April 10, 2018
Oracle, a Fortune 500 company, has been in India for over three decades; The USA technology giant has been serving India’s public and private sector firms, including India’s largest bank, State Bank of India, to telecoms giants Airtel and Vodafone
With 38,000 employees, a vast network of offices across the country, including a newly inaugurated Digital Sales Hub in Bengaluru, and the industry’s widest portfolio of cloud technology, Oracle continues its investment and expansion in India
In India, Oracle is witnessing a new era of information and technology (IT) development and application wherein artificial intelligence (AI), virtual reality, machine learning, blockchain, Internet of Things and more are taking center stage in powering businesses
In 2016, Oracle has launched Oracle Startup Cloud Accelerator, a first-of-its-kind global startup accelerator initiative in Bengaluru; This was subsequently followed by similar launches in Bristol, Delhi/NCR, Mumbai, Paris, Sao Paulo, Singapore, Tel Aviv and more
Oracle Corp, a Fortune 500 company, has been in India for more than three decades. This California headquartered technology giant has been serving India’s public and private sector firms, including the nation’s largest bank, State Bank of India, as well as private telecoms giants Bharti Airtel Ltd and Vodafone India to smaller companies and startups such as PVR Cinemas and Makemytrip.com, among others. With 38,000 employees, a vast network of offices across the country including a newly inaugurated Digital Sales Hub in Bengaluru and reportedly the industry’s widest portfolio of cloud technology, Oracle continues its investment and expansion in India. Amid the ongoing technological disruption in the nation, demand for Oracle’s cloud solution have been on the rise. Here is a conversation with Shailender Kumar, Regional Managing Director, Oracle India on their India story.
The Government of India’s ‘Digital India’ program has mobilised a heightened amount of technology modernisation in the country. ‘Skill India’, ‘Smart Cities’, ‘Make in India’, ‘Digital payments’, ‘Startup India’ among other initiatives have increased the adoption of technology, especially cloud. Being one of the first tech MNCs to discover IT skills in this country 30 years back, we now serve nearly 15,000 customers from public and private sectors across diverse industries. These include large firms, government entities such as Indian Railways, Ministry of Finance, the defence sector, mid-size or small companies and even start-ups. Oracle Cloud solutions are in demand and we look forward to collaborating and empowering the Indian industry in their next wave of growth as they embark on their digital transformation journeys.
Yes, Indian companies are far ahead of their counterparts in international markets in some fields. Look at cloud and its rampant adoption among Indian enterprises. We see it among old and new firms, large conglomerates and startups or even private and public sectors. India is at par with global economies in the adoption of new age technology like artificial intelligence or machine learning or Internet of Things or chatbots or block chain and so much more.
The emergence of disruptive technological innovations is radically transforming the way IT is used by enterprises and individuals. Cloud has been leading the way. And now we are witnessing a new era where artificial intelligence (AI), virtual reality, machine learning, blockchain, Internet of Things and more are taking center stage in powering businesses. Oracle has been incorporating AI techniques into its solutions for years. We are observing an ever-increasing interest and extraordinary surge in experimentation and investment among Indian enterprises too. Also, demand for employees to upskill, and be prepared for a transformed workplace is growing – where bots will work along with humans. Robots will help us build human pattern intelligence and algorithms to augment the future world. With organizations examining productivity, automation coupled with AI technologies will become the norm.
Undoubtedly, it has become more conducive than before. Our continued investment in the country is a testament to this. Policies are especially making a difference in industries like banking, financial payments, pharma, retail/e-commerce or the start-up sector. The startup economy is now taking off and Indian companies are making a mark globally today. It’s great to see the government promoting entrepreneurship and innovation as we welcome our youth into the workforce.
Yes, we launched Oracle’s first-of-its-kind global startup accelerator initiative in Bengaluru in 2016, and subsequently launched in Bristol, Delhi/NCR, Mumbai, Paris, Sao Paulo, Singapore, Tel Aviv and more. Known as the Oracle Startup Cloud Accelerator program, we have successfully mentored and nurtured 15 startups in India. The positive impact is visible; one start-up has gone into mass production; another received funding and international orders, while others have been approached by investors. Under this program, Oracle makes its cloud technology available to start-ups, provides mentoring and networking opportunities, provides co-working spaces and access to Oracle customers, partners and investors among other assistance.
We are associated with many smart cities. For example, we are working with the Maharashtra government to accelerate its smart city program, and modernize their technology solutions, while in Jharkhand, we are working with them to improve citizen services and make Jharkhand an attractive destination for startups.
The company continues its investments in the region with hiring, R&D, product development, creation of futuristic sales hubs to fulfill rising customer demand for cloud.