Transforming IT Into A Profit Centre In Writer Corporation

As with most Indian companies, IT at Writer Corporation (a diversified MNC with more than 5000 employees across 8 countries) was considered a cost centre. This continued till Yateen Chodnekar, an IT leader with multi-industry experience, took over as the Group CIO. In an interaction with Yashvendra Singh, he reveals the strategy that helped him transform IT and the company in two years.

IT is increasingly seen as a business enabler. Haven’t corporates in India moved from viewing IT as a cost centre?

In India, even today, IT is looked upon as a cost centre. In fact, in most organisations, IT doesn’t even have a cost code. Technology investments are kept to a minimum, and the expectation of the board with respect to IT is low. As they are not hands-on, they (management) can’t anticipate or view in totality the benefits that IT can provide to the top line and bottom line. In global organisations, the percentage of revenue invested in IT is in double digits, while in India it is still in single digits. Indian companies don’t realise that a late entrant into IT will reap the fruits when the premium opportunity has gone. Against this backdrop, the challenges for a CIO in India are far greater than those of their counterparts in the developed markets.

With IT not being a priority, how were you, as a CIO, taken seriously in Writer?

I confronted the same situation, with respect to IT, when I joined Writer Corporation. IT was taken seriously because I came with strong credentials (he has worked in such companies as Merrill Lynch, Deutsche Bank, The Boston Consulting Group and HSBC both in India and overseas) and with the mandate to transform it. So, even as I got about the task of leveraging IT tactically at the grass root level within the enterprise, the aim was to get IT recognised as a competitive asset by transforming it from reactive to proactive.

How did you go about the task of transforming IT and other processes in Writer Corporation?

I believe, it is the role of a CIO to walk the talk – and show the impact that IT can have on the business to the top management. I integrated IT into the strategy and operations of the business. I undertook this through a four pronged-approach.

Will you please put some focus on those four prongs?

The first prong entailed having a ‘pillar framework’ for IT, wherein it would rest and address the three pillars of maintaining IT services, integrating IT risks and improving IT compliance.

The second prong entailed productivity optimisation. There are some businesses that have best practices. It is important that such best practices are shared through collaboration with the business. This leads to standardisation and consolidation.

The third prong of the strategy was to communicate. I ensured that there is an increased engagement and multiple touch points between business and IT. We have 76 branches across eight countries, which further make it imperative to have a strong communication strategy.

The last prong was to leverage business intelligence. After optimisation of business processes, the next step was to deliver stories from business intelligence for the business to act upon. This strategy enabled me to transform the face of IT. The situation has changed 180 degrees with IT now being recognised as a game changer.

What are the tangible benefits from this transformation?

The fruits of this exercise were visible from the first year itself. There is hardly any downtime in the company today. There has been increased reliability and productivity. What we were doing earlier with 10 things, is today done with just two. We are also adhering to compliance without any pain.

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