We have created a culture of product development in India

Why did Microsoft decide to set up its development center in
Hyderabad?

Way back, in 1998, I spent one week each in Hyderabad, Chennai, and
Bangalore, trying to get a feel of these cities. The main focus was not on what
we needed for the business. We were not even concerned about things like
electricity, as we had thought that wherever we decided to set up our base,
these things would be offered by the government in power. The big driver, in
fact, was how it would be for employees and their families leading their
day-to-day lives.

The other aspect was, of course, affordable housing. Not
everybody in the company earns the same amount of money. It was important that
employees get affordable accommodation and the commute time to office was
minimum.

In comparison to other cities, Hyderabad had one advantage. The
Cyber Towers at HITEC City had enough available space. No company comes and
establishes its campus on day one. They have to go through the journey of doing
business and scaling up, and building a long-term sustainable business. We
needed to look at space availability and future options for expansion.

The weather in Hyderabad is also good for about nine months in a
year. Pollution levels are lower. The policies of the Andhra Pradesh government
are business friendly, proactive, and the government also delivers on its
promises. For us, the right kind of environment and the willingness of the
government to maintain that environment are important factors.

The government in power has changed from the time you had set up
the operation? Has anything changed for you?

Even after the transition, the whole momentum has continued. That is a great
thing about Andhra Pradesh.

Now that you have moved into the new campus, what are some of
the challenges that you face?

We moved to the new campus in January 2006. Our main focus was to find a
place in the same area as the Cyber Towers. It took me several months to
visualize the future as to how the whole thing would evolve. As getting a big
chunk of land in that area was difficult, we looked for a place where we had the
option for future growth. We were optimistic about the structured approach to
growth in the Gachibowli area where several companies have set up their
campuses. The area is slowly developing with hotels and apartments, which is a
good thing taking into account the future growth plans of companies, including
Microsoft. Many of our employees are from Andhra Pradesh and they have chosen to
relocate from other cities to be near their roots.

Andhra Pradesh also has some very good colleges to cater to the
growing manpower needs of software companies. As Microsoft is doing high-end
development, we need the best talent available across the country, not just in
Andhra Pradesh. To serve this purpose, we go across the country and hire the
best talent. That is why our employee base is more diverse than that of many
other companies that are happy with the talent available within the state.

The weather in Hyderabad is good for about nine months in a year. Pollution levels are lower. The policies of the Andhra Pradesh government are business friendly, proactive, and the government also delivers on its promises.

Do you think physical infrastructure has kept pace with the
growth and development of IT in Hyderabad? What needs to be done?

I look at it from the point of view of quality of life and the living
environment. The government has made investments on improving its road and other
infrastructure. The state government is trying to keep pace with the growth of
the IT industry. However, more efforts are needed to maintain the good
infrastructure that has already been created.

The government needs to communicate its policies and plans to
the people. The government may be doing a good job, but the citizens must be
informed about the steps taken to improve the infrastructure. It is equally
important for the government to anticipate growth, and plan accordingly. Even
today, if I have to get a place, I will go for Andhra Pradesh.

What have been the key achievements of the Microsoft India
Development Center?

We have created a culture of product development, which was non-existent in
India. Now, other companies are also talking of making product development a
reality in this country. We are driving end-to-end global product initiatives of
Microsoft from here. We have filed more than 180 patents from here.

Product development is not about the number of people; it is
about identifying the right business opportunity and being a leading edge
technology and business provider so that the returns on investment (RoI) could
be huge. For that, you need the right product initiative, time to market, and
right people. We have great talent in this country. The question is where is
that talent getting applied. It is crucial to educate people about product
development. It is also important to focus our attention on product development
and innovation.

Sudesh Prasad


sudeshp@cybermedia.co.in