HCL wins $500 million outsourcing contract from MSD
Leading Indian IT and ITeS services provider HCL Technologies has entered into a five-year IT management contract to the tune of $500 million with the US-based pharmaceutical giant Merck Sharp and Dohme (MSD). According to the deal, HCL will offer an assortment of facilities, which include remote infrastructure management (RIM), software-driven IT solutions, engineering and business as well as knowledge process expertise.
Quoting Richard G Branton, MSD vice-president (Application Services), a news website reports that Merck has taken advantage of HCL’s wide-ranging proficiency in healthcare and life sciences with a view to make its operations more efficient as well as strengthen the firm’s IT portfolio. Now, Merck intends to make use of the India’s fifth largest IT service vendor’s near-shore delivery system in the United States.
Another report said that consequent to the deal, HCL will augment its existing team in the United States, especially in North Carolina by recruiting local talents to execute the new projects. In addition, Merck will henceforth also leverage HCL’s global delivery centers located in Krakow (Poland) and Shanghai.
HCL’s deal with Merck is being seen as a landmark achievement for the Indian IT firm since huge deals of around $300 million or more have almost vanished from Indian IT sector during the last two years, as the average volume of contracts was reduced to the variety of $50 million-$120 million since CIOs lashed their IT budgets during recent economic recession.
According to HCL president (Americas) Shami Khorana, although this is certainly not among the largest deals ever to be signed by any Indian IT service provider, it is definitely one of the biggest since the post market meltdown period. He further said that the company was proud of its growth in the pharmaceutical and healthcare sector. It may be mentioned here that healthcare and life sciences comprised nearly eight per cent of the $685 million revenues earned by HCL Technologies during the first three months of 2010.
Strategic Alliance with Stellar Asia Pacific
Meanwhile, HCL Technologies Ltd has also announced that it has entered into a strategic partnership with Stellar Asia Pacific, an international vendor of call centre and BPO solutions have declared that they have entered into a strategic partnership. As per the terms of the agreement, both the companies will now focus on new industries and offer augmented services to their present as well as new customers in the Asian and Australian markets.
Announcing the agreement in a submission to the Bombay Stock Exchange on Wednesday, HCL Technologies said that the Indian IT firm along with its new strategic partner will now focus on precise industry sectors, such as telecommunications, utility services, banking and financial services, media, manufacturing and retail.
Quoting Stellar Asia Pacific CEO John Hollingsworth, a business website reports that the strategic alliance between the two companies would enable them to tender persuasive business facilities and outsourcing proposals to the clients in unison by exerting the power of HCL Technology’s back office and technology product aptitude that go together with the customer relationship management facilities offered by Stellar Asia Pacific.