MindTree Consulting

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MINDTREE CONSULTING
“We expect continued high growth in the coming years. In preparation, MindTree
will add capacity and maintain its differentiation through quality of work and human
capital development.”
When Ashok Soota, Consulting Chairman and Managing Director, made this announcement on
April 1, 2005, MindTree Consulting had just become the first company in India’s burgeoning software
services industry to achieve USD55 million in sales within five years of startup. Even then, he was already
targeting USD100 million by March 2006.
In December 2005, Soota would write,
We strongly believe that culture drives behavior and behavior drives results. Indeed, our
performance and results demonstrate the impact of our culture and values.1
MindTree culture revolved around the company’s C.L.A.S.S. values—Caring, Learning, Achieving,
Sharing, and Social Responsibility. Soota explained how these values made them competitive.
…the caring value will be manifested by the “extra mile” our teams will walk for (our
customers); the sharing and learning values will create more skilled teams—critical in this
knowledge intensive business; the social responsibility objective helps to build more committed
people; and our achievement objective would ensure excellence, on-time delivery and customer
satisfaction.
Soota was understandably proud of the MindTree culture and its role in the company’s
performance. He believed that visitors to MindTree’s main facility in Bangalore, India would “sense
the energy and enthusiasm of our teams…the cheerful work environment we have created.”
Not one to take success for granted, Soota had engaged BizWorth, a consulting company, to
conduct its Intellectual Capital Rating on MindTree. Soota looked forward to the BizWorth report. He
believed it would confirm that, in the eyes of their customers, managers and employees, the same values
and business model that had been at the core of MindTree’s success could sustain the company in the
coming years.
This case was written by Prof. Horacio M. Borromeo, PhD, Asian Institute of Management. All learning materials are prepared solely
for the purpose of class discussion. The case is neither designed nor intended to illustrate the correct or incorrect management of
problems or issues contained in the case.
Copyright © 2006, Asian Institute of Management, Makati City, Philippines, http://www.aim.edu. For inquiries, please contact the
AIM Knowledge Resource Center at krc@aim.edu.
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MindTree Consulting 2
THE STORY BEHIND THE STARTUP
Education and early career
Soota began his career at Burmah Shell after graduating from Roorkee University (now IIT
Roorkee) with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering. Unhappy to be in a glamorous job with little
mental challenge, he surprised his friends and peers when he opted to move to DCM, a company of the
Shriram Group. His new job took him to Calcutta. While driving to work one day, he was physically
attacked by Naxalites, the violent Maoist faction of the Communists in India. Taking sick leave so he could
recover, he decided to visit his sister in Bombay (now Mumbai). It was there that he came across an
advertisement for the MBM2 program of the Asian Institute of Management in Manila, Philippines. After
gaining admission, he flew to Manila where he spent the next two years.
After obtaining his MBA in 1973, Soota returned to the Shriram Group where, in 1978, he became
the CEO of Shriram Refrigeration. The subsidiary had been unprofitable for the previous four years but
Soota turned it around in less than twelve months, eventually growing the company to be the leader in its
industry.
From Refrigeration to IT
In 1983, while on a sabbatical in the United States, Soota caught up with his old college friends
from engineering school.3 As luck would have it, Azim Premji of Wipro met one of these friends and asked
if he knew someone who could take over the top position of Wipro’s new IT enterprise. Soota’s friend gave
his name to Premji.
Wipro (Western India Products Limited) began life as an oil factory in Maharashtra state in 1945.
In the early 80s, a group of R&D and Marketing managers in Bangalore introduced the company to the
information age and the IT business. When Premji offered Soota Wipro Infotech’s top post in 1984, he
was quick to take the offer.4 He had seen the vast potential of the IT industry, even though Wipro’s IT
business was not even one-seventh the size of the refrigeration business he was managing at Shriram.
In the next 15 years, Soota would see, up close, much of IT’s potential realized in India. He not only
learned the IT business quickly, he mastered it. In 1992, he was named Electronics Man of the Year by the
Electronic Component Industries Association, IT Man of the Year by Dataquest in 1994, and IT Man of
the year by Computerworld Magazine in 1997. Soota would lead Wipro Infotech through the dot-com
revolution of the late 90s.
Growth of the Indian software industry5
Overseas demand, mainly from North America, fueled the growth of the industry. When Soota
assumed the presidency of Wipro Infotech in 1984, India was just beginning to export software, mostly in
the form of “body shopping,” whereby Indian software engineers went overseas (“onsite”) to service
projects. It was difficult to execute these projects in India (“offshore”) because the necessary
infrastructure did not exist. Indian politicians’ paranoia that computers would take away jobs led to an
import-substitution policy which mandated the use of locally-built hardware and locally-developed
software. Importation of computer hardware and software was extremely difficult and virtually
impossible.
In the early 90s, a new government devalued the Rupee and began to seriously liberalize the Indian
economy. The infrastructure for the software industry began to take shape. Newly-constructed
government software technology parks (STPs) offered many incentives to start-ups and locators,
promising tax holidays, duty-free imports, one hundred percent foreign equity ownership, satellite-based
telecommunications facilities, and other inducements. These improvements in infrastructure brought
Asian Institute of Management Copyright 2006

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more projects offshore. From a mere five percent of total software exports in 1990, offshore work had
grown to 41 percent by 1999.
Meanwhile, the number of software engineers had mushroomed, thanks to the government’s earlier
investments in higher education, which gave birth to elite institutes of management and technology (the
IIMs and IITs), and the prestigious regional engineering colleges (the RECs). By 1991, there were 56,000
IT and ITES (information technology enabled services) professionals in India. This would grow to
160,000 in 1997 and nearly 300,000 by 2000. With such an able workforce and infrastructure
development, the industry was able to move from a low-cost provider of low- to medium-value added
services to higher-value added while maintaining its cost advantage.
Turnover was a continuing problem, however, especially for on-site projects, even if turnover rates
had gone down in 1999 to about 15 percent from a high of 30 percent in earlier years. This exacerbated the
problem of rising salaries, which had averaged 25 percent per year increase since 1993, and only coming
down to 16 percent in 1999. Total employment cost per year for an Indian programmer was USD 16,000
compared to USD 14,000 for a Chinese and USD39,000 for a Filipino.
As the millennium dawned in 1999, software exporting firms had grown to over 700 from 157 in
1991. Such was the boom that while the top five (TCS, Wipro, Pentafour, Infosys and NIIT) accounted for
33% of all software exports, this was significantly lower than the 60 percent share they controlled ten
years earlier. (Exhibit 1: Top 20 Indian Software Exporters in 1998-1999.) But the future of the industry
was never brighter with NASSCOM and McKinsey predicting revenues of USD50 billion for exports and
USD37 billion from the domestic market by 2008.
A different startup from the rest
Ashok Soota was 57 years old in 1999 and had led Wipro Infotech Software Services, by then India’s
second largest software exporter, for 15 years. Caught up in the exuberance of the dot-com bubble, and
unable to resist the urge to create and run his own company, Soota, along with nine friends and associates
from Wipro, Cambridge Technology Partners, and Lucent, founded MindTree Consulting. They
envisioned the company to be an IT and telecom services provider. As the newest company to join the
industry, the partners knew they would have to quickly find a way to separate MindTree from the 1,500
other IT services companies in India.
The Logo Said It All
Subroto Bagchi, co-founder and chief operating officer, recalled how they launched their company
with a search for a corporate logo. They conducted a week-long exercise where they invited ten children
from the Spastics Society of Karnataka. First, they briefed the children about the proposed company’s
vision, mission and values. Then they explained how the DNA of imagination, action, and joy would make
MindTree a great place to work. After giving them basic graphic design instruction, they asked the
children to artistically express these three elements.
The now famous logo, in red, blue and yellow colours representing the “DNA” components, was the
work of a student, K.S.Chetan, who had a motor and speech disability.6 (Exhibit 2: MindTree Logo.) The
logo was launched in August 1999, and symbolized how much MindTree valued its commitment to
society.

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Rediscovering Values
The co-founders not only came from different large and very successful companies; they also came
from three different national origins. “Such a rich cultural diversity,” said Soota, “led to a flying start.” But
quickly discovering that diversity in style, approach, and thought processes could also lead to
misunderstanding and conflict, Soota turned to Fordham MBA professor, Jukka Laitamaki, for advice.
Laitamaki suggested that diversity could in fact be strength, not weakness, if it were held together by a
common set of values. Since they had already adopted a set of six founding values when they started the
firm, the co-founders were curious if anyone could still remember them. 7They soon discovered that no
one could recall more than one or two of the original values.
At that time MindTree had 500 employees, whom Soota had started to call “MindTree Minds.” By
then the cultural diversity within the organization encompassed nine different nationalities. Soota and his
top management team spent the next few months interacting with practically each and every MindTree
Mind, seeking to understand what values they all would want MindTree to stand for. From these
dialogues emerged Caring, Learning, Achieving, Sharing, and Social Responsibility, or C.L.A.S.S., which
the company formally launched in April 2001.
The dot-com burst and other shocks
The young company was barely a year old when the dot-com bubble burst. This shock was followed
by another on September 11, 2001, when terrorists hijacked several airliners and crashed them into the
World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Then came the tense standoff between India and Pakistan. Soon
the SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) epidemic would break out and keep foreign investors and
customers away from India and the rest of Asia for nearly six months.
MindTree’s main business unit (today called IT Services) saw its market evaporating. New orders
were postponed and some existing orders were shortened or cancelled altogether. Many of the new
software services firms began to close shop.
Throughout the 90s, IT spending among the Global 2000 had been characterized by annual double-
digit growth. This dropped to 8 percent in 2001 as companies grew more risk-averse, took longer to make
IT investments, and generally “limited spending to low-risk projects with immediate payoffs.”8
The industry in India also saw a meltdown in the telecom services market in 2001-2002. The
smaller business unit of MindTree (today called R&D Services), with its dependence on this sector, had to
re-formulate its entire business model.
It became apparent that MindTree might have hired too many people too quickly.
Putting values to work
Around the world, the dot-com burst led many IT consulting companies to fold up or downsize.
Soota and the MindTree leadership team would not let anyone go. They talked to the entire workforce and
everyone agreed to take a salary cut, with the senior executives giving up as much as 25 percent of their
pay. Even middle managers pitched in to save staff positions created during the earlier period of
optimism, volunteering to take additional cuts so that no one would have to leave except for non-
performance.
Soota saw the unselfishness of the managers as living proof that the people of MindTree were truly
adopting the company’s values of caring and sharing. 9 He became firmly convinced that MindTree would
emerge from the crisis stronger, and ready for the global recovery that he knew would have to come
sooner or later.

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It was more difficult to assure their customers that MindTree would be around for a long time.
While Volvo and Hindustan Lever had already put their faith in MindTree’s long-term vision and viability,
the 9/11 shock had disrupted businesses worldwide and made potential customers skeptical, cautious of
where and how they should spend their money. Soota’s team endeavored to learn where customers were
not cutting back or at least not cutting as much. Then they committed their meager resources to develop
intellectual property and vertical markets accordingly. 10
After the 2001-2002 debacle
Expectedly the company suffered heavy losses. But as they entered their fourth year, they grew
increasingly confident that when the markets rebounded, they would be well-positioned to harvest.
Post-2002 was a time of global economic revival led by the US. However, the face of the Indian IT
industry had changed. Gone were the days of high double-digit growth and huge margins. Money-
conscious customers cut discretionary spending as they were not threatened by any technology
discontinuity and had grown more risk-averse. At the same time, they wanted more for every dollar spent.
The offshoring wave got stronger as a result, but size became the foremost criterion for vendor selection.
The Big 5 got bigger. Moreover, multinational IT firms like IBM, Accenture and HP had discovered India
as a lucrative delivery location and they began to take a bigger cut of the pie. (Exhibit 3: Market Share of
IT Services Exports.) The multinationals also changed job market expectations fueling wage inflation for
experienced IT professionals and indirectly impacting the margins of Indian IT players. 11
But the markets did rebound, and MindTree reaped the harvest. On April 1st, 2005, MindTree
announced gross revenues of USD55 million, an increase of 90 percent over the previous year. With the
global economy recovering in 2003 and 2004, MindTree had gained new customers in the US, Europe,
the Middle East, Japan and ASEAN. New customers included AIG and Emirates, while old customers
Volvo, Franklin Templeton, and Unilever expanded their portfolios. Avis had started in 2000 as an
important project to develop avis.com. By 2005, work had grown to encompass 8 divisions of Avis’ parent,
Cendant Corporation.
C.L.A.S.S. and Mindtree’s Success
Soota attributed a large part of their success to C.L.A.S.S. values—Caring, Learning, Achieving,
Sharing, and Social Responsibility. To support these values, the management team had instituted a
number of distinctive policies and practices.
Mid-sized positioning.
MindTree positioned itself to be the best midsize company. Said Subroto Bagchi,
“We find that customers are increasingly finding it more comfortable to work with mid-size
IT companies. This trend is prevalent across the globe. They seek MindTree for the agility, access
and attention they receive from us. As a result, MindTree has clearly emerged as the face of India’s
mid-size segment.
Soota added, “Many customers don’t want to be (a vendor’s) 1000th customer.”
When Volvo came to India to outsource its IT requirements, it chose MindTree over the bigger, top-
tier companies. At the time, MindTree had only 500 staff. Krishnakumar, President and CEO of the IT
Services business, Soota, and the rest of MindTree management drew the lesson that in the aftermath of
the IT slowdown, companies like Volvo would feel that they could only have access, attention, agility and
attitude from mid-size, not giant firms. Anjan Lahiri, executive vice-president of MindTree’s European

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operations, felt success came from winning the customer’s trust. For Vishweshwar Hegde, vice-president
of the global quality function, regular collaboration with customers was the key.
Asked how he would break out of this mid-size positioning, Soota replied that they didn’t plan to as
the definition of mid-size would change even as MindTree continued to grow.12
We are very proud to be mid-tier. We are not seeking to be somebody. Our customers are enjoying
working with us because of our agility, attitude and the value we bring them.”
Staying mid-size was thought to be good for internal customers too. Perhaps remembering his early
days as an insignificant young engineer in a large company, Soota maintained that young people did not
want to be the 30,000th or 50,000th employee. For Soota, “joy,” which he defined as “the satisfaction of a
job well done,” and “a joyous environment” were most important to MindTree Minds. He believed that
“happy people led to happy customers.”
Focus on value-addition
MindTree also kept away from the business process outsourcing (BPO) market. Soota believed that
the BPO business was completely different from IT services, and needed a different kind of people. He
also felt that the “rhythm” in a BPO operation was more like that of a factory than a design center.
The MindTree plan for expansion concentrated on specialized niches. These included Internet
consulting and Internet-related applications, business intelligence, Bluetooth technology, and industrial
automation. To support these specializations, MindTree continuously developed their consulting
capabilities, their intellectual property (IP) road map for the R&D services business, 13and the tools,
frameworks and knowledge management to enhance their customers’ capabilities.
Scott Staples was one of the original founders who came from Cambridge Technology Partners.
Later he would become Executive Vice President in charge of Americas business for IT Services. Staples
and the other Cambridge Technology veterans provided high consulting capability. Combined with
MindTree’s low-cost advantage on offshore projects, this gave MindTree’s customers the best of both
worlds.
Customer selectiveness
They did not want to compete with their own customers either. So they stayed away from the
products business. Instead, said Janakiraman, President and CEO of R&D Services, they focused on
“creating value for the customer through add-on features, which could be done by MindTree Research or
MindTree Engineering.” One example of a value-adding feature was the Bluetooth interface they
developed for a mobile-phone manufacturer. The interface gave the manufacturer “an essential but
complementary add-on feature” so the manufacturer could concentrate on “GSM, CDMA and other
wireless technology issues.” As a result of their business model and policies, MindTree selected only those
customers with whom they could have strategic relationships and potential for continued, long-term
growth.
MindTree avoided other temptations that IT companies had easily succumbed to, such as BOT
(build-operate-transfer) schemes, volume low-end work, and acquisition for acquisition’s sake.

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Recruiting and keeping MindTree minds
Recruitment
In 2003 and 2004, Hewitt Associates cited MindTree among the Best Employers in India. Similar
accolades came from BusinessWorld and Data Quest. They were also the youngest company to win the
Helen Keller award for their work with disabled persons. Their growing reputation as one of the best
places to work helped them to tap the best young people from the best campuses and from competitors.
One indication of the employees’ regard for MindTree was the fact that of the 65 percent who were
lateral hires, 40 percent had been referred by other employees. 14
The large number of referrals meant that many employees already knew each other long before
joining the company. Lateral hiring resulted in an experience profile higher than that of the larger players.
Compensation and other rewards
Compensation at MindTree was at least at par with the rest of the industry. What gave MindTree
the edge, Soota felt, were the challenging work, a clearly-articulated career path, and a feeling of
inclusiveness. Since most of their work was project-based, people got satisfaction from seeing their
individual contribution from start to finish. With so many new projects, MindTree Minds also got to see
the impact of their work on their customers.15
Being a knowledge organization, MindTree ensured that its human resource policies reinforced and
rewarded the sharing and learning values. These policies were imbedded in performance management
systems. One important tool was the competence map which defined every role in the organization
according to a set of 10 skills and knowledge areas critical to the successful implementation of that role.
Each role, from chairman down to clerk, had a competence map.
In its reward systems, the company gave numerous awards for ideas, suggestions, innovations,
patents, and other knowledge-creation and knowledge-promotion initiatives. MindTree also recognized
community work.
On November 20, 2005, Business Today reported that MindTree “managed to retain the character
of a small, closely-knit organization despite its growing profile…keeping attrition levels (12 percent
overall, 1 percent at senior management) well below industry averages (20 percent and 10 percent
respectively) and becoming a much sought-after employer for fresh grads and experienced pros alike.” In
fact, it would be correct to say, that from 2003 to 2005, MindTree was the most consistent performer in
multiple Best Employer surveys done by various global and local consulting organizations and business
magazines.
“A joyous environment”
Aware of the stresses people encountered in their fast-paced industry, MindTree introduced a
variety of programs to counter these pressures. A famous story among employees told of how Soota had
ordered one exhausted MindTree Mind to go home and sleep. On Saturdays, people would be visiting
homes for the aged. Mothers’ workstations were moved to the company’s crèche where they could keep an
eye on their kids. The Arboretum Initiative helped new employees settle into the culture, without rushing
them into it. Soota himself made it a point to meet and address new hires. The Competency & Culture
program, or C2, had senior executives mentoring younger staff on career choices. Mentoring also
extended to slum children who had the opportunity to meet their corporate benefactors. To sustain the
“joyous environment,” top management encouraged special interest groups and Knowledge Communities.
These groups encompassed such diverse activities as Java code-writing, spirituality, and long-distance

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trekking. There was a Carnival each February for employees and their families, as well as regular birthday
celebrations. A health buff, Soota himself led the Healthy Body in a Healthy Mind program.
Stock options
Puneet Jetli, General Manager, People Function said that MindTree used multiple tools to motivate
its team including empowerment, inclusion (of families), communication and people friendly policies.
Though MindTree was the 1500 th IT Services company out of India, it was the first to extend Stock
Options to each and every employee. This was valued since it was clear that the company would do an IPO
(Initial Public Offer) at some time.16
PREPARING FUTURE LEADERS
Leadership training
In preparation for future growth, the company started a global leadership development program,
with two development centers in Bangalore and one in Hyderabad, for employees who had been identified
for future leadership roles. To monitor how well employees kept to MindTree’s values, performance
reviews were split between performance (60 percent) and values-based behavior (40 percent). For the
latter, a 360-degree assessment (Appendix B: Performance Evaluation Form.) and anecdotal evidence
were provided by the evaluators. When recruiting, the company gave preference to those with the
potential to fit into the culture. If all an applicant had was talent, he was not likely to get the job.
Every year, on average, one third of employees were promoted. Soota acknowledged, however, that
different employees had different career goals. Some aspired to join the managerial ranks while others
preferred to remain “techies.” MindTree would always have room for both.
The 95-95-95 rule
To drive home, the need to face constant challenges, Soota created the 95:95:95 Rule, which meant
that 95 percent of MindTree Minds must have 95 percent of all information 95 percent of the time. For
example, after the quarterly report17 had been discussed by the Board, the leadership team would share it
with the rest of the organization so everyone could relate to the strategic challenges and determine their
contribution to the solutions.
Employees could also look forward to a variety of cross-functional assignments. Anticipating the
need to ensure cross-functional seamlessness as they grew, MindTree had installed an integrated ERP
package in their first year. They continued to improve on knowledge sharing and communication by
creating cross-functional task forces and starting a Six Sigma program.
Future ambitions
In its vision for 2007-2008 MindTree saw itself achieving USD 231 million in revenues, joining the
industry’s top 10 percent in profit after tax (PAT) and return on investment (ROI), becoming one of the
top twenty globally admired firms in its industry, and giving a significant portion of its PAT in support of
primary education.
NASSCOM had reported total software and services revenues for fiscal year 2005 at USD13.5
billion, of which IT services accounted for USD10.4 billion, ITES-BPO USD 3.4 billion, and Engineering
Services, R&D and Software Products 2.9 billion. Tier I firms (revenues greater than USD1 billion) had 45
percent of IT services and 4-5 percent of BPO. “Emerging players” (revenues less than USD 100 million)
took 10-15 percent of IT services and 5 percent of BPO. (Appendix C: NASSCOM Analysis.)

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When benchmarked against three Tier I firms (TCS, Infosys and Wipro Global IT) and two
“Emerging Players” (Sasken and Aztec),18 MindTree appeared to have done well, especially for a five-year
old startup. But the way ahead would not be easy. Although the 2005 NASSCOM-McKinsey report
predicted “dramatic growth,” it nevertheless identified a number of “challenges.” There would be a
shortage of skilled workers, and many would need fluency in French, German, Japanese and Spanish
languages. Urban infrastructure bottlenecks would need to be addressed and new business districts
created. Players would have to be more innovative in service lines and operational excellence. Finally, they
had to find ways to maintain their cost advantage amidst rising wage and other costs.
Ashok Soota expected the BizWorth study to tell him if MindTree could sustain a meaningful
differentiation in the increasingly competitive arena that was the Indian IT and ITES industry.
(Appendix D: BizWorth Rating of MindTree.)
Ashutosh Singh’s day begins at the canteen. After a quick cup of coffee, it’s down to work; Singh
ploughs into a load of e-mails and goes into small group discussions with his team at The Pub, a bright
blue informal meeting enclosure modeled on Bangalore’s numerous watering holes. It’s more of the same
over the next couple of hours; then it’s time for lunch, followed by more work. At 4.45 p.m. he’s helping a
colleague who’s stuck on a particularly difficult algorithm. This stretches to 6.00 p.m. It’s Friday evening
and an air of informality extends over the campus; movie plans are being finalized even as project
deadlines are being put in place for next week. Then it’s pubs (the real ones) ahoy!

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Appendix A: A DAY IN THE LIFE OF ASHUTOSH SINGH (31, Senior Consultant, Mind Tree Consulting)
Source: “A Closely Knit Workplace,” November 20, 2005, Business Today; downloaded from
http://www.mindtree.com, 1 Feb 2005.
Ashutosh Singh’s day begins at the canteen. After a quick cup of coffee, it’s down to work; Singh
ploughs into a load of e-mails and goes into small group discussions with his team at The Pub, a bright
blue informal meeting enclosure modeled on Bangalore’s numerous watering holes. It’s more of the same
over the next couple of hours; then it’s time for lunch, followed by more work. At 4.45 p.m. he’s helping a
colleague who’s stuck on a particularly difficult algorithm. This stretches to 6.00 p.m. It’s Friday evening
and an air of informality extends over the campus; movie plans are being finalized even as project
deadlines are being put in place for next week. Then it’s pubs (the real ones) ahoy!

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Appendix B: Online Performance Evaluation Form (Screen Shot)

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*NASSCOM estimates have been reclassified to provide greater granularity

- Revenues from Engineering and R&D services and Software Products reported
separately (erstwhile clubbed with IT Services / ITES-BPO)
− Historical values for a few segments have changed
− For ease of comparison, details for two preceding years have been restated as per the new
classification

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Growth in Revenues
• Indian IT-ITES industry continues to chart remarkable double-digit growth for the nth successive
year and is expected to exceed USD 36 billion in annual revenue in FY 2005-06, a growth of
nearly 28 per cent.
• The Indian IT-ITES industry has grown at a CAGR of over 28 per cent since FY 1999-2000. Over
the same period, the industry’s contribution to the national GDP has risen from 1.9 per cent in FY
1999-2000 to a projected 4.8 per cent in the current fiscal.
• As in the previous years, IT services continue to account for a lion’s share of the Indian IT-ITES
industry, contributing over 47 per cent of the total industry revenue in FY 2004-05.
• The hardware, ITES-BPO and engineering and R&D Services segments accounted for 21 per
cent, 18 per cent and 14 per cent respectively.
• The segment composition of industry revenues is likely to remain unchanged – weighed towards
the services (IT + ITES-BPO) and software segments in FY 2005-06.
Increasing Exports
• Export earnings accounted for 64 per cent of the total IT-ITES aggregate in FY 2004-05. Strong
fundamentals including a large base of skilled talent, demonstrated quality and service delivery
expertise at a significant cost advantage and an enabling environment have ensured that India
attracts a disproportionately larger share of the global IT-ITES demand for offshore services –
and continues to drive India’s export-led growth.
• IT-ITES exports from India grew from USD 13.3 billion in FY 2003-04 to USD 18.2 billion in FY
2004-05. It is estimated that total IT-ITES exports from India will exceed USD 23.9 billion in the
current fiscal (FY 2005-06).
• Software and services exports (excluding hardware) are projected to grow at 32 percent in the
current fiscal.
• India’s stock of foreign exchange earnings is amongst the highest in the world, with reserves
having risen from USD5.8 billion in FY1990-91 to USD139 billion in January 2006.
Geographical Breakdown of Exports
• An interesting industry trend that has been noticed in recent years is the expansion of the Indian
IT industry's presence from beyond traditional destinations, to newer geographies. The industry's
focus is no longer on English-speaking countries alone, and a key strategy for Indian IT majors
has been to harness local talent to tap domestic markets and de-risk the revenue model by
reducing their dependence on one geographical region.
• Americas and Europe remain the key markets, accounting for over 90 per cent of IT-ITES
exports. However, export earnings from markets other than the US and the UK are also
witnessing significant double-digit year-on-year growth.
• While Indian service providers have built delivery centers in key source markets (e.g. US), they
are expanding their footprints in specialist locations like China for engineering and design; South
Africa for insurance, and near-shore locations like Eastern Europe and Mexico. Apart from
companies in the US, organizations from Europe, South East Asia, Australia, Japan, Hong Kong,
New Zealand, etc. are also reaching out for Indian software expertise, supported by the
conducive policy environment and incentives for software exports offered by India.

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IT Services Exports by Verticals
• Services exports in FY 2004-05 witnessed continued strength in traditional vertical market

segments including BFSI, manufacturing and telecommunications.
• Underlying the increasing geographic and vertical market penetration is the continuing supply-
side maturity of the Indian industry. This is reflected in the ongoing scale expansion without
compromising on quality or productivity and growing deal sizes; demonstrated abilities of India-
based firms to broaden their service portfolio, leverage productivity and utilisation levels to
sustain competitiveness and enhance their global service delivery capabilities – while maintaining
high levels of growth.
Employment trends
• The total direct employment in the Indian IT-ITES sector is estimated to have grown by over a
million, from 284,000 in FY 1999-2000 to a projected 1,287,000 in the current fiscal (2005-06).
• In addition to the nearly 1.3 million-strong workforce employed directly in the industry, Indian IT-
ITES is estimated to have helped create an additional 3 million job opportunities through indirect
and induced employment. Indirect employment includes expenditure on vendors including
telecom, power, construction, facility management, IT, transportation, catering and other services.
Induced employment is driven by consumption expenditure of employees on food, clothing,
utilities, recreation, health and other services.
Key industry highlights:
• The leading publicly- listed players have reported a top line year-on-year growth of nearly 34 per
cent, over the first half of the current fiscal.
• MNC-owned captive units have been scaling up their operations steadily with the headcount
forecast to grow by at least 30 per cent this year.
• IT-ITES activity in the domestic market is also witnessing steady growth with the services
segment coming into its own – reflecting sound optimism for the year-end results.

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Appendix D: BIZWORTH RATING OF MINDTREE
Based on the methodology of ICS in Sweden, the BizWorth survey evaluated a company along four
major variables: (1) business recipe/model; (2) organizational structural capital (intellectual properties and
processes); (3) human capital (management and employees); and (4) relational structural capital
(network, brand, and customer). Each variable was measured on three scales: effectiveness, renewal,
and risk. The text of the report is reproduced below in its entirety.
1. BUSINESS RECIPE/MODEL. The Effectiveness is relatively high and Renewal & Development efforts
are strong. There is a high Risk of the Effectiveness declining.
BACKGROUND
The aura around MindTree is perceived to be closely linked to the birth of MindTree and the team
that founded the company. This was one aspect that was regularly mentioned, throughout the IC
RatingTM process. There seems to be unanimous agreement that the performance of the company has a
lot to do with the strength exuded collectively by this unique Management Team. Every interest group—
including investors, customers, suppliers, and the MindTree minds--had one thing in common to say: ‘the
management is a unique blend of capability and high values.’
MindTree is perceived to enjoy a strong position in the mid-sized IT services segment. The
company derives benefit from the founders’ previous experience in one of the top companies in the Indian
IT Services industry. The Management Team evokes a consistent image in all the target groups – ‘High
Values, Dedicated, Capable, Professional, and Caring’.
The general opinion is that there will be high growth in the overall Indian IT Services market over
the next three years. The area of concern is perceived to lie in the availability of people, rather than in the
growth of the industry. The term resource is almost always interpreted as human resources, with finance
being mentioned rarely. The respondents are also of the opinion that there is stiff competition in this
industry. As the competition grows, human resources command a premium, making the cost structure
rise. Space within the established cities could be another constraint. Some companies have already set
up large offices in comparatively less expensive cities in India like Kolkata.
It is felt that the profitability levels will not be affected proportionately; the rise in costs could be
passed on to the customer.
The competition in the IT services industry is seen to be high. However, the respondents are also
clear that wherever MindTree has the requisite competencies, they are often preferred even over the
larger players. The respondents are of the opinion that it may not be very difficult for new players to enter,
but it would surely be difficult to reach the strategic positions that the existing players like MindTree have
established for themselves in the market. The competition is seen not so much within India, but the
possibility of other countries taking bigger chunks of the pie lurks large. Here again, the general opinion is
that among the developing countries, India has a 10-year lead on the others. In addition, India’s ability to
combine technology talent with management capability makes it a tough competitor to overtake. The
respondents differ in opinion about the probability of Trade Agreements in the US affecting the IT services
Industry.
It is interesting to note that although there is general acceptance that the big players are capable of
executing complex projects, there is also a conviction that MindTree is as good as any of them. Most of
the customer-respondents felt that given a scenario where the project could be handled by MindTree as
well as larger players, they would choose MindTree, since MindTree would care for them as much as the

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customers would care for themselves. This validates the belief that MindTree would enjoy a higher growth
rate than the competition.
Many of the internal respondents commented that the industry is structured ‘vertically’, and
MindTree must move faster in this direction.
Is MindTree’s strategy differentiated? The common consensus is: ‘The strategy in itself is not
differentiated, but the execution of the strategy surely is’. The brand evokes an image of a company that
is “Fair”, “makes Win–Win deals”, “is very people oriented” “high on commitment”, “high on integrity”.
It is these factors that give a differentiated positioning to MindTree; not the conventional
segmentation through horizontals and verticals. The collective wisdom of the Management Team is
perceived as unique.
From the Renewal perspective, there are three different observations:
1. The Top Management is aware that the company needs to continuously strengthen its
positioning statement to address the differentiation aspect.
2. A section of MindTree minds feels that the company needs to intensify business development.
3. There is a unanimous opinion amongst the external respondents that MindTree should use its
goodwill with existing clients to generate more business.
SUMMARY
• The relatively high Effectiveness of the Business Recipe’s is first and foremost based on the
capabilities of the Management Team, people-friendly practices, and a network (investors,
suppliers and customers) that strongly believes in the integrity and ability of the team.
• Renewal and development efforts also get a relatively high rating due to consistent efforts to find
the appropriate market position.
• The Risk of a decline in Effectiveness in the Business Recipe is considered high. The main
reason for this is the perception that the high Effectiveness is due to the uniqueness of the
management composition, and the company would be vulnerable should there be a change in
this composition.
SELECTED QUOTES
“MindTree is building a unique company - one that other companies can only dream about. We
have watched them grow and they have given us a lot. They have a truly good formula that starts with the
internal team, then the customers, the employees…. somehow they make their people satisfied and want
to stretch.”
“MindTree can show big companies how to do it right.”
SOME ADDITIONAL QUOTES OF INTEREST
“Wonder why they are not interested in the BPO space”

“Operating models might change”.
“Hope they are able to cope with the increasing scale of operations”

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SOME QUESTIONS OF INTEREST
1. What additional measures can be taken to hasten the pace of vertical alignment?
2. How can the company leverage the strengths already existing in certain domains?
3. How are the individual elements of the vision being measured to track alignment of strategy
with vision?
4. What more can be done to enhance the differentiation?
2. ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURAL CAPITAL
MindTree’s Organizational Structural Capital has an average Effectiveness, while the Renewal &
Development efforts are relatively strong. The Risk related to the Organizational Structural Capital is seen
as moderate.
BACKGROUND
The view emerging about the organizational structural capital of MindTree is that it consists of a
unique wealth of knowledge and expertise that is slowly but surely getting converted into
• licensable intellectual properties,
• specific methodologies and
• processes that will strengthen the differentiation.
The organization’s corporate culture is perceived to be open and trusting.
It comes out loud and clear that the vision and goals are clearly communicated to everyone
throughout the organization. There is a high level of transparency across the organization, going beyond
mere communication of vision and goals, and people are enthused about the extent and frequency of
such communication. However, some respondents indicated that there is a challenge of translating
company goals into specific individual objectives.
It is interesting to note that the organization has a rich mixture of people from different cultures and
yet the prevailing business culture is viewed as relatively homogeneous. The top management team is
seen as a good role model, spreading the culture across the organization. It is felt that in order for the
homogeneity to permeate throughout the organization; all managers need to emulate the top
management. The organizational structure however is still perceived as hierarchical and it is felt that there
are too many levels in the organization. In today’s age, this is seen as a limiting factor particularly for
youngsters. In terms of decision-making, the company is viewed as being quite centralized.
The organizational culture is seen as open and liberal. With this comes the flexibility that is seen as
positive by the people. The environment promotes questioning and suggestions.
Certain sections of the organization believe that they would like more attention, understanding and
empathy in respect of their functions and workload.
The systems for education and competence development have received a high rating. There is a
wide range of educational opportunities available for specialized courses related to technology and know-
how, as well as for general improvement programs. The Intranet is seen as a fountainhead of information
that is available to everyone across the organization. The system of communities prevailing in the
organization promotes learning and sharing. It makes it possible for everyone to learn and, enables many
to feel proud that there are others who would like to learn what they know.

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There is a perception that the time spent on learning and educating is probably skewed. The
absorption and internalization of the learning is not commensurate with the time and effort spent in
dispersing it. Some processes were found inadequate. Many respondents felt that the effectiveness of the
resource allocation process was not up to the mark. However, they also felt that there were efforts to
improve the same.
The processes in the Finance function were seen as relatively weak. However, it was felt that the
introduction of SAP would improve the processes.
There is a view that the feedback-link in certain processes is not clear. For example, a person
making a requisition for an item is not aware about the status of his requisition at any point of time.
There were some intriguing remarks about Processes. Some respondents felt that they were not
sure if there were adequate processes for understanding customers or for dealing with customer
complaints. However, it is agreed that the results are good, thanks to the intrinsic diligence of people in
the company.
The effectiveness of the Intellectual Properties of the company is seen as average. Where general
awareness is concerned, most respondents knew that MindTree does have a R&D division and that there
are efforts to develop intellectual properties. However, very few external respondents could connect
clearly to the intellectual properties of the company and fewer still could give specific information related
to this. It appears that the existence of the licensed intellectual properties is known only to the respective
users. These respondents were of the opinion that the intellectual properties strengthened the brand to a
large extent. The respondents were knowledgeable neither about the share of intellectual properties in
the company delivery nor of the future value of existing intellectual properties.
SUMMARY
• The Organizational Structural Capital has received an average rating on Effectiveness. It appears
that the low awareness of the Company’s Intellectual Properties is the main cause.
• Processes, have received a relatively high effectiveness rating. However, there is scope for
further improvement.
• The Renewal & Development efforts across the Organizational Structural Capital are seen as
relatively strong, but there are areas which merit further strengthening
• The Risk is considered moderate. If the renewal efforts are monitored carefully, this risk can be
controlled.
SELECTED QUOTES
“Once we get the lead, we know how to go ahead but we are not sure how to get the lead itself.”
“Mechanism for feedback process is in place. Implementation needs to be looked at. Only if there is
a complaint across customers then the process is examined and looked at. Sometimes the complaint is
attended to only in case it is escalated to the top management”.
“Conflicts arise because of matrix organization and who is exactly responsible for certain tasks is
not known”.
“The results are good but not sure it is because of the processes”

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“We do have customer satisfaction but I am not sure if there are customer management processes”
“Internal evaluations: the process is in place for appraisals. What is lacking is project appraisals.
There is no focus on evaluating projects immediately on completion.”
1. How can the company improve awareness levels regarding the existence of processes?
2. How can MindTree make sure that the implementation of the processes is more effective?
3. What can be done to track the absorption and impact of learning?
4. What can be done to improve ‘Lead’ generation?
3a. HUMAN CAPITAL: MANAGEMENT
MindTree’s management is seen as having extremely high Effectiveness. There are strong efforts
at Renewal & Development. The Risk that the Effectiveness will decline is moderate.
BACKGROUND
The highest rating of AAA for the Effectiveness of the Management is apparently due to their
extensive and invaluable collective experience in their previous assignments. Without exception, all
respondents feel that the management is transparent, has clear goals and are focused in achieving them.
The Management is seen as being committed to building an institution, rather than merely building
a business or a company. Management is also perceived internally as being concerned about the welfare
of the employees, is seen as a driving force, and is a role model for the Company culture. Employees feel
that they can approach the Management with ideas and suggestions for improvement.
The external communication also receives a very good rating. The respondents, including
customers, were of the unanimous opinion that the Management strives for a win-win situation while
negotiating deals. The customers feel that the management is extremely customer-caring. The
management team composition gets an excellent rating and they are seen as working well together.
However, there is a feeling amongst some respondents that it is difficult to grow to be a part of the top
management team. This could lead to dissatisfaction in the middle level management.
The probability of a top-management team-member leaving the organization is seen as very low.
There was unanimous agreement that management could take criticism.
SUMMARY
• The management’s high Effectiveness is mainly a result of their past collective experience and
their dedication to building an institution.
• The renewal is rated to be very high as the development of the management team is seen as
strong.
SELECTED QUOTES
“They know how to drive the dollar and how to keep me happy.”
“We have known the company from its inception. They have faced difficult days but their passion
kept them going. Any lesser team would have broken.”

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“Oh, they communicate everything to us”

“Sometimes one wonders if they are too liberal”
“MindTree is a pleasure to negotiate with and results in mutual benefit. They negotiate in good faith
and value the long-term relationship”
1. What is the optimal size for MindTree’s management team?

2. What can be done to decrease the vulnerability of the company to an event-risk to a few top-
management team-members?
3. Is the middle management overshadowed? What steps can be taken to have a more inclusive
approach towards them?
3b. HUMAN CAPITAL: EMPLOYEES
The Effectiveness of MindTree employees is assessed to be relatively high. The Renewal &
Development efforts are rated relatively strong and the Risk is seen as moderate.
BACKGROUND
Known as ‘MindTree minds’, the employees are perceived as people with high values. In fact, one
customer goes to the extent of commenting: “The values of the (MindTree) employees rub onto the
customers’ staff as well.”
The company is seen to really care for the employees wherever they are. The customers feel that
the employees are carefully chosen and possess the skills that the customers would require.
The customers in general feel that the employees understand them. However, some observations
on the social skills of employees are worth noting: for example, it is felt that the company could prepare
its employees better for overseas deputation, including training on cultural differences, to enable closer
interaction.
The respondents however did not appear to know enough about employee competencies in
domains other than those associated with them. However, the respondents did believe that the
employees do have the ability to perform new tasks and projects. It is interesting to note that the
competitors did not get such high ratings on these parameters.
SUMMARY
• At MindTree, the management plays a large role in the motivation levels of the employees.
• Employees are very vocal in the observation that the management is transparent and that they
convey the business vision and goals very clearly, down to the lowest level.
• There seem to be inequalities in competence level amongst the employees
SELECTED QUOTES
“The people are very friendly and we have a good relationship with them.”

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“It would be interesting to find out if the employees actually applied what they learnt in the
organization”
“It would be beneficial to conduct structured exit interviews.”
“Although the environment is seen as open and liberal, it appears that there are functions that are
yearning for more attention”.
1. How can MindTree prepare employees better for overseas postings?

2. Is there sufficient bottom-up communication?
3. How can MindTree improve competence equality across various functions
4a. RELATIONAL STRUCTURAL CAPITAL: NETWORK
MindTree’s network is seen as having a relatively high Effectiveness. The Renewal & Development
efforts are seen as relatively strong and the risk is moderate.
BACKGROUND
There is a clear perception that given the reputation, track-record and charisma of the MindTree
top management, the strength of the Network is naturally high. Most respondents felt that the network
definitely recognized the top management team members as the critical link.
At the moment there does not seem to be a very high business dependence on network, and there
is a clear impression that the network is not sufficiently mined.
The customers’ network appears very strong since most customers declared that they would not
miss a chance to give MindTree more business
Networking in the Media seems to be stronger within India, compared to Overseas.
SUMMARY
• The relatively high effectiveness of the Network comes from the access to the right type of
external contacts.
• The renewal efforts are seen as high and need to be sustained.
• There is a moderate risk that the effectiveness of the network could decrease in the future. This
risk needs special attention, since the loyalty of the network is perceived more towards the key
personnel rather than towards the company itself.
SELECTED QUOTES
“It is important to look in the network for potential employees. We have the network but we are not
utilizing it properly.”

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“Management does what it is doing and the Financiers go to them.”

“The company does not do any networking at the top level - So far their performance has kept them
going -they do not seem to find the need - however they have to increase their social network to make
real big deals. They are too focused on nuts and bolts of execution - again this is fine – but a few of them
should now focus on networking”
1. Is it the company’s policy to let the work talk for itself?

2. Is it a conscious decision not to engage in networking beyond a point?
3. Can MindTree pursue more opportunities for networking in the international media?
4b. RELATIONAL STRUCTURAL CAPITAL: BRAND
MindTree’s brand is seen as having a relatively high Effectiveness, the Renewal & Development
efforts are seen as high and the Risk that the Effectiveness will decline is moderate.
BACKGROUND
The major challenge for Brand MindTree seems to be the need to attract employees in one
geography and customers in another.
The Brand scores very high in Reputation within the brand-aware group, even though the overall
Awareness is low.
Customers indicate that other things being equal, MindTree would be preferred, due to the value
systems behind the brand. Several respondents emphasized the need for the company to ensure that the
value systems are sustained along with growth.
General brand Awareness is low within India as well as outside the country. Within India, the
awareness appears to be confined to Bangalore. From the Renewal efforts, it is apparent that the
company appreciates the need to improve the brand Awareness.
The Value System also emerges as the main brand-Differentiation factor
SUMMARY
• The relatively high Effectiveness of the MindTree brand is largely due to the high reputation in the
target group where the Awareness exists.
• The renewal efforts are rated strong based on efforts to increase the brand awareness and
continuous activities to secure the right market position.
• The risk of a decrease in the effectiveness of the brand is moderate
SELECTED QUOTES
“Their logo designed by the Spastics Society is a great differentiator.”

“Higher the image higher the risk.”

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“They are ahead of the players in the kind of social consciousness they have.”
“Experience and Relationship differentiates them”
“Generic services companies can suffer when the pricing war begins. Niche players have an
advantage”
1. What can be done to enable Brand MindTree to simultaneously achieve different objectives in
different geographies?
2. How can the Value System inherent in the Brand be sustained along with aggressive growth?
3. What measures can accelerate brand Awareness across the relevant geographies?
4c. RELATIONAL STRUCTURAL CAPITAL: CUSTOMERS
The Customer parameter has received a high Effectiveness and the Renewal & Development
efforts are also seen as high. The Risk is seen as moderate.
BACKGROUND
MindTree’s customers in general seem to be very satisfied and wish to be loyal to the company. All
respondents from the customer category have been effusive about MindTree’s values and the
Management Team Members with whom they have interacted. Some of them have specifically mentioned
the personal touch that they get from the company.
The customers are aware that companies bigger than Mindtree might have broader offerings.
However, other things being equal, they would still prefer MindTree.
Customers believe that the Eastern European countries and China might be future competition to
India. However, they feel that India is still far ahead in communication and management capability.
Customers seem to be a little surprised that MindTree is not eager to grab more of the pie that
each customer could offer. They believe that if the MindTree top management team were to build a
strategic relationship with the senior management of the customers, more business could flow.
Customers have expressed their appreciation that whenever there has been a need, MindTree has
gone out of its way to make sure that the customers’ needs are taken care of. In this aspect customers
have made a special mention that every MindTree mind has this attitude.
One customer even went so far as to say that the attitude of MindTree minds has rubbed off on
their people. There is one customer who however feels that the people are not as proactive as they used
to be.
Some Customers expressed concern over delays in the invoicing process at MindTree.
Customers wish that MindTree will continue to be customer caring and will grow to be a large
player. The customers are at the same time anxious that the growth should not affect the special touch
that today only MindTree offers.

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SUMMARY
• MindTree gets a relatively high grade in Effectiveness where customers are concerned. This
could be mainly attributed to the customer image, customer satisfaction and customer loyalty.
• The company’s efforts at Renewal are assessed as strong, since MindTree continues to
strengthen its relationships and tries not to be overly dependent on any particular customer.
• The Risk of a decrease in the Effectiveness in this area is seen as moderate. If MindTree works
on improving the usage rate and on improving its mix of old and new customers, the risk element
could largely be reduced.
SELECTED QUOTES
“In our project when we have had some trouble, they worry about it and care. Sometimes they
actually put people here for free just to handle problems.”
“Larger usage rate - IBM, Infosys and Accenture.”
“Business opportunities are realized when organizations move from vendor-supplier relationship.
When you grow into a partner relationship, then the chances of getting more from the existing customers
is higher.”
“MindTree is very good at mining their accounts. They have burrowed their way into their
customers.”
“Domain knowledge is less in areas of customers operations.”
1. Is MindTree too conservative in unleashing the real potential of the customer base?
2. How can MindTree make the most of the customers’ desire have to improve the usage rate?
3. How to ensure that today’s ‘Special Touch’ remains Special even in a hyper-growth environment?

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References
A closely-knit workplace. (2005, November 20). Retrieved from Business Today:

http://www.mindtree.com/news/view_news.phtml?nid=103
Ashok Soota. Chairman and Managing Director, MindTree Consulting. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://www.mindtree.com/about/ashok.html
Different minds on MindTree’s walls. (2004, June 29). Retrieved from MindTree:
Diverse gene pool. (2005, January 07). Retrieved from Business Standard:
Helping them stand tall. (2004, December 17). Retrieved from MindTree:
His third inning. (n.d.). Retrieved from MindTree: http://www.mindtree.com/news/view_news.phtml?nid=75
How I Made IT-Ashok Soota, CMD, MindTree Consulting. (2005, January 11). Retrieved from The Telegraph:
Leader, human capital development-MindTree Consulting. (2006, January 23). Retrieved from Global Services:
MindTree. (2006, February 1 and 7). Retrieved from http://www.mindtree.com.
MindTree Consulting: Leaders set the example. (2004, December 06). Retrieved from BusinessWorld:
MindTree Consulting: Our Profile. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.mindtree.com/about/facts.html
MindTree has a unique culture. (2005, April 09). Retrieved from The Times of India:
MindTree sales up 90%. (2005, April 02). Retrieved from Business Standard:
MindTree sets the standard for mid-sized IT firms. (2005, June 29). Retrieved from India West Business Magazine :
MindTree to expand to over 1,000 people. (2003, June 26). Retrieved from The Times of India:
The Zen-like experience. (2005, April 23). Retrieved from The Financial Express:
You must be willing to be destiny’s child. (2003, June 03). Retrieved from The Times of India:
Other References
Doing IT differently. (2006, February 01). Retrieved from Business Line Internet Edition:
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/bline/ew/2005/09/19/stories/2005091900200300.htm.
Ghemawat, P. (1999). The Indian Software Industry at the Millenium. Harvard Business School Publishing.
Kurana, R., & Podolny, J. (2004). Sapient Corporation. Harvard Business School Publishing.
National Association of Software and Service Companies. (n.d.). Retrieved from www.nasscom.org
Soota, A. (2005, Dec - 2006, Jan). 90% Growth Through Cultural Diversity. The Smart Manager, 27-32.
The human spirit knows no bounds. (2006, February 06). Retrieved from Businessworld:
http://www.businessworldindia.com/sep0604/arbormentis.asp
Wipro Story. (2006, February 24). Retrieved from WIPRO:
http://www.wipro.in/company/thewiprostory/index.htm.

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Endnotes
1Most of the quotations attributed to Soota are taken from his article, “90 percent Growth Through Cultural
Diversity,” in The Smart Manager, Dec 05 – Jan 06.
2 Master in Business Management. AIM has since renamed this program MBA (Master in Business
Administration).
3 Soota would later say, “I was always at the right place at the right time.”
4 His father had served in the Indian army, and this led to Soota’s attending 12 different schools in as many
years. Having grown up as an “army brat” Soota had learned “how to learn quickly…to be fast and agile.” He
referred to quickness and agility as “the two mantras of the present-day work culture.”
5 This section owes much to Ghemawat, P. “The Indian Software Industry at the Millennium.” Boston,
Harvard Business School Publishing, 1999, and National Association of Software and Services Companies
(NASSCOM) http://www.nasscom.org. The author strongly recommends Ghemawat’s industry note to
complement students’ preparation of this case for class discussion. The NASSCOM website is also highly
recommended for a post-class discussion update.
6 One of those 10 children had been born with cerebral palsy. She interned under very patient MindTree
trainers and eventually became MindTree’s front desk receptionist and telephone operator.
7 The founding values were: total ownership cost for the customer, teamwork, learning, shared wealth
creation, social sensitivity, and integrity.

8 This paragraph and the direct quote are sourced from Kurana, R. and J. Podolny. “Sapient Corporation.”
Boston, Harvard Business School Publishing. 2004.

9 Having grown up as one of six brothers and sisters, Soota had learned the value of sharing and caring early.
10 “Vertical” refers to competences, experience and knowledge about industries, e.g., telecommunications,
financial services, manufacturing. “Horizontal” refers to in-depth knowledge about technologies, e.g.,
internet, data warehousing, supply chain management. See Exhibits 5 – 9.
11 Email from Soota to the author, 29 March 2006. According to NASSCOM (in 2003), “With India emerging
as a global hub for offshore outsourcing, a number of internationally-known ISVs are outsourcing their
product development and R&D services. While some companies including Microsoft, IBM, Texas
Instruments, Adobe, Novell, SAP, Intel, and Cisco have taken the direct route and set up captive
development centers in India, others have collaborated with Indian companies for these projects. Indian
companies outsourcing product development activities include large players such as Wipro, TCS, Infosys and
smaller niche players with domain expertise in particular verticals such as Sasken, Mindtree, among others.
Some of the key global customers include reputed names such as Nortel, Cisco, HP, Intel, Alcatel, Texas
Instruments, Sony, etc. Around 230 multinationals have set up their offices in India and outsourced their
R&D activities. The market for outsourced R&D touched US$ 800 million – US$ 1 billion during 2003 and is
estimated to grow to US$ 11 billion by 2008.”. http://www.nasscom.org/artdisplay.asp?cat_id=615
12 See the table “India-based Service Provider Landscape” in Appendix C for a categorization of IT firms by
revenue performance.
13 This roadmap allowed MindTree to anticipate technologies that their customers would need in the future.
14 “Total direct employment in the Indian IT-ITES sector is estimated to have grown…from 284,000 in
FY1999-2000 to a projected 1,287,000 in the current fiscal (2005-2006).” Indian IT Industry Fact Sheet,
http://www.nasscom.org/artdisplay.asp?cat_id=42.4
“The forecast also predicted the (IT) sector could employ about 2.3 million workers by 2010, compared to
700,000 now, but projected a shortfall of 500,000 skilled workers.” Mark Kobayashi-Hillary. “Outsourcing
to earn India $60bn.” BBC News Online – Dec 2005 NASSCOM McKinsey Report.
http://indiaoutsource.livejournal.com/129775.html
15 In a 2004 study on rewards practices in the IT industry, NASSCOM reported that the median salaries
across all levels in both IT and ITES industries had increased 8-9% across all levels. Cash to benefits ratio
was in the order of 80:20. Benefits and people practices included company cars, loan programs, medical
insurance plans, development and training, rewards and recognition. Pure cash awards (as recognition for
individual or team performance) seemed to have declined in popularity in favor of non-cash awards.
http://www.nasscom.org/hewittstudy2004/default.asp.
16 In the NASSCOM-Hewitt 2004 study, it was found that “stock based plans, though prevalent, are for the
most used at senior management levels only.”

17 This document was entitled “What Went Well and What Could Be Better.”
18 Exhibit 4: Cross-company Comparisons for FY 2004-2005.

MindTree Consulting

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MindTree Consulting

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AIM-4-06-0010-CS

In December 2005, Soota would write,

THE STORY BEHIND THE STARTUP

Education and early career

Growth of the Indian software industry5

Asian Institute of Management Copyright 2006

A different startup from the rest

The Logo Said It All

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The dot-com burst and other shocks

Putting values to work

Asian Institute of Management Copyright 2006

After the 2001-2002 debacle

C.L.A.S.S. and Mindtree’s Success

Soota added, “Many customers don’t want to be (a vendor’s) 1000th customer.”

Asian Institute of Management Copyright 2006

Asian Institute of Management Copyright 2006

Recruiting and keeping MindTree minds

Compensation and other rewards

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PREPARING FUTURE LEADERS

The 95-95-95 rule

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Asian Institute of Management Copyright 2006

Asian Institute of Management Copyright 2006

Appendix B: Online Performance Evaluation Form (Screen Shot)

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Asian Institute of Management Copyright 2006

*NASSCOM estimates have been reclassified to provide greater granularity

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Geographical Breakdown of Exports

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IT Services Exports by Verticals

• Services exports in FY 2004-05 witnessed continued strength in traditional vertical market

Key industry highlights:

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Asian Institute of Management Copyright 2006

Appendix D: BIZWORTH RATING OF MINDTREE

Asian Institute of Management Copyright 2006

From the Renewal perspective, there are three different observations:

“MindTree can show big companies how to do it right.”

SOME ADDITIONAL QUOTES OF INTEREST

“Wonder why they are not interested in the BPO space”

Asian Institute of Management Copyright 2006

SOME QUESTIONS OF INTEREST

2. ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURAL CAPITAL

The organization’s corporate culture is perceived to be open and trusting.

Asian Institute of Management Copyright 2006

SOME ADDITIONAL QUOTES OF INTEREST

Asian Institute of Management Copyright 2006

SOME QUESTIONS OF INTEREST

3a. HUMAN CAPITAL: MANAGEMENT

Asian Institute of Management Copyright 2006

SOME ADDITIONAL QUOTES OF INTEREST

“Oh, they communicate everything to us”

SOME QUESTIONS OF INTEREST

1. What is the optimal size for MindTree’s management team?

3b. HUMAN CAPITAL: EMPLOYEES

Asian Institute of Management Copyright 2006

SOME ADDITIONAL QUOTES OF INTEREST

SOME QUESTIONS OF INTEREST

1. How can MindTree prepare employees better for overseas postings?

4a. RELATIONAL STRUCTURAL CAPITAL: NETWORK

Networking in the Media seems to be stronger within India, compared to Overseas.