The India Laboratory of Global Capability Centres

 India has emerged as the cradle of global R&D and innovation, especially in the tech segment, given its long standing and established credentials as an outsourcing/offshoring hub. The evolution of the Global Capability Centre ecosystem has played a significant role in India’s capability enhancement and global recognition as an innovation hub. The initial drivers that established this system were access to the large talent pool and affordable costs - for both talent and real estate. Even the work being offshored was more tactical - payroll, HR, back-office operations, and sales support.

As the services sector has evolved and India has emerged at the forefront of tech-driven innovation, GCCs have moved up the value chain as well. With strategic R&D and business innovation related workstreams taking centre stage, more and more global firms have looked at tapping into the country for driving the next stage of their business growth. Now, India is globally recognized as a leader in delivering operational excellence and product innovation across all conceivable service domains spread across the technology, engineering, finance and consulting sectors. The associated growth in the spread of GCCs, with global firms making a beeline for Indian shores, is also a contributory factor to the resilience in office markets.
 

In this report, we look at the evolution of GCCs, from contact centres to centres of excellence, and their spatial spread. Industry and continent shares of GCCs tell us which segments and geographies are driving the GCC growth in India. Pre-commitments and active space demand is giving us a window into the future, which continues to look robust. We hope this report serves as a guide for landlords/ developers, investors and GCCs – both existing and those planning to expand in India, to derive actionable insights from the perspective of real estate planning.
 

• GCCs now account for nearly 40% of all occupied Grade A stock across the top six cities, exhibiting the fastest growth among all industry segments active in India’s office leasing landscape

• Office stock occupied by GCCs across the top six cities (include Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi NCR, Hyderabad, Mumbai, and Pune) has crossed 200 m sq ft

• Bengaluru is the undisputed GCC leader, home to 42% of the GCC occupied stock, equating to 85 m sq ft with over 460 GCC occupiers in the city. Hyderabad is the second biggest GCC market in India, though it has lesser number of GCCs in comparison to Mumbai, Delhi NCR, and Pune

• After the pandemic-induced sluggishness, GCCs ended up leasing nearly 21 mn sq ft in 2021, taking up a share of almost 60% in Grade A office demand

• US-headquartered firms account for majority of the operational GCC footprint in the top 6 cities of India, followed by European firms (35%). The share of APAC-based GCCs is currently quite less but is ramping up, backed by regional unicorns

• Technology firms account for a 46% share of all operational GCC footprint across the top six cities, followed by global corporations from the banking, financial services & insurance segments

• The current pre-commitment for the forecast supply till 2023 stands at around 10 m sq ft. More than half of this preleasing is on account of GCCs, underlining the stickiness of this segment in proven geographies of choice