Nilesh Kuvadia, Chairman GESIA IT Association and CEO ITCG talks about the IT market potential of Vadodara and Gujarat in general
Gujarat is gearing up for one of the state’s flagship technology events in the recent days. Vibrant Gujarat Technology and Start up Summit is all set to happen in Gandhi Nagar for three days starting October 11, 2018. The conference will allow tech leaders, implementation agencies and users to interact and create a common vision, DEBATE to allow divergent thought processes to thread bare the ideas so that they have meaningful impacts and implications for all and allow all stakeholders to form meaningful and forward-looking networking opportunities.
Nilesh Kuvadia, CEO, ITCG and Chairman (Vadodara Chapter), GESIA IT Association (event organizers) speaks about IT investments scenario in Vadodra and highlights of the forthcoming event. Edited Excerpts.
Q. There is a perception that Gujarat market is very conservative in terms of IT spending. What is your view on that?
Nilesh: I differ with this statement. There are a lot of IT/ITES/ICT companies in Gujarat that are providing services across the world and they do continuously spend on IT. Most of the well-known educational institutes in Gujarat have state of the art IT Setups on their premises. Many large Non-IT companies like L&T, ONGC, IPCL, GACL, Alembic, Intas, Torrent, Cadila, Adani, Reliance, Alstom, etc. have top class IT infrastructure and they spend a huge amount on IT infrastructure.
Q. How is the market for IT in Vadodara? Being in the IT industry, what are the key growth avenues you find for IT segment in the region?
Nilesh: Vadodara has a fast-growing IT market as there are a lot of large companies like MG Motor, Hero, Areva, General Electric (GE), Polycab, etc. companies who have their establishments as well as expansion in and around Vadodara. They provide a lot of opportunity to the local IT market to grow their business in the region.
With the presence of active Associations like GESIA, the IT industry in the region gets a lot of insights on the benefits extended by Government of Gujarat. Again, the association works hard along with the Govt. to reap out benefits to the complete IT Industry across the Gujarat region.
Q. What are the key expectations from business owners/IT heads when it comes to IT infrastructure of their organization? Is it only cost-effectiveness or beyond?
Nilesh: Gujarat being the business capital of the country, has an advantage of having a lot of entrepreneurs in the state. When it comes to the IT infrastructure of their organization, they usually look at the best in class infrastructure as well as cost effectiveness in that field. Being business owners, they do not hesitate to take business risk to adopt technologies that would not only create efficiency in their business but also keep them at par with other global competition.
Q. What is your view on the awareness of technology among the enterprises here? Are they fully equipped with the advantages of IT?
Nilesh: Here comes the role of associations like ACMA, BITA, SITA, GESIA IT Association, FITAG, etc. They all indulge in activities of regularly spreading awareness in the field of Technology by way of various events, Roadshows, Expos, IT Shows, Technology events, Technology conclaves, Workshops, etc. to continuously spread awareness throughout of the year.
Q. Please tell us about ‘Vibrant Gujarat’ and how it will help the IT industry in Gujarat?
Nilesh: “Vibrant Gujarat Startup and Technology Summit” is an event that has been organized by GESIA IT Association along with GIDC and IndexTB supported by National bodies like NASSCOM, NSIC, ESC & STPI to give a platform that will not only boost the overall IT Industries in Gujarat but also give an opportunity to showcase technologies and innovations that are happening in the Gujarat region. It also gives a great platform to Startups who aspire to be big and have a lot of potential to grow. GESIA IT Awards will recognize such companies with various awards in different categories. One can get more details about the summit as well as Awards on www.vibrantitsummit.com
Q. How many companies are participating and how much investments are likely to come through this summit?
Nilesh: We expect more than 500 companies to participate in this summit. The purpose and focus of this summit is on “Experiencing the Next” which helps participants identify new technologies and business potential by showcasing what’s going to happen in the near future. Although investment would become a byproduct, the Summit doesn’t focus on any B2B transactions or trade. It shall be a mine of knowledgebase with eminent speakers delivering speeches on various disruptive technologies that can help any IT industry person to take appropriate steps and decide his future roadmap.
