Hyderabad, once known as a cradle of culture and history, is now rapidly transforming into a dynamic nerve centre for Global Capability Centers (GCCs). With over 355 GCCs employing more than 3 lakh professionals, the city accounts for nearly 15% of India’s 2,000+ GCC ecosystem.
Over the past year, marquee names like Eli Lilly, Marriott International and Evernorth have either established or announced new GCCs, a sign of Hyderabad’s rising prominence as a global innovation and technology hub.
GCCs, offshore units set up by MNCs to handle functions ranging from IT and R&D to finance and customer operations, are no longer mere support arms. They have evolved into strategic innovation hubs, driven by Hyderabad’s talent pool, technological advancements, and collaborative ecosystems. GCCs are India-based extensions of global firms, handling technology, business operations and other back-office functions exclusively for their parent company. Unlike BPOs and call centres, which are typically third-party vendors serving multiple clients, GCCs are owned and operated by the parent company and dedicated to its needs.
The GCC boom has spawned a thriving support ecosystem led by three key players: consulting firms, outsourcing partners and new-age enablers offering end-to-end solutions. Vikram Ahuja, co-founder of ANSR, explains, “Successful GCCs thrive on partnerships. Companies blend in-house capabilities with managed services to drive efficiency and innovation. The lines between GCCs and service providers are blurring. This synergy allows companies to streamline processes and drive innovation at scale.”
For instance, a South American retailer collaborated with its GCC teams and a managed service provider (MSP) to launch a reimagined e-commerce platform. The result? A 100% surge in total merchandise value within months.
City’s winning formula
Hyderabad’s rise is no accident. The city offers robust infrastructure, a high quality of life, and a deep-rooted Telugu diaspora in global tech leadership.
Sai Krishna, IT Advisor to the Telangana government, believes that Bengaluru has reached an inflexion point, leading companies to eye Hyderabad for its infrastructure, GVC-mature workforce, quality of life, etc. “The Telugu diaspora is also deep-rooted across the tech industry, which becomes an advantage,” he said. “Additionally, technology decisions, which once used to take place in Silicon Valley, are now shifting to Hyderabad, as managers here are proving their mettle, delivering value, and are influential enough in corner rooms to drive larger budgets.”
Sujith Jagirdar, interim CEO of T-Hub, adds, “GCCs flock to Hyderabad to tap into its innovation ecosystem. At T-Hub, we engage with one to two GCCs weekly. They partner with startups, co-create solutions and access cutting-edge R&D.”
“Hyderabad and Telangana offer GCCs everything from infrastructure and talent to capacity growth and development, enabling them further,” he says.
With data regulations tightening globally, GCCs are becoming critical for secure operations. Aveek Mukherjee of Gloplax highlights, “Companies prefer in-house GCCs to third parties for sensitive data handling. Even smaller GCCs with 150-200 employees are delivering niche innovations that larger centres may overlook.”
GCCs to GVCs is the way forward for Telangana: Minister Sridhar Babu
Telangana is now eyeing a leap from GCCs to Global Value Centres (GVCs) — a transition from vendor to value partner. Explaining the Telangana 2.0 growth strategy to TNIE, IT and Industries Minister D Sridhar Babu says: “Under the initiative, we aim to reposition Hyderabad from a back office to a front office. Despite two and a half decades of India’s tech industry, most projects still focus on outsourcing rather than product engineering and IP development.”
“Of the $600 billion global IT outsourcing market, Telangana’s exports account for just $32 billion. We’ve captured only 25% of Fortune 500 companies, while a $2 trillion AI market remains untapped. With Telangana 2.0, we plan to shift from outsourcing and GCCs to GVCs, driving Hyderabad’s growth to new heights.”
Hyderabad is already India’s second-largest GCC office market, according to Knight Frank. Jagirdar predicts 35-40% of new India-bound GCCs will choose Telangana in five to seven years, aided by Mini T-Hubs in tier-II and tier-III cities.
