IT services company Virtusa Corporation has started focusing on emerging markets such as India, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Singapore and Sri Lanka as part of its efforts to increase revenue and profit growth. The company will target banks and financial institutions, as well as telecom and manufacturing companies with solutions such as business process management, content and document management, business intelligence and data warehousing.

“We started the Middle East and Asia operations six months ago. Virtusa is in discussions with at least three customers in India. We have a customer in Singapore, and are also working with the Sri Lankan government on its e-governance projects,” said Sumit Sood, vice president, Middle East and Asia, Virtusa.

The US-based firm is also targeting BPO, media organisations and captive units of Fortune 1,000 companies in India, Sood said. The market potential is huge, as high as $8.3 billion (IT services expenditure) in 2009 according to Nasscom.

“However, mere outsourcing on the basis of time and material does not work in India because there is no cost advantage. Outsourcing in the country turns out to be more expensive unless there is value created out of it,” Sood added. The firm is targeting captive units when most are being sold owing to slump in businesses of the parent companies.

“There is a reason why captives came into existence. They will continue to exist given the security and business continuity issues. However, outsourcing vendors can create value by offering tailored solutions, which will help captives to not only increase process efficiency but also contribute to business growth. We hope this segment is among the lucrative opportunities for vendors at present,” he said.