U.S-based C1 doubles its investment in India to boost innovation

US-based technology and solutions company C1, formerly known as ConvergeOne, announced on Monday an expansion of its Global Innovation and Capabilities Centre (GICC) in Hyderabad. 

C1 offers solutions across customer experience and collaboration, enterprise networking and data centre, and security capabilities. The company formally opened the 20,000 sq ft facility in November last year at Sattva Knowledge Park in Raidurg, Hyderabad. Jeffrey Russell, the firm’s chief executive, said in November that it has onboarded 500 employees and plans to hire more within a year. In the last 6-8 months,

At present, C1 has doubled its investment to expand the GICC into a 40,000 sq. ft. facility at the centre. The seating capacity has also been doubled at GICC with state-of-the-art training facilities. Besides, C1 has also established the C1 R&D Lab and the C1 Experience Center for customers to foster growth and innovation.

The new and expanded C1 Customer Experience Center will showcase innovative products, including the newly launched C1 Elly, a GenAI-powered assistant that enhances operational efficiency and decision-making. “The new facilities will support our present operations and pave the way for future growth and technological advancements,” Chandra Boddoju, Managing Director, and Country Head of India Operations, said in a statement.

The work conducted at the Hyderabad centre will continue to play a crucial role in C1’s Security and Enterprise Networks portfolio, as well as in operations across the C1 ecosystem, the company said, adding that the Indian leadership team is an integral part of the global senior leadership of C1, driving a cross-functional, collaborative approach to innovation and growth. 

As part of the expansion, four new senior leaders have been onboarded in India, demonstrating C1's commitment to leveraging the country's talent and resources. “The Expansion of the GICC is a major step in our growth,” Tamara Shaw, Chief Transformation Officer, USA. “The new facilities will enable us to showcase our cutting-edge solutions and provide differentiated solutions across customer experience and collaboration. By utilizing the talent and expertise in India, we will be well positioned to accelerate our global operations and deliver exceptional value to our customers”.

The GICC in Hyderabad is a hub for driving C1's growth across its combined capabilities in building scalable networks and highly secure environments to provide holistic solutions to customers with a focus on the connected human experience, Eric Walter, Sr. Vice President, Managed Services, USA said.

The Indian global innovation captive centre (GCC) market can potentially grow up to $110 billion in value by 2030 from the current $45 billion, a new report predicts. The ‘Future of GCCs in India - a Vision 2030’ report prepared by professional services company EY further said that India will have 2,400 GCCs by 2030, which could further increase to 2,550, positioning the country as the global hub for technology and services. 

This growth will be on account of the country’s skilled talent pool, business and policy environment, and growing infrastructure, the report added. The number of new GCC set-ups every year is expected to grow from 70 to 115. The headcount of the GCC industry in India is expected to increase from the current 1.9 million people to 4.5 million.