IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/devpol/v32y2014i4p495-518.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Catching-up or Leapfrogging in the Indian IT Service Sector: Windows of Opportunity, Path-creating, and Moving up the Value Chain

Author

Listed:
  • Keun Lee
  • Tae Young Park
  • Rishikesha T. Krishnan

Abstract

type="main"> Indian IT service firms are successfully competing with world leaders and research on the industry is emerging. Providing analysis at firm rather than industry level, this article identifies the windows of opportunity open to Indian firms, with the following findings: (i) the catching-up process by Indian IT firms can be classified as a three-stage ‘body shopping–offshoring–global delivery model’, comparable with the three steps in original equipment, own-design and own-brand manufacturing; (ii) the window of opportunity for Indian firms was primarily the techno-economic paradigm shift, and secondarily the government's regulation and support of the industry; and (iii) Indian firms initially partially re-invented their own path by offshoring and created their own global delivery model, gradually moving to higher value-added services.

Suggested Citation

  • Keun Lee & Tae Young Park & Rishikesha T. Krishnan, 2014. "Catching-up or Leapfrogging in the Indian IT Service Sector: Windows of Opportunity, Path-creating, and Moving up the Value Chain," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 32(4), pages 495-518, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:devpol:v:32:y:2014:i:4:p:495-518
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1111/dpr.12065
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Lee, Keun & Lim, Chaisung, 2001. "Technological regimes, catching-up and leapfrogging: findings from the Korean industries," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 30(3), pages 459-483, March.
    2. Suma S. Athreye, 2005. "The Indian software industry and its evolving service capability," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 14(3), pages 393-418, June.
    3. Utterback, James M & Abernathy, William J, 1975. "A dynamic model of process and product innovation," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 3(6), pages 639-656, December.
    4. Raymond Vernon, 1966. "International Investment and International Trade in the Product Cycle," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 80(2), pages 190-207.
    5. Mu, Qing & Lee, Keun, 2005. "Knowledge diffusion, market segmentation and technological catch-up: The case of the telecommunication industry in China," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 34(6), pages 759-783, August.
    6. Guennif, Samira & Ramani, Shyama V., 2012. "Explaining divergence in catching-up in pharma between India and Brazil using the NSI framework," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 41(2), pages 430-441.
    7. Chaminade, Cristina & Vang, Jan, 2008. "Globalisation of knowledge production and regional innovation policy: Supporting specialized hubs in the Bangalore software industry," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(10), pages 1684-1696, December.
    8. Arora, Ashish & Arunachalam, V. S. & Asundi, Jai & Fernandes, Ronald, 2001. "The Indian software services industry," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 30(8), pages 1267-1287, October.
    9. Gene M. Grossman & Esteban Rossi-Hansberg, 2006. "The rise of offshoring: it's not wine for cloth anymore," Proceedings - Economic Policy Symposium - Jackson Hole, Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, pages 59-102.
    10. Samira Guennif & Shyama V. Ramani, 2012. "Explaining divergence in catching-up in pharmaceuticals between India and Brazil using the National System Innovation framework," Post-Print hal-01345868, HAL.
    11. Henny A. Romijn & Marjolein C. J. Caniëls, 2011. "Pathways of Technological Change in Developing Countries: Review and New Agenda," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 29(3), pages 359-380, May.
    12. Lee,Keun, 2013. "Schumpeterian Analysis of Economic Catch-up," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9781107042681.
    13. Mike Hobday, 2003. "Innovation in Asian Industrialization: A Gerschenkronian Perspective," Oxford Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 31(3), pages 293-314.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Ahn, Sang-Jin, 2020. "Three characteristics of technology competition by IoT-driven digitization," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    2. Jana M. Kleibert & Laura Mann, 2020. "Capturing Value amidst Constant Global Restructuring? Information-Technology-Enabled Services in India, the Philippines and Kenya," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 32(4), pages 1057-1079, September.
    3. Jana M. Kleibert & Laura Mann, 0. "Capturing Value amidst Constant Global Restructuring? Information-Technology-Enabled Services in India, the Philippines and Kenya," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 0, pages 1-23.
    4. Lee, Keun & Malerba, Franco, 2017. "Catch-up cycles and changes in industrial leadership:Windows of opportunity and responses of firms and countries in the evolution of sectoral systems," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 46(2), pages 338-351.
    5. Kleibert, Jana M. & Mann, Laura, 2020. "Capturing Value amidst Constant Global Restructuring? Information-Technology-Enabled Services in India, the Philippines and Kenya," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 32(4), pages 1057-1079.
    6. Alexander Kopka & Dirk Fornahl, 2024. "Artificial intelligence and firm growth — catch-up processes of SMEs through integrating AI into their knowledge bases," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 62(1), pages 63-85, January.
    7. Anandasivam Gopal & Sabari Rajan Karmegam & Balaji R. Koka & William M. Rand, 2020. "Is the Grass Greener? On the Strategic Implications of Moving Along the Value Chain for IT Service Providers," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 31(1), pages 148-175, March.
    8. Figueiredo, Paulo N. & Cohen, Marcela, 2019. "Explaining early entry into path-creation technological catch-up in the forestry and pulp industry: Evidence from Brazil," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(7), pages 1694-1713.
    9. Majidpour, Mehdi & Saber, Ali & Elahi, Shaban & Shayan, Ali & Sahebkar Khorasani, Seyed Mohammad, 2021. "Technological catch-up in the biopharmaceutical sector: Evidence from Iran," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 67(C).
    10. Mann, Laura & Kleibert, Jana Maria, 2020. "Capturing value amidst constant global restructuring? Information technology enabled services in India, the Philippines and Kenya," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 103356, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    11. Manuel Gonzalo & Hugo Kantis, 2021. "The Indian venture capital emergence, development, and boom: A southern contextualization," Growth and Change, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 52(2), pages 687-705, June.
    12. Gaurav Gupta & Amit Basole, 2020. "India’s Information Technology industry: prospects for growth and role in structural transformation," DECISION: Official Journal of the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, Springer;Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, vol. 47(4), pages 341-361, December.
    13. Noemi Sinkovics & Umair Shafi Choksy & Rudolf R. Sinkovics & Ram Mudambi, 2019. "Knowledge Connectivity in an Adverse Context: Global Value Chains and Pakistani Offshore Service Providers," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 59(1), pages 131-170, February.
    14. Lei Guo & Marina Yue Zhang & Mark Dodgson & David Gann & Hong Cai, 2019. "Seizing windows of opportunity by using technology-building and market-seeking strategies in tandem: Huawei’s sustained catch-up in the global market," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 36(3), pages 849-879, September.
    15. Anwar Aridi & Christopher S. Hayter & Slavo Radosevic, 2021. "Windows of opportunities for catching up: an analysis of ICT sector development in Ukraine," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 46(3), pages 701-719, June.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Lee, Keun & Malerba, Franco, 2017. "Catch-up cycles and changes in industrial leadership:Windows of opportunity and responses of firms and countries in the evolution of sectoral systems," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 46(2), pages 338-351.
    2. Ramani, Shyama V. & Urias, Eduardo, 2018. "When access to drugs meets catch-up: Insights from the use of CL threats to improve access to ARV drugs in Brazil," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(8), pages 1538-1552.
    3. Lee, Keun & Ki, Jee-hoon, 2017. "Rise of latecomers and catch-up cycles in the world steel industry," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 46(2), pages 365-375.
    4. Lei Guo & Marina Yue Zhang & Mark Dodgson & David Gann & Hong Cai, 2019. "Seizing windows of opportunity by using technology-building and market-seeking strategies in tandem: Huawei’s sustained catch-up in the global market," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 36(3), pages 849-879, September.
    5. Landini, Fabio & Lee, Keun & Malerba, Franco, 2017. "A history-friendly model of the successive changes in industrial leadership and the catch-up by latecomers," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 46(2), pages 431-446.
    6. Keun Lee, 2009. "How Can Korea be a Role Model for Catch-up Development?: A 'Capability-based View'," WIDER Working Paper Series RP2009-34, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    7. Kwak, Kiho & Kim, Namil, 2022. "Industrial Leadership Changes without Technological Discontinuity: Modularization, Institution-Led Market Discontinuity, and Market Development Strategy," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 180(C).
    8. Joo, SH & Oh, C & Lee, Keun, 2016. "Catch-up Strategy of an Emerging Firm in an Emerging Country: Analyzing the Case of Huawei vs. Ericsson with Patent Data," MPRA Paper 109958, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    9. Jun-Youn Kim & Tae-Young Park & Keun Lee, 2013. "Catch-Up by Indigenous Firms in the Software Industry and the Role of the Government in China: A Sectoral System of Innovation (SSI) Perspective," Eurasian Business Review, Springer;Eurasia Business and Economics Society, vol. 3(1), pages 100-120, June.
    10. Mukherjee, Debmalya & Kumar, Satish & Mukherjee, Deepraj & Goyal, Kirti, 2022. "Mapping five decades of international business and management research on India: A bibliometric analysis and future directions," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 145(C), pages 864-891.
    11. Lee, Keun, 2005. "Making a Technological Catch-up: Barriers and Opportunities," MPRA Paper 109776, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    12. Sungho Rho & Keun Lee & Seong Hee Kim, 2015. "Limited Catch-up in China’s Semiconductor Industry: A Sectoral Innovation System Perspective," Millennial Asia, , vol. 6(2), pages 147-175, October.
    13. Guo, Yanting & Zheng, Gang, 2019. "How do firms upgrade capabilities for systemic catch-up in the open innovation context? A multiple-case study of three leading home appliance companies in China," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 144(C), pages 36-48.
    14. Xiong, Jie & Zhao, Shuyan & Meng, Yan & Xu, Lu & Kim, Seong-Young, 2022. "How latecomers catch up to build an energy-saving industry: The case of the Chinese electric vehicle industry 1995–2018," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 161(C).
    15. Ahmadvand, Emad & Salami, Seyed Reza & Soofi, Jahanyar Bamdad & Tabatabaeian, Seyed Habibollah, 2018. "Catch-up process in nanotechnology start-ups: The case of an Iranian electrospinning firm," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 1-8.
    16. Akçomak, Ibrahim Semih & Bürken, Serkan, 2019. "The middle-technology trap: The case of the automotive industry in Turkey," MERIT Working Papers 2019-006, United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT).
    17. Yuzhe Miao & Jaeyong Song & Keun Lee & Chuyue Jin, 2018. "Technological catch-up by east Asian firms: Trends, issues, and future research agenda," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 35(3), pages 639-669, September.
    18. Keun Lee and John Mathews, 2013. "Science, technology and innovation for sustainable development," CDP Background Papers 016, United Nations, Department of Economics and Social Affairs.
    19. Kenney, Martin & Breznitz, Dan & Murphree, Michael, 2013. "Coming back home after the sun rises: Returnee entrepreneurs and growth of high tech industries," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 42(2), pages 391-407.
    20. Lim, Chaisung & Kim, Y & Lee, Keun, 2015. "Changes in Industrial Leadership and Catch-Up by Latecomers in Shipbuilding Industry," MPRA Paper 109957, University Library of Munich, Germany.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:devpol:v:32:y:2014:i:4:p:495-518. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/odioruk.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.