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QAI sets sights on bigger presence in Asia-Pacific
The
Financial Express, January 16, 2002
Cashing in on the mindshare that India enjoys for its software processes and quality capabilities, Quality Assurance Institute India (QAI), a software business process consulting firm, is spreading its wings in Asia-Pacific.
QAI has set up a wholly-owned subsidiary in Singapore and has also started operating in China, Vietnam, Hong Kong and Malaysia. The company expects to earn around 20 per cent of its revenues from new markets in the current fiscal.
While talking to The Financial Express, QAI managing director Navyug Mohnot said that QAI had helped many Indian software companies to achieve quality standards like CMM® Level 4 and 5 in their processes. “We want to cash in on our experience and expertise in other Asian countries,” he said.
QAI claimed to have already acquired customers like Sony Software, ST Microelectronics and Singapore Airlines in Singapore and Alcatel in China.
“We target to have non-trivial presence in this region in the next one year and will then explore Korea and Japan as our next target markets,” he added.
QAI is organisaing a SEPGSM (Software Engineering Process Group) ‘conference on tour’ to five countries including Australia, Singapore, China and Thailand besides India, in February and March this year.
Mr Mohnot claimed that the company would be able to sustain its 40 per cent growth in business in this financial year despite the slowdown. He added that the additional revenue from Asia-Pacific would help the company achieve its revenue targets.
“QAI has increased its employee strength from 35 to 70 during the current year. We are ramping up our operations as an investment to realise the future plans that include an online training initiative,” he said.
QAI is currently working on developing an Internet-based online training business model.
The aim is to spread the reach of the company to smaller companies and new geographies to offer cost effective training programs. The company had earmarked
Rs 2 crore for the online initiative, said Mr Mohnot.
QAI had earlier invested around Rs 1.5 crore in an Internet portal, Software Dioxide, aimed at building community platform for software engineers and scientists. Mr Mohnot claimed that the portal was being sustained by the company despite the dotcom bust.
“We expect that it will take around three years for software dioxide to become a revenue earning business,” he said.
Mr Mohnot indicated that the company would go in for a second round of funding during 2002-03, to fund its future plans. QAI had received first round of funding from Prudential ICICI and Chescor and had offloaded 11 per cent equity for an undisclosed amount.
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