HCLSoftware designates India as its fifth key global pillar in strategy

Organic and inorganic growth has made it the largest enterprise software player in the country

HCLSoftware, the software division of HCLTech, has designated India as its fifth key geography, underlining the country’s growing significance in its global strategy. Previously part of the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, India is now an independent focus area alongside the Americas, Europe, APACJ (APAC excluding Japan), and MEA (Middle East and Africa).

 

Rajiv Shesh, chief revenue officer at HCLSoftware, emphasised India’s dual role as both a producer and consumer of software.

 

“With 1.5 billion people, the needs of this market are very different. India presents an enormous opportunity because the paradigm shifts when you build and consume products here. The scale in India dwarfs many large implementations globally, and all of this must be supported by reliable software,” he told Business Standard in a meeting in Mumbai.

 

HCLSoftware’s revenue for 2023-24 stood at $1.4 billion, with over 20,000 clients across 132 countries. It has a total headcount of 7,200. HCLSoftware’s earnings before interest and tax for the third quarter of 2024-25 (FY25) was 34 per cent, up 160 basis points year-on-year (Y-o-Y). However, revenue for the third quarter of FY25 was down 2 per cent Y-o-Y.

 

Shesh further added that while, in terms of revenue, the traditional major markets — the US and Europe — continue to drive demand, India and West Asia are top contenders for company investments.

 

“We believe we can create proof points in India, as we are doing with large banks here, which can be showcased globally,” said Shesh.

 

In April last year, HCLSoftware signed a five-year agreement with India’s largest public sector bank, State Bank of India, for its digital transformation programme.

 

HCLTech’s software foray began in 2015-16. However, it gained prominence as the company made bold bets by acquiring global intellectual properties (IPs) for billions of dollars. In 2019, it completed the acquisition of seven IBM products for $1.8 billion. In 2018, it acquired Actian for $330 million. In 2024, it acquired French software firm Zeenea for €24 million, among others.

 

When asked how these acquisitions have fared, Kalyan Kumar, chief product officer at HCLSoftware, said 90 per cent of the investments have been recouped. “More importantly, we have invested further and enhanced these products, which means we come out with regular updates and newer versions. While we acquired the IPs, we have also proactively registered these IPs in India,” he added.

 

Kumar claims that HCLSoftware stands out as the largest enterprise software company headquartered in India.

 

AI-driven software evolution

 

Kumar believes that as the world moves towards adopting artificial intelligence (AI), the percentage of software capable of driving outcomes in certain areas is crossing the threshold where 60-70 per cent of services automation can be integrated directly into the product.

 

“With agentic AI, the way software is delivered will further evolve,” he said.

 

When asked about the impact of AI on software development, Kumar said the company has already deployed 4,000 co-pilots. “In products, we do not measure productivity but velocity. In certain areas, we are achieving a velocity of 40 per cent,” added Kumar.

 

Strengthening partner ecosystem and market presence

 

One of the biggest hurdles the company has faced is its services image. “It is the hardest perception change that we had to work on. The first question we got was: What is HCLSoftware? Why are you in this business? One of the first steps we took in 2022 was to rename ourselves as HCLSoftware. We also launched our branding exercise,” explained Shesh.

 

However, that perception is changing. Kumar added that HCLSoftware is actively building strategic partnerships, including collaborations with one Indian heritage global systems integrator (GSI) and four global GSIs, some of which compete with HCLTech.