for this position?

My previous work has spanned the digital services sector for a variety of industries – and thus has helped prepare me for this exciting new position. Previously, I’ve worked in different leadership positions with global consultancies and technology firms, focusing on digital strategy for a variety of industries spanning across the globe. Prior to this position, I worked as the global head of customer experience management and transformation with another IT services firm, a position which allowed me to gain a better understanding of the overall industry and marketplace, and an appreciation of the continued transition towards digital within IT services. Additionally, I was a leader in founding four companies in areas as diverse as consulting services, telecom and infrastructure services and social media, which will help me develop and maintain a digital entrepreneurial mindset which will be valuable in this position at NIIT Technologies.

Q: How do you see the digital transformation impacting the IT industry the coming years? 

Digital continues to be a crucial offering for companies and industries everywhere. Personally, I predict that the rising trend of digital transformation and Digital Operating Models (DOM’s) will lead to the continued development of new technologies and offerings previously unknown to clients. Additionally, this transition will change the way that companies operate and they will become more reliant of digital technologies for efficiencies in all aspects. This will help provide innovative opportunities for companies everywhere. Similarly, changes such as predictive analytics will continue to shake up and offer new direction for the IT services industry. The arrival of newer approaches such as the integration of Artificial Intelligence and Intelligent Business offer especially exciting opportunities.

Today’s IT professional needs to operate in an increasingly rapid world of agile transformation in which both technologies and DOM’s become more fluid and flexible. We’ve already begun to see some of the changes affecting the industry – with ongoing new opportunities for companies to engage with their clients and users and utilize new, unique solutions.

Q: What are some exciting developments you will drive with NIIT Technologies? How will this impact the IT industry?

One of the most exciting developments that I will drive at NIIT Technologies will be to build a strong partner ecosystem to enable more nimble digital offerings that address the rapidly changing needs of the industries we work with.

I will also be focusing on elevating the digital execution capabilities within the organization by creating a robust framework of right people, processes and technology. Our client executives are faced with escalating changes in their businesses – whether it is about executing Business Defense strategies against Digital Disruptors or working to dominate their competitive marketplaces as they quickly move to Digital Operating Models. To succeed they need to secure the right combination of execution, talent and cost.

As a mid-sized services company NIIT Technologies prides itself on an obsessive customer focus and the right agile attitudes to move quickly with our customers. As part of this agile business approach I am a proponent of “Be Digital, Do Digital, Go Digital”, which I will be working towards at NIIT Technologies. All of these characteristics and capabilities will elevate our ability to deliver value to our customers in their Digital Transformation journey.