SMB market to trigger IT spending

The SMB market is likely to witness a Y-o-Y growth of 15% that will propel the IT spending in the sector to cross USD 18.5 bn (Rs 100 crore) by FY18, a report said.

In the joint report by Nasscom and Frost & Sullivan, ‘Indian SMB Market- Monetizing emerging opportunities’, it was highlighted that Indian SMBs are rapidly innovating and are adopting technology solutions to enhance competitiveness in the dynamic global and domestic business environment.

The IT firms are continuously developing their strategies roadmap for the SMB market with products designed specifically for this segment.
 
While launching the report R Chandrashekhar, president, Nasscom said: “Small and medium businesses across all verticals, play a critical role in the resurgence of the Indian economy and contribution to GDP and employment generation. SMBs face significant challenges in the volatile business environment and global competition.

Technology is an enabler that can pave the way for being competitive. drive growth and integrate with global supply chains. Our industry members are developing innovative vertical focused solutions leveraging the SMAC stack, to support SMB customer in India. Nasscom will partner with the government and industry associations to ensure successful adoption of IT.”

The report said SMBs employ about 40% of India’s workforce and contributes more than 17% to national GDP.

Despite its size the SMB segment is facing many challenges, like fragmentation, unorganized growth, scalability issues among others. Hence, there is a compelling need to streamline operations, standardize processes, enhance productivity and quality of products and services. It is imperative that these needs are addressed as they will drive investment in IT solutions domain.

Accelerating SMB IT adoption requires all stakeholders--state government, industry associations, MSME, and other relevant players, to work jointly to encourage IT adoption and increase awareness of existing IT solutions.

There is also an imperative need to create collaboration platforms for industry players where they can share best practises, enable easier access to funding and network with likeminded people to create innovative IT solutions that are revolutionary, a statement said.