Information Technology (IT) is one of the largest job providers in the organized job sector in India. The 156 billion dollar IT industry is the backbone of Indian economy and its exports sector. Indian IT companies provide software services across the globe and most of the foreign exchange in the country comes from these companies. Tata Consultancy Service (TCS) is the flag bearer of this industry. Started in 1968, it is one of the largest multinationals in the world with operations in 46 countries. In April 2018, it became first Indian Information Technology company by market capitalization with a capitalization amount over 100 billion dollars. The company alone generates 70 percent of the dividends of the Tata group, popularly known as the ‘crown jewel of Tata.’
TCS is set to achieve another milestone this year by becoming third largest IT Company in the world. IBM, the US based Information Technology giant is the largest company in the sector with revenue of 79.59 billion dollars followed by Ireland based Accenture which did business of 39.57 billion dollars in last year. TCS will overtake DXC Technology Co. to become third largest software service provider with 20.91 billion dollar revenue. The company generated 15.52 billion dollars in first three quarters compared 15.47 billion dollars generated by DXC. The last quarter results of DXC are expected to remain subdued in comparison and therefore TCS will be crowned as third largest software services provider.
“TCS is widely described these days as the ‘Walmart of IT Services’—the firm can pretty much win any large deal it wants and deliver it,” said Phil Fersht, chief executive of US-based HFS Research. He further added, “Its size and execution focus put it in a commanding position in the market and this is almost impossible for the likes of DXC to compete with.”
TCS is rooted in Indian ethos since its initial days. It was started by Faqir Chand Kohli, popularly known as F. C. Kohli. He is called the father of the Indian software industry. Kohli comes from a Hindu Khatri family and he introduced the traditional Indian business culture in the working culture of TCS. The company built a strong academic connection for the training of its workers and Kohli prepared the courses of many institutes like Virmata Jijabai Technical Institute (VJTI) to train the students according to the needs of the industry. This was one of the earliest examples of industry-academia interaction in the country. Kohli has also advocated that the computers must start using Indian languages in an interview with Economic Times.
TCS was registered at the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) in 2004. Today it is registered at both major stock exchanges- the BSE and National Stock Exchange (NSE) and its market capitalization is highest for any Indian company. Since its registration at the stock market on 25th August 2004, it has consistently posted profits and this is the reason that the investors’ trust in TCS has been so high. The company has provided information technology solutions to many government and private sector businesses in India. It designed an ERP system for the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation. It was awarded a six-year contract in 2013 worth over 1100 crores to provide information technology solutions to the Department of Posts. The company was trusted for maintenance of Aadhaar data, which is the world’s largest biometric identity system. In India, the company established its centers to small cities like Patna, Indore, unlike other big companies which kept their operations confined to metro cities. People from TCS started many successful startups in the Information Technology sector.
This year, the company is in its 50th year and employs more than four lakh employees across the globe. The company’s performance has been so exceptional that its previous CEO Natarajan Chandrasekaran was appointed the Chairman of Tata Sons.