India’s Global Capability Centres (GCCs) have undergone one of the most remarkable transformations in modern corporate history. What began as a strategic move to leverage cost efficiencies has evolved, through the sheer competence of its talent and the vision of its leaders, into a sophisticated ecosystem that now drives core enterprise functions.
The current generation of GCC leaders and the CEOs and strategy heads in their Headquarters deserve immense credit. They successfully navigated the transition from managing routine back-office tasks to overseeing complex, scaled delivery and operational excellence. They built organizations of thousands, ingrained rigorous global processes, and earned the trust of their internal and external customers. Consequently, Indian GCCs are increasingly entrusted with end-to-end product ownership, pioneering generative AI implementations, and managing mission-critical global platforms.
The challenge facing Indian GCC leaders now is transforming their teams to move from an execution to an ownership mindset. Recent Deloitte research1 found that while Indian GCCs have a very strong workplace culture, there was room for improvement on the innovation and agility fronts. And this is the direction in which GCC leaders should orient themselves and their teams in the new era. A structured approach to achieve this would look as follows:
1. Building Commercial Acumen and Business Impact Orientation
In the past, success was measured by completing projects on time and budget—doing the work right. Increasingly now, the measure of success is the global business outcome—doing the right work that drives revenue, market share, or competitive advantage.
This demands employees who understand the full product lifecycle, from initial market research and customer experience design to commercialization and profitability (P&L), and not just their role and function. GCC teams must be trained to understand these dimensions of business, engage in high-stakes conversations, and contribute higher-order innovative ideas.
This can be achieved through varied exposure. Some ways to achieve this could be structured cross-functional rotation such as technical teams spending time with sales and marketing, finance gaining familiarity with data and technology and so on. A minimum threshold of awareness for every person working in a GCC has to be the core business offerings, key Clients, pricing and geographical nuances of the key markets in which the company operates. Additionally, fostering a mindset that embraces continuous learning and adapting to disruptions will further empower teams to create lasting value.
2. Expanding Leadership Presence
Leaders too, must re-examine their role and responsibility in the current context of driving innovation and agility. Indian GCC leaders are exceptional within their direct hierarchy but must now expand their influence laterally and vertically across the entire global organization. Effective leadership at a global level means driving change without formal authority.
This requires building on stakeholder confidence the GCC leaders already possess. Leaders must be able to articulate their GCC’s capabilities to diverse global audiences within and outside the company. Importantly, they should promise what they can deliver and deliver what they promise. It is imperative that leaders at all levels in the GCC continue to think innovation and express their thoughts and ideas in a coherent manner.
3. Fostering a Culture of IP Creation
Leaders must create dedicated innovation sandboxes, protect time for research and champion initiatives that may not have an immediate ROI but hold long-term strategic value. Encouraging open feedback and cross-pollination of ideas across teams can ignite creativity and breakthrough solutions. Success lies in nurturing innovators and providing a platform for for out-of-the-box experimentation.
The Indian GCC industry is poised to move from being an effective global talent pool to an influential strategic hub. The challenge for leaders now is to prove that the next wave of global enterprise innovation can be defined, developed, and delivered by their GCCs.
