Tech Mahindra hopes to touch $5 billion in revenues in FY18

HYDERABAD: IT major Tech Mahindra today said it expects to outgrow Nasscom's industry growth projection and may touch USD 5 billion mark in revenues during the current fiscal.

Noting that there is a skill gap among employees, C P Gurnani, Managing Director and CEO of Tech Mahindra, also said the company is geared up to reskill about 50,000 employees for the present and future requirements.

"We will beat the Nasscom projections. Tech Mahindra will beat Nasscom projections. Whatever Nasscom has projected 6-8 per cent, we should be higher than that.

"We are already at run rate of USD 4.5 billion and we are growing more than 6 to 8 per cent....You do the maths. For 2018, I think we should be (at USD 5 billion)," Gurnani told PTI.

The company's revenues during the last fiscal were USD 4,351.1 million, up 7.8 per cent year-on year. In Rupee terms they were 29,141 crore; up 10 per cent YoY. The revenue from operations was up 6.1 per cent at Rs 7,606.38 crore during the second quarter of the current year while the growth was 6 per cent at Rs 7,336.1 crore in the first quarter.

To a query, he said there is a need to reskill employees in the emerging fields such as augmented reality, virtual reality and artificial intelligence.

"There is a skill gap. For Tech Mahindra, my biggest priority is to reduce the skill gap and invest on training, reskilling and creating the jobs that the new digital world is throwing up.

"So to tell you honestly, I need to reskill at least 50,000 people over the next one year because the market is ready. We need to create the skills," he said.

Reskilling is an ongoing process, but the "urgency is very high", he said.

Declining to reveal his company's hiring plans, Gurnani said last year the net addition was 10,000. The company currently has a headcount of 1.20 lakh.

The company opened up new markets in Latin America and Europe, he said, adding that though there is not much business from the Middle Eastern market, situation there is "uncertain".