Intel India get a new chief

Intel has a new chief in India. Dr Ketan Sampat, Director of Intel's e-Business Group (Asia) has taken over as President of Intel India--a newly created post. He would be responsible for all of Intel's activities in India including business development, R&D and strategic investments in the country.

Technically, Dr Sampat would head Intel Technology India Pvt Ltd and as such would oversee research at the Intel India Development Center (IIDC) in
Bangalore.

At a press conference, the company announced that Avtar Saini would continue as Director (South Asia) looking after Sales and Marketing with Amar Babu (Sales) and Jayant Murty (Marketing) reporting to him.

Manni Kantipudi would move out as head of IIDC into Dr Sampat's earlier role as Head of the Asia e-Business Group.

Though Saini and Kantipudi would not formally report to Sampat, the new Intel India President said he was now in charge of `everything to do with Intel's presence in India'. The press conference was addressed jointly by Dr Sampat and
Saini.

Speaking at the press conference, Saini said that the changes herald Intel's new phase of growth in India. "Historically Intel has had one senior person in the country. But, as we enter the next level of growth it is important to have people more focused on specific areas. Which is why we decided to have two senior people."

According to Saini, the announcement was an `execution really of what Craig Barrett said when he came to India last year--that we have big plans of growth in the country'. It's a sign, he said, that Intel is taking India very seriously `as the new frontier'.

Said Dr Sampat, "Intel is raising its strategic commitment to India today. We believe our presence here is not just about selling our products in this market. It is about a long-term strategic relationship with the country." He said that his charter would include enabling policies for balanced growth, encouraging investment in e-governance and most specifically in education.

According to Dr Sampat, a lot of Intel executives in the US have been moving to India in the last few months and the trend is expected to continue. "At the moment about 10 percent of the project manager/tech lead level people are those who moved into India from outside. Which is good for us since they understand the technology and the company." However, he also added that the company would hire local talent out of colleges for its development center in Bangalore. Dr Sampat himself would be based out of
Bangalore.

The move, according to Saini, strengthens what Intel believes is the dual engine of growth in India and APAC--a large market and the infrastructure and skills for a growing development base. While APAC is Intel's largest geography accounting for 38 percent of all revenues, India is the seventh largest consumption market for the company projected to be fifth largest by 2007 (after the US, China, Latin America and Japan).

Saini who relocated to India in 1999 helped set up and grow the India development center to nearly 1,000 people. Among other things, the India team is now driving the lead design on Intel's next generation Xeon processor. Nearly half of the company's development work force on its large e-corp project also works out of
Bangalore.

Cyber News Service