TCS expands five-year deal with Marks and Spencer to boost digital business

TCS' announcement comes after it had announced its over $2-billion contract win from American insurer Transamerica

India's largest IT services firm Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) on Monday said it has expanded its partnership with Marks and Spencer (M&S) to enable the British retail giant become a digital-first business.

As part of M&S' five-year plan, TCS will be the principal technology partner for the retailer and help drive agility, intelligence, innovation and efficiency, TCS said in a statement.

Through the partnership, M&S will transition to a new Technology Operating Model that will help it align itself with rapid technology innovation to meet fast changing business priorities.

TCS did not disclose any financial details of the deal.

"Our long standing partnership with M&S has helped to build a strong contextual knowledge of their business... TCS will help the customer adopt a digital-first mind-set to win new customers and create growth at accelerated pace," TCS CEO and Managing Director Rajesh Gopinathan said.

The retailer's chief executive Steve Row said M&S and TCS will join forces to make its business "faster, simpler and more focused on achieving a seamless customer experience."

M&S had said in a statement on January 9 that core supplier services will transfer directly to TCS and the day- to-day relationship and project management of specialist suppliers will move under the control of TCS.

"As a result of the new Technology Operating Model, c.250 existing M&S Technology roles will transfer under TUPE to become TCS roles. Individual conversations will take place with around 30 individuals whose functions will be carried out differently in the future," it had said.

The statement further said that M&S will retain a smaller, more technical and commercially focused team that will lead and drive technology to support the business.

The retailer had said the programme will deliver annual efficiencies of about GBP 30 million by 2021-22 and that there is a one-off cost to implement of about GBP 25 million.

TCS' announcement today comes days after it had announced its over $2-billion contract win from American insurer Transamerica. The deal with Transamerica -- its largest to date -- is for transform the insurance and annuity business lines of the US firm.

The TCS scrip closed at Rs 2,747 on BSE, marginally lower than its previous close.