Indian companies are gradually moving faster than the global average in digital supply chain transformation, AI adoption and sustainability. Venkat Iyer, VP & Head of Sales, India Business Unit, Capgemini, discusses how these trends, along with policy support and growing private investment, are reshaping supply chains and making India a key hub for transformation.
Where does India rank globally among Capgemini’s other markets?
APAC is the fastest-growing market in terms of percentage, and the India business is the second-largest in our APAC region after Australia. Our India business encompasses both the work we do with local clients and some of our global customers based in India. We also do a lot of work on supply chain transformation.
On the supply chain front, is this a recent focus or a long-standing part of the business?
Supply chain transformation is not new to us. But in the last few years, there have been next-gen supply chain transformations, thanks to factors like rising prices of oil, energy, talent, or policy changes. Organisations are now focusing on optimising costs and improving agility. Supply chains typically have been more linear and siloed into pieces. Agility means becoming more digital, bringing in transparency and accuracy into the supply chain process.
The second is diversifying the supplier base and expanding it, which brings in some complexity. The digital platform-based approach to supply chains is growing as companies seek more interconnected and transparent supplier networks. We also see local sourcing increasing. In our New-generation supply chain report, many executives said that in the next five years, there will be at least 5 per cent point increase in local sourcing — globally and in India.
Almost 74 per cent of people surveyed said the investments in the last two years have been tremendous. We see this trend continuing, with the investments in supply chain initiatives increasing in the next 12 to 18 months. We also see a significant increase in the usage of AI in the supply chain world. Almost 10 per cent of Indian organisations we surveyed said they’re already using agentic AI; this is the second largest in the world, while most other countries are still in lower single digits.
Is supply chain transformation helping clients navigate macroeconomic challenges? Is it becoming a key growth driver for you?
Geopolitics, tariffs, or rising labour costs contribute to inefficiencies in supply chains, prompting organisations to spend more on supply chain transformation initiatives. This also helps to make it smarter.
With digital initiatives, we see more transparency, onboarding of suppliers to diversify, collaboration between suppliers, manufacturers and companies and accuracy in the forecasting process.
With AI, we’re seeing real programmes now embedded in the daily operations of organisations, and this trend is only set to grow. Over the next few years, more digital twin initiatives and AI-driven analytics are expected to take shape. Our research also shows that India consistently ranks above the global average, whether in planned spending, AI adoption, or transparency, making this the right time to invest in the market. Many Indian companies are investing in transformation initiatives and modernising their infrastructure, moving to the cloud and enabling via AI automation.
Why is it an exciting time to be in India, helping companies with automation? Does the government’s increased focus through initiatives like PLI and semiconductor programmes also make the market more appealing for Capgemini?
We are more excited about the market because many policy changes have helped accelerate initiatives like those in the semiconductor space. Even with domestic companies, we see more initiatives, investments and diversification of businesses.
Almost every sector has a supply chain factor at the nerve centre to make sure the right product reaches the right place. It needs to be efficient, agile and predictable. Capgemini has also invested in its intelligence supply chain operations, frameworks, tools and assets to accelerate the journey of digital transformation or the next-gen supply chain.
Technology has advanced rapidly. What was once a conversation about GenAI a few years ago has now become reality, with numerous projects being implemented across organisations. Looking ahead, we expect to see more autonomous and self-healing supply chains powered by vast amounts of data. This surge in data-led initiatives and intelligence will further accelerate AI adoption and implementation, as robust data is vital for effective AI models.