Companies
offering software outsourcing service in Vietnam are working out their
own development strategies to either affirm prestige among foreign
customers or burnish the image of Vietnam’s software industry in the
world’s information and technology (IT) map.
Reports
prepared by international research companies show that Vietnam’s
software and digital content industry has reached annual revenue of
US$2.3 billion and a growth rate of 20-25% per year since 2011.
Furthermore, IT labor costs in Vietnam are 40% lower than those in China
and India. This is why multinationals have sought outsourcing companies
in other countries which offer more reasonable prices in the current
economic turbulences. Vietnam will soon become the next potential
outsourcing destination for international software development.
Outsourcing destination
Over
the past 17 years, TMA Solutions has employed an enormous staff of
1,600 engineers from only six on their initial days—the personnel which
have helped the company compete successfully on the international
market. TMA Solutions has won customers from 25 markets, including
Japan, Australia, North America, Europe and Asia. The company’s success
is indicative of Vietnamese engineers capability of participating in big
and complicated high-tech projects. International media such as CNN,
USA Today, NHK, Nikkei Computer or CBC have introduced TMA as an
outstanding example of Vietnam’s software development.
Tran
Phuc Hong, vice president of TMA Solutions, said the company has had
great efforts in market development, especially in Australia and Japan.
It has invested substantially in the fourth generation (4G) network, big
data analytics, enterprise mobility and software products for fi nance,
healthcare and education to meet diverse demands of customers. “This
helps TMA Solutions not only keep regular customers but also gain an
annual growth of 20%,” said Hong. “In the next six months, we plan to
employ 250-300 engineers more for our development plan.”
Established
in Vietnam in 2000, Global Cybersoft Vietnam (GCS) now has under its
umbrella more than 750 engineers, many of whom can take part in
complicated projects that require high technology on both domestic and
international markets. Its two main centers in Vietnam – one in Quang
Trung Software City (QTSC) in HCMC’s District 12 and the other in the
central city of Danang – together with the mother company in the U.S. as
well as rep offi ces in the U.S., Japan and Europe, has helped GCS
conduct more than 1,000 projects of medium and large scales in 18
countries.
Ngo
Van Toan, vice president of GCS, said in the current sagging economy,
the company has been able to sign more outsourcing contracts, especially
those from the U.S. and Japan. “The biggest challenge for the company
and the software industry in general relates to human resources,” Toan
said. “There are a large number of IT graduates every year, but most of
them lack practical experience while it is hard to employ experienced
ones.”
To
surmount the bottleneck, GCS has invested in training and developing
human resources through close cooperation with universities. It has set
up a training center for new staffers and hundreds of university
interns. Three-month training courses will help them acquire more
practical experience through working on projects.
Being
one of the leading enterprises specializes in business process
outsourcing (BPO) in Vietnam, Digitexx provides scanning service, data
entry and conversion, image processing, eBook processing and software
development. Quality processes meet the requirements of the standard ISO
9001:2008, information security strictly complies with the standard ISO
27001:2005 and competitive price are the advantages which help Digitexx
become a reliable service provider in Europe, Southeast Asia, the U.S.,
Israel and Vietnam. Established in Vietnam in 2003, Digi-texx now has
nearly 400 skilled employees with annual growth rate from 30%.
Human resources play a vital role in the development of the outsourcing industry
Nguyen
Thi Phuong Thao, CEO of DIGI-TEXX Vietnam, said in addition to Germany,
its traditional market, the company has clinched others from Europe to
America, Israel and Southeast Asia.
At
present, DIGI-TEXX focuses on taking care of old customers, seeking new
customers and promoting brands through symposiums and exhibitions. “We
have invested in infrastructure, improved production process and paid
attention to high-profi le workforce training for better effi ciency and
creativity,” Thao said. According to her, DIGI-TEXX’s revenue in the
first half of this year increased by 36% from the year-earlier period.
It has just signed long-term contracts with Austrian Post Group, IBM in
Germany, the HCMC Taxation Department, Kinh Do Group and Ascendas
Vietnam.
Development
As
regards future development plans, Thao said DIGI-TEXX targets an annual
growth of 30-40% with a staff exceeding 500 members. The company also
finds ways to tap the potential of digital content services in the
domestic market.
Due
to increasing demand for software services while Vietnam has been
listed in the world’s software outsourcing industry map, local company
has favorable conditions for stronger development. To take this chance,
TMA Solutions has plans to offer full-package services with higher
values. The company has invested in research and development (R&D)
activities to catch up with technology development, meeting stricter
demand of customers and increasing values for customers. One advantage
of TMA Solutions is that its office in QTSC can now accommodate 2,000
more engineers.
Quang Trung Software City is home to many local and international companies in
software outsourcing
Meanwhile,
GCS continues its investment in developing markets and workforce,
especially experts, training newcomers, and improving productivity and
service quality and total cost of ownership (a fi nancial estimate
intended to help buyers and owners determine direct and indirect costs
of a product or system). Corporate representatives said QTSC is a big
venue for outsourcing companies. The park has met high demand for
infrastructure and supporting services and has become a bridge linking
businesses with potential customers and with the Government.
MORE THAN 110 ENTERPRISES HAVE ANCHORED IN QTSC
|
According to Lam Nguyen Hai Long, deputy CEO of Quang Trung Software City (QTSC), the park is home to more than 110 IT
enterprises. Most of them are outsourcing partners for customers in
Japan, the U.S. and Western Europe. QTSC will cooperate with these
businesses to carry out more promotion programs to help the latter
increase their competitive advantages
against rivals from China, India and the Philippines. QTSC and
enterprises will jointly organize outsourcing events of regional scale
annually to enhance the image of Vietnamese enterprises in the world.
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Source: The SaigonTimes Weekly – By Quang Tuan
