Sonata Software Limited

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the previous year. As on December 31, 2006, the company had a workforce of more than 2,200 employees.

Global Footprint

of Sonata Software Limited

Sonata Software has established its offices in the USA, Germany, the UK and Singapore. It has also established four subsidiaries, Sonata Information Technology Ltd, India, Offshore Digital Services Inc.

(USA), Sonata Software GmbH, Germany and TUI Infotec, Hannover.

The company has entered into strategic alliances with several global players such as Microsoft, Oracle, IBM, Microfocus, etc.

The company generated 33.4 per cent of its total revenues from the international operations by exports of developed software and related services to the USA, Belgium, the UK, France, Germany, Japan, Ireland, Italy, and Netherlands.

Sonata Software

in the United States of America

Mode of Operation

Sonata Software Ltd. operates in the US through its subsidiary, Offshore Digital Services Inc.

Overview

Sonata Software began its US operations by acquiring a 46.67 per cent stake in US-based Offshore Digital Services Inc (ODSI),

Company Background

Sonata Software is an IT consulting and software services organization, headquartered in Bangalore, India. Based on a customer-centric model, it has been successfully providing software services to global companies for the last several years. Sonata's customers span across the US, Europe and the Asia-Pacific. Its portfolio of services includes IT consulting, application development and

management, managed testing, business intelligence, infrastructure management, and outsourced

product development. Sonata is listed on the BSE and NSE and has SEI CMM Level 5 certification.

Sonata has four development centers in Bangalore and Hyderabad. It has also established a near shore presence in Europe, through its subsidiary - TUI InfoTec - based in Hannover, Germany.The subsidiary provides European customers with low-risk, cost-effective and high-quality outsourcing options.

Sonata generated revenues of US$ 110 million for the financial year 2006, up from US$ 75 million in

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rewarding relationship with IBM over the past 11 years. Sonata is a member of IBM PartnerWorld and PartnerWorld for Industry Networks (PWIN).

The relationship with IBM exists at several levels:

• Providing end-to end Software Services to ISV's

• Setting up of an IBM DB2 Migration Center in association with IBM in India.

• R&D on migration to DB2 and Websphere

• Collaborative tool for planning, tracking, and analysing Trade promotions in the CPG industry

• Premier IBM Business Partner Reseller

Sonata and Oracle

Sonata has a long-standing relationship with Oracle, since 1993, and has a competency center focusing on Oracle applications. Following is a snapshot of their partnership:

• Oracle Certified Solutions Partner

• Oracle e-Business suite - Standard Edition Partner for the mid-market

headquartered in Fremont, California. In 2001, it increased its stake to 100 per cent. It is engaged in providing software development and consulting services to its customers in the US through its onsite-offshore delivery model. ODSI also serves as the marketing center and disaster recovery center for Sonata.

The company strengthened its marketing

operations in the USA by establishing five offices in the East Coast and West Coast. In June 2006, it opened an office in Chicago to cater to the demand of its existing clients and expand its geographical reach in the central and mid-west regions. In 2006, it also participated in various international exhibitions to promote its services.

Partnerships with US-based Firms

Sonata and Microsoft

Sonata established a partnership with Microsoft in 1992.The company is a Gold Certified Partner and is closely aligned with Microsoft on global Go-to-market initiatives for the Enterprise and Mid-Market segments, as a Global Systems Integrator (GSI).

In addition to extensive Microsoft development experience, Sonata has one of the best Microsoft technology practices in the industry, with substantial number of Microsoft-certified professionals. Sonata partners with experts from Microsoft Corporation, who assist it in designing solutions for clients and aligning solutions with best practices in the industry.

As a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner, the company works closely with Microsoft Consultancy Services (MCS), in order to understand the latest Microsoft technologies and associated best practices. It helps in validating and delivering solutions based on MS- recommended architectures.

Sonata and IBM

Sonata has developed a strong and mutually 104

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The strategic objectives behind these are to focus on access to new domains and acquisition of new technologies and skills, which offer direct benefits to its clients.

Exploring New Avenues

Sonata has set up a Core Research Group (CRG) to conduct research on latest technologies and tools. Currently, the CRG is working on technologies in the areas of service-oriented architecture, Software as a Service (SaaS) as well as business intelligence (using Microsoft's SQL Server as its base).The company has also developed add-on solutions for Microsoft Business Solutions Dynamics products.This has helped it to strengthen its relationship with Microsoft and gain new clients in the ISV segment.

Future Plans

Sonata's long-term strategy is to establish itself as a leader in all the specific markets that it has identified.The company plans to concentrate on CRG and work on new technologies gained through Microsoft, IBM and Oracle, to expand into new areas such as web applications, security and service-oriented architecture.The company is also planning to focus on device controls for automotive, telecommunications, entertainment electronics, and handheld companies in the embedded services domain. Sonata also plans to increase its services in the infrastructure management services.

• A preferred partner for manufacturing

• Oracle Beta Site

• Oracle Alliance Partner for Distribution

• Oracle Partner Network Member

• Worldwide partner for Oracle 10g grid computing implementation

Sonata provides services like implementation, migration, customisation and development services across all the modules of Oracle applications.

Offshore Digital Services Inc.

Sonata holds a 100 per cent stake in Offshore Digital Services Inc (ODSi), which is headquartered in Fremont, California. ODSi operates in the US market and provides development and consulting services to clients, using an onsite-offshore delivery model.With help from Sonata's offshore

development center, ODSi executes its projects and provides cost advantage to the clients.

Success Factors

Global Delivery Model

The chief contributing factor to Sonata's success in the US is its effective implementation of the global delivery model.The company has established four offshore development centers, which include three in Bangalore and one in Hyderabad.Through its offshore delivery model, Sonata has integrated its domain knowledge, technical and project management skills and robust infrastructure for timely delivery of its services to its existing customers.

Strategic Alliances

Sonata has forged strong partnerships with global technology leaders, viz Microsoft, IBM, Oracle, Microfocus and Mercury.The partnership models range from software alliances, solutions alliances to implementation services. In some cases, they also include technology evangelisation and establishing joint ventures.

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