How Cloud-BaSed PlatformS HelP iNdiaN SmBS iNCreaSe reVeNueS

We spoke to Sheela Nambiar, Director - IBM Digital Sales (India/South Asia) about how IBM is designing solutions to address the challenges of Indian SMBs and what are the various technology trends that can eradicate their pain points

According to a latest study by Zinnov, India has the largest number of SMBs globally numbering about 48.8 million. The report highlighted that the Indian SMB space today is largely dominated by micro scale businesses, contributing 95 per cent of the SMB landscape, followed by small scale businesses contributing 4.8 per cent, and the remaining 0.2 per cent by medium scale businesses.

Challenges faced by SMBs

SMBs are expected to be agile and provide tailor-made solutions for customers; however a majority of them do not have big IT budgets of larger corporations. The challenge is that product localization is essential for expanding in

Eradicating the Hurdles

– emerging markets. There is a need for support models to establish value and for customized pricing strategies to drive the adoption of such solutions. “While there are Cloud and Big Data products out there which SMBs can harness for their business objectives, they may not have the technical expertise required to choose the right ones,” said Sheela Nambiar, Director - IBM Digital Sales.

Zinnov’s research states that revenues from the SMB sector are expected to touch $25.8 billion in 2020. “SMBs are likely to spend on IT products that include mobility, analytics, social media and cloud in order to increase their customer reach, manage customer relationships better and ensure efficiency in operations,” added Nambiar. In September 2015, IBM expanded its portfolio of cloud industry platforms and solutions to deliver fast, simplified access to services that empower clients to harness the opportunities of cloud and big data. “Our cloud-based industry platforms are equipped to streamline and fasttrack our clients’ digital transformation journey with the assurance of predictable outcomes,” said Nambiar.

Along with this initiative, IBM has also opened for the first time IBM Cloud Business Innovation Center in Bangalore. “At this center, our clients from world over can work together with IBM solution consultants,