All stakeholders are upbeat about the way global capability centres (GCCs) are evolving in India. Major hubs for GCCs like Bengaluru and Pune are nearing saturation, with operational costs rising faster than salaries. In an exclusive interaction, Arindam Sen, Partner and GCC Sector Leader – Technology, Media & Entertainment, and Telecommunications at EY India, discusses how India’s GCCs have transformed from simple back-office support units to global innovation powerhouses. Edited excerpts:
How have GCCs evolved over the past two decades? What kind of work are they doing today?
Over the past 20-25 years, India’s GCC industry has evolved from providing low-cost, transactional services across IT, finance and human resources to driving enterprise-wide innovation, transformation and global mandates. Around 2015-16, a significant shift began. GCCs moved up the value chain from support services to product development, large-scale tech implementation and leveraging AI, analytics and customer experience to drive innovation from India to the world. In finance, too, the journey has moved from basic processing to transformation and even into adjacent domains like procurement and supply chain. Today, GCCs own end-to-end responsibilities, lead global initiatives and play a strategic role in enterprise growth. Roughly, the top 40-45% of GCCs are now at the forefront of global innovation, delivering high-value outcomes from India.
What role is EY playing?
EY partners with 35-40% of all GCCs in India. We have been a strategic partner to GCCs through every stage of their journey, from setting up and scaling up to transformation and value creation. We help global firms establish their GCCs in India, covering location strategy, legal and regulatory aspects, talent acquisition, governance frameworks and operating model design. Post-setup, we support transformation through capability buildout, AI, automation, key technology integration, risk management and workforce strategy.
What are the key factors behind India emerging as the preferred destination for setting up GCCs beyond the cost advantage?
India offers unmatched scale, talent and digital maturity. While initial setups were cost-driven, today, it’s the quality and depth of talent, especially in AI, engineering and analytics that attracts global firms. India also offers scalable infrastructure, vertical depth (like Hyderabad’s life sciences or Pune’s auto R&D), policy support and a growing Tier II city ecosystem. This makes it a unique combination of cost advantage and innovation capability.
Which country has the highest number of GCCs, and how does India compare globally?
India hosts over 45–50% of all GCCs globally, by far the largest share. Other regions like Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe and Latin America together account for the rest. The Philippines, while active, is more BPO-focused than GCC-driven. Eastern European cities like Budapest and Bratislava typically support language-specific needs, such as French or German, which are harder to scale up in India. In Latin America, Mexico leads the GCC presence, followed by Costa Rica and Brazil—Brazil being preferred for Portuguese-speaking talent.
Despite these satellite centres, most companies continue to anchor their GCC strategy in India.
Given the growing importance of India’s GCCs, which sectors are expected to lead the next wave of GCC growth, and how are emerging trends influencing this sectoral shift?
Nearly all global sectors are represented but growth will be strongest in pharma and healthcare (driven by rising global demand and digital health), consumer products and retail (including mid-sized players entering the GCC space), technology (both large firms and lesser-known innovators), energy and manufacturing (especially with digital twin adoption and sustainability goals). While tech, financial services and retail will continue to dominate, new verticals are fast catching up.
What are the major challenges or risks that could impact the long-term growth and competitiveness of India’s GCC industry? How can the industry stay ahead?
The key risks include saturation of major hubs such as Bangalore and Pune, which are nearing capacity; cost rising faster than salaries; supply-demand mismatch in digital skills; rising wage pressure as some roles may soon cost as much as they do in the West, eroding arbitrage; and global protectionism, as trade and talent policies in other countries may impact India’s position. To stay ahead, GCCs must keep reinventing themselves.
What policy or infrastructure changes are needed to position India as global GCC headquarters?
GCCs definitely value infrastructure but beyond just roads and power, proximity to airports, urban mobility, reliable utilities and access to skilled talent matter deeply. India also needs stronger IP protection, faster single-window clearances, academic-industry collaboration, incentives tailored for innovation, and Tier II city growth. All these can catalyse the next phase of high-value, innovation-first GCC growth.
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