Intersection of consulting & interactive business has given Sapient an edge. vareen ray & surbhi chawla explore how this convergence works and where it could backfire
That was the question we started with. But the dictionary
meaning of the word ‘Sapient’ is ‘showing great wisdom.’ And this motto has been imbibed well by the Boston, Massachusetts-based corporation – Sapient. The company was astute enough to understand that marketing and technology can’t survive alone in today’s changing business landscape. There needs to be a convergence between the two spheres. And with this insightful wisdom, Sapient went to the market with two different service groups – interactive marketing & consulting. The dual role was an instant hit with clients, as Sapient was able to identify both technological & marketing need gaps of a client and give solutions.
Sapient currently operates in three geographies – North America, Europe & India. 2007 was a watershed year, with revenues of $546.38 million at 34% growth yoy and is expecting another 20-21% growth in 2008. Sapient started its India operations in 1999. The company was intuitive enough to enter India at a time when the US economy was in the throes of a dot-com bust, as at that time Sapient’s stock also plummeted from a high of over $70 to 75 cents! “Today it might look as a very intuitive plan, but the reality is that during those days, venturing into India was considered a bold step, as India was not seen as an outsourcing hub,” explains Rajdeep Endow, Director, Sapient India.
Today, that decision stands vindicated, as even Goldman Sachs has backed Sapient on this count by stating that it had a two & half year head start over other North American firms in setting up the Global Distributed Delivery (GDD) model in India. But has that happened in real terms? NO. Sapient soon lost its advantage of being an early mover in India to global behemoths like IBM, Accenture, et al, who also set up huge GDD models here and walked away with a greater pie of the revenues. Most IT companies zeroed in on India as an outsourcing option to leverage the cost arbitrage, but for Sapient, the reasons were much beyond that. “The idea was not just cost benefit that we could derive but we looked at India as a great talent pool, which we could leverage,” informs Sandeep Dhar, MD, Sapient India.
Sapient’s unique position at the intersection of marketing, technology & business helps them compete well against firms that don’t have a similar DNA. Sapient was quick to understand the limitless opportunities that the Internet offers and how advertisers have not been able to realise its full potential. This is due to the complex nature of the Internet, in addition to marketers’ uncertainties regarding returns on their dollars spent. For instance, Sapient scores over traditional advertising agencies as it helps clients navigate through the Internet by delivering innovative interactive strategies, optimising relationships with various online media components such as paid & natural search, e-mail & banner campaigns and online advertising, along with measuring effectiveness of online campaigns. Currently, the interactive business contributes close to half of Sapient’s total revenues (47%).
On the consulting side, Sapient is involved in business & IT strategy, process & system design, programme management, custom development, package implementation, systems integration & outsourcing services that include testing, maintenance & support. Adds Dhar, “Our consulting is strongly domain-led. We are not order takers. In fact, we are intimately involved with the client.” This means that Sapient understands the business problem of their clients, for which they are seeking a solution, works with them to come up with a solution from a business process perspective; translates it into a technical solution & then delivers it to them. Sapient claims that this ability to be involved with the clients distinguishes them. This is why they don’t call themselves an IT service firm but an IT consulting firm. Even in terms of delivery, this formula works for Sapient, as each programme that it writes has the potential to pay for itself in as less as six hours of going live.
For Complete IIPM Article, Click on IIPM Article
Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008
That was the question we started with. But the dictionary
meaning of the word ‘Sapient’ is ‘showing great wisdom.’ And this motto has been imbibed well by the Boston, Massachusetts-based corporation – Sapient. The company was astute enough to understand that marketing and technology can’t survive alone in today’s changing business landscape. There needs to be a convergence between the two spheres. And with this insightful wisdom, Sapient went to the market with two different service groups – interactive marketing & consulting. The dual role was an instant hit with clients, as Sapient was able to identify both technological & marketing need gaps of a client and give solutions.Sapient currently operates in three geographies – North America, Europe & India. 2007 was a watershed year, with revenues of $546.38 million at 34% growth yoy and is expecting another 20-21% growth in 2008. Sapient started its India operations in 1999. The company was intuitive enough to enter India at a time when the US economy was in the throes of a dot-com bust, as at that time Sapient’s stock also plummeted from a high of over $70 to 75 cents! “Today it might look as a very intuitive plan, but the reality is that during those days, venturing into India was considered a bold step, as India was not seen as an outsourcing hub,” explains Rajdeep Endow, Director, Sapient India.
Today, that decision stands vindicated, as even Goldman Sachs has backed Sapient on this count by stating that it had a two & half year head start over other North American firms in setting up the Global Distributed Delivery (GDD) model in India. But has that happened in real terms? NO. Sapient soon lost its advantage of being an early mover in India to global behemoths like IBM, Accenture, et al, who also set up huge GDD models here and walked away with a greater pie of the revenues. Most IT companies zeroed in on India as an outsourcing option to leverage the cost arbitrage, but for Sapient, the reasons were much beyond that. “The idea was not just cost benefit that we could derive but we looked at India as a great talent pool, which we could leverage,” informs Sandeep Dhar, MD, Sapient India.
Sapient’s unique position at the intersection of marketing, technology & business helps them compete well against firms that don’t have a similar DNA. Sapient was quick to understand the limitless opportunities that the Internet offers and how advertisers have not been able to realise its full potential. This is due to the complex nature of the Internet, in addition to marketers’ uncertainties regarding returns on their dollars spent. For instance, Sapient scores over traditional advertising agencies as it helps clients navigate through the Internet by delivering innovative interactive strategies, optimising relationships with various online media components such as paid & natural search, e-mail & banner campaigns and online advertising, along with measuring effectiveness of online campaigns. Currently, the interactive business contributes close to half of Sapient’s total revenues (47%).
On the consulting side, Sapient is involved in business & IT strategy, process & system design, programme management, custom development, package implementation, systems integration & outsourcing services that include testing, maintenance & support. Adds Dhar, “Our consulting is strongly domain-led. We are not order takers. In fact, we are intimately involved with the client.” This means that Sapient understands the business problem of their clients, for which they are seeking a solution, works with them to come up with a solution from a business process perspective; translates it into a technical solution & then delivers it to them. Sapient claims that this ability to be involved with the clients distinguishes them. This is why they don’t call themselves an IT service firm but an IT consulting firm. Even in terms of delivery, this formula works for Sapient, as each programme that it writes has the potential to pay for itself in as less as six hours of going live.
For Complete IIPM Article, Click on IIPM Article
Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008
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