ChannelWorld

Ablaze Infosys, started by Vivek Gupta in 2001, is a relatively late entrant into the IT industry. The market was already ripe and competitive by the time Ablaze got into the field but it managed to hold its ground and has transformed into a complete systems integrator.

Ablaze was not into systems integration during the initial years. Gupta feels, “If we had started a few years earlier and got into systems integration sooner then we would probably have been in a very different shape today.” But regrets apart, the company director feels that today the company is on the right path offering hardware, software, services and security all rolled into a complete package. 

The general trend is that bigger clients prefer partners with fat balance-sheets, showing greater revenues but this attitude does have an impact on a company in its formative stages. Talking about the imminent threats that the company faces, Gupta says, “The bigger sharks have now started diving into smaller ponds and that has drastically increased the level of competition. They have bigger infrastructures, balance sheets and nationally recognized brand names and can easily afford to work on rates lower than that offered by company like ours.”

Retention of customers is a continuous struggle and Gupta strives to overcome these challenges by maintaining a personal relationship with his customers, understanding their difficulties and providing prompt solutions as and when the situation demands. “I have made it a mandate that I, along with one of my team members, must meet at least two of my customers in a day and this has been pre-decided and scheduled into the calendar,” says Gupta.

Equally challenging is the retention of employees in a market, where the good ones get poached either by the vendors or the clients. In order to combat this, Gupta believes that offering incentives to the sales team on a 70:30 ratio or salary to perk basis, is an effective strategy.

On top of this, the company also has a system in place, wherein for every employee involved in a project there would be another person who would know the same exact details. This ensures that a project doesn’t suffer with
the exit of one important team member.

Focusing on the businesses derived from the existing set of customers, Gupta utilized the time during the downturn in educating the prospective customers. “Once the economy picks up these could be converted into long-term alliances,” says Gupta. “Shifting into a lower gear for a brief period, that too when the market situation demands it, is not at all a bad idea,” he adds.

Major part of the IT industry is moving towards cloud computing, shared resources or hosting models. “We need to come up with similar solutions for the smaller and medium sized customers. We are definitely going to look seriously into this in the future,” affirms Gupta.

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INTERVIEW

Vivek Gupta, Director, Ablaze Infosys, observes that that the bigger sharks have now started diving into smaller ponds and that has drastically increased the level of competition.

How did Ablaze Infosys come to be established?
GUPTA: We started in 2001 as a relatively late entrant into the IT industry. The market was already ripe and competitive by the time we started. But we decided to focus on being a networking and facility management services provider and transform into a complete systems integrator. We were not into systems integration during the initial 5-6 years. If we had started a few years earlier and got into systems integration sooner then we would have been in a very different shape today. But regrets apart, I feel that today the company is on the right path offering hardware, software, services and security all rolled into a complete package.

So how does competition affect your presence in the field?
GUPTA: The general trend is that bigger clients prefer partners with fatter balance-sheets showing greater revenues. Such kind of an attitude affects the growth of a company like us in its formative stages. I also feel that the bigger sharks have now started diving into smaller ponds and that has drastically increased the level of competition. They have bigger infrastructures, balance sheets and nationally recognized brand names and can easily afford to work on rates lower than that offered by company like ours.

Customers are an integral part of the growth story of an organization. So what steps are you taking to ensure that your customers stick with you?
GUPTA: Retention of customers is a continuous struggle. And in order to overcome these challenges we maintain a personal relationship with our customers and dedicate our efforts towards understanding their difficulties and providing prompt solutions as and when it comes up. I have made it a mandate that I must meet at least two of my customers in a day along with one of my team members and this has been pre-decided and scheduled into the calendar. This greatly helps us keep up the rapport and sail through even tough times.

Employee retention too is not an easy task? How do you manage to keep your employees happy and loyal to the company?
GUPTA: Employee retention is a really challenging problem. The major problem is that the good ones get poached either by the vendors or the clients. And in order to combat this we offer incentives to the sales team on a 70:30, salary to perk basis. As performance w improves so does the pay. And we also help the technical team certifications and recognizing the individual contributions through promotions. This I believe helps in keeping them glued to the company. On top of this, the company also has a system in place, wherein for every employee involved in a project there would be another person who would know it in the same exact detail. This ensures that a project doesn’t go down the drain with the exit of one important team member.

How did you combat the downturn?
GUPTA: We had a clear Focus on the businesses derived from the existing set of customers. We utilized the time during the down-turn in educating the prospective customers. Most of them had the time and inclination to talk about technology and these interactions can help them be aware of the various available options. So that once the economy picks up these could be converted into long-term alliances. And I think shifting into a lower gear for a brief period, that too when the market situation demands it, is not at all a bad idea.

Moving ahead where do you see Ablaze Infosys in the next few years?
GUPTA: Well most of the IT industry is moving towards cloud computing, shared resources or hosting models. So we understand that we need to come up with similar solutions for the smaller and medium sized customers. For this we would require either our own set of datacenters or we should have a back to back relation with bigger companies like Microsoft and we would definitely look seriously into this in the future. But still Ablaze will always look to prioritize sustaining growth with the present group of customers in the years to come.