India’s business process management (BPM) sector with revenues at $44 billion experienced double-digit growth of over 14 per cent in FY22 as compared to FY21 and accounts for nearly 40 per cent of global sourcing spend, a Nasscom report said on Wednesday.

Leveraging data to improve operational efficiency will emerge as the top priority for BPM service providers in the next two years.

As per the findings, over 90 per cent of the surveyed companies are expected to increase IT budgets by more than 10 per cent during the next 12 months though uncertainties like macroeconomic issues, geopolitics and delayed decision-making may create some headwinds.

Moreover, firms are increasingly focusing on building an integrated Digital Capability Platform that will ensure seamless data flow, said the report by Nasscom in collaboration with HFS Research.

“The BPM industry in India has matured significantly. The next evolution for this sector will be more dynamic, reliable, and significantly more agile in driving and shaping the next-gen needs of clients,” said KS Vishwanath, Vice President, Industry Initiative, Nasscom.

“The sector’s natural blend of capabilities- data-driven insights, technically skilled talent, utilization of new-age technologies, etc., further narrates the country’s BPM advantage to the world,” he added.

The highest concentration of Global 2000 enterprises is currently using and evaluating India as a delivery location for BPM services.

Over 60 per cent of the surveyed enterprises have declared extreme satisfaction with the delivery of Cloud, AI, F&A, data, and insights from India, the report mentioned.

According to the report, over 50 per cent of the surveyed enterprises believe technology and data capabilities to be the most important value-creation levers to drive BPM growth in India.

Over 33 per cent of the surveyed BPM providers are currently leveraging data to create insights for decision-making, whereas over 38 per cent of BPM providers are expected to use data-as-an-asset to find a completely newer source of value in the next 2-3 years.

BPM service providers are investing in not just technology experts, but also soft skills said the report.

“The BPM industry is primed for some fundamental changes as the current ‘effort-based’ model becomes increasingly misaligned for enterprise customers demanding better data, better performance, and much more dynamic partnerships to help them operate competitively in today’s environment,” said Phil Fersht, CEO and Chief Analyst, HFS Research.