Satyam promises 2010 delivery

By Nicola Mawson, Contributing journalist

Johannesburg, 13 Jul 2009

Despite a bumpy road, it is all systems go for the IT backbone of the Fifa Soccer World Cup next year, says Mahindra Satyam.

Atul Kunwar, business development and operations head for Europe, Australasia, Middle-East, Africa and India, says the company is ready to meet the challenges of making sure all its IT systems run correctly for the World Cup. "SA will not fail Fifa, and we will not fail SA."

Kunwar is in SA to meet with current and prospective clients, and reassure them it is business as usual.

The Indian-based IT company Satyam was rocked by scandal earlier this year after founder and chairman Ramalinga Raju resigned. His resignation letter revealed the company had been inflating figures by up to $1 billion for years, raising concerns over the company`s ability to provide services to Fifa for the games next year.

Last month, Tech Mahindra took over Satyam. Tech Mahindra is controlled by India`s largest utility-vehicle maker, Mahindra & Mahindra, and partly owned by BT.

Making it work

In SA, the company is responsible for the IT backbone and network for the World Cup games. It will control all the PC hubs through a central control hub, says Kunwar. "We`re responsible for making it all run."

Satyam will provide and implement software for the games that will essentially keep track of everyone working at the World Cup. This means gathering data about who enters what gate, where they have parked, and what information they source.

Kunwar says access information will be collected from scanners, which will be provided by Fifa, and the computers that the delegates use will be provided by an external company, although he does not know which one.

The company will also provide databases of facts and figures for journalists, such as who scored the most goals in the last World Cup. It will also track assets, such as laptops coming in and out of the stadiums.

"We are at the testing phase now. The core software and other applications are ready."

Kunwar says the company has developed software and applications, in conjunction with Fifa`s IT experts, which will collect and collate information and make this available through a Web-based portal. He says the software and applications must be designed to meet Fifa`s specifications.

Satyam will also provide the network to link the PC hubs to each other, relying on technology provided by parent company Tech Mahindra, which offers carrier-grade testing in the countries in which it has clients. Its customers include MTN Cameroon and Zain.

The Indian company is also in talks with MTN to send video clips directly to cellphones, using technology made available by Tech Mahindra.

Kunwar could not indicate the value of the Fifa contract, but says the company has a sponsorship deal and has given the organisation a discount rate. This will result in the company spending money on advertising at the games, but will give it visibility and allow it to build capacity in SA.

Passing the test

The trial run at the Confederations Cup resulted in the company realising it needs to scale its system to handle the additional numbers for 2010.

Kunwar says the Confederations Cup was a success from the company`s point of view, with "no surprises". However, there were many more accredited people working at the cup than initially expected, which meant systems had to be scaled up.

The company had about 110 people working on the Confederations Cup, and expects to have about 150 people deployed for the 2010 games.

Kunwar says the South African unit had seen business interest after the cup and expects a few multimillion-rand deals to be signed in the next few weeks.

Doubling up

Satyam intends doubling its local staff base, but - although interviews are under way - this is not likely to happen this year, says Kunwar.

The global company earned $15 million in the year to March in SA, and aims to double that this year. In total, the group earned revenue of $1.3 billion.

"SA is small, but one of our fastest growing regions," says Kunwar. Operations have been started in Nigeria and Kenya, but these are minute and only expected to start producing results next year. "This year we are focusing on SA."

It has about 175 people working in the sub-Saharan region, of which 125 are based in SA, at its Sandton head office. The company has sales and solutions staff members in SA who focus on developing software applications to manage information. It also has access to a global skills base, explains Kunwar.

It has 16 large clients in SA, which range from provincial departments to large enterprises in the resources sector.

Satyam globally has a large involvement in the manufacturing and mining sectors. In SA, its client base includes Shell, for which it has provided an ERP system. The company is also involved in testing and developing applications and inter-operability of systems.