Outsourcing: Arijit Bhattacharyya, CEO of VirtualInfoCom.com (Part 1)

If you haven’t already, please study our Bootstrapping Course and Investor Introductions page. 

Virtual Information and Communications (VirtualInfoCom), based in Kolkata, India, provides its customers with services like game development, simulation, Windows Phone applications, mobile applications, iPhone applications, Android games, mobile gaming and ad promotion, ad commercials and short films, corporate films, animated movies, music videos, visual and special effects, software development, Web page designing, and management solution tools. In short, everything around its core competency of animation and graphics.

Sramana Mitra: Hi, Arijit. Let’s start with your background. >>>

Outsourcing: Josh Lieberman, Co-Founder of KMS Technology, Atlanta and Ho Chi Minh City (Part 5)

Sramana Mitra: What is the entrepreneurial landscape in Vietnam like?

Josh Lieberman: It’s pretty interesting. For example, there’s a company by the name of VinaGame. I think the market cap is extraordinarily large, hundreds of billions of dollars. And there are other companies. From an entrepreneurial standpoint, a lot of the entrepreneurial energy is focused back into the country. It’s not focused outward, outside of the country, if you know what I mean. >>>

Outsourcing: Josh Lieberman, Co-Founder of KMS Technology, Atlanta and Ho Chi Minh City (Part 4)

Sramana Mitra: How easy or difficult is it to find that kind of client relationship talent in Vietnam?

Josh Liberman: It is obviously, more difficult to find that than it is a Java developer or a quality assurance (QA) engineer. We’ve been working in Vietnam for 12 years, so we’ve built up a vast network of people who have worked with us and for us. Our goal is to be a thousand-person company. In order to get there, we have to build those skills internally. The market will not develop them quickly enough for us in Vietnam. It is a bit of a challenge, but because we’re privately held, we don’t have a board breathing down our necks telling us how fast we have to grow. We manage our growth through how quickly we can bring people on board. >>>

Outsourcing: Josh Lieberman, Co-Founder of KMS Technology, Atlanta and Ho Chi Minh City (Part 3)

Sramana Mitra: That’s the real winning story.

Josh Lieberman: Absolutely.

SM: In India, no matter where you are … in the big cities, you’re looking at 30% attrition. In the smaller cities, you’re looking at 20% attrition. That’s the real problem. If you’re looking at below 5% attrition, that is the real winning story. >>>

Outsourcing: Josh Lieberman, Co-Founder of KMS Technology, Atlanta and Ho Chi Minh City (Part 2)

Sramana Mitra: Now we understand the positioning of the company. Tell us, what is the unique selling proposition (USP)? Within outsourced product development, what is your company’s USP? How do you differentiate, and what do you pitch that is compelling to your customers?

Josh Lieberman: Up to now we have had zero sales or marketing. So, in terms of having a USP, we really haven’t had to have one. Most of our customers have called us and said, “Hey, I’ve heard about you. I’ve worked with you in the past. I know you guys are good guys, and I want to work with you again.” In terms of going through that RFP process, putting together our USP, we haven’t had to do that at all thus far. We do plan to get a bit more aggressive from a sales and marketing perspective and are looking forward to getting into more competitive situations. >>>

Outsourcing: Josh Lieberman, Co-Founder of KMS Technology, Atlanta and Ho Chi Minh City (Part 1)

Founded in 2009, KMS Technology partners with clients that range from startups to Fortune 500 companies to provide software development services such as research and development, product innovation and management, application management, testing, support, professional services, and staff augmentation.

Sramana Mitra: Hi, Josh. Let’s start with some background about you and KMS Technology.

Josh Lieberman: I’ll start with the company that we had prior KMS because I think a lot of our history leads into how we formed KMS to be what it is today. Trade relations with Vietnam opened up in 2005. My partner, Vu Lam, is in Vietnam as we speak. He and I are partners in KMS. Vu started a company with a couple of friends called Paragon Solutions. Their mission with Paragon Solutions was to develop the outsourcing model in Vietnam, not just India. So, Vu moved to Vietnam, started an offshore development center in conjunction with the university over there. He and his friends bootstrapped Paragon Solutions. >>>

Outsourcing: Million-Dollar Freelancer: A1 Future CEO Srish Agrawal, Kolkata, India (Part 5)

Sramana Mitra: Help me tie these two together. The media buying that brought you the right traffic to your website, how does that translate into trust and reliability?

Srish Agrawal: In order to build trust and reliability, you need a client base. Once you have that initial trust, using that initial trust that you’re able to provide the right kind of service to the right people using the right methods. But if you do not get that initial trust, who will trust you? You have to some people who start using your services? >>>

Outsourcing: Million-Dollar Freelancer: A1 Future CEO Srish Agrawal, Kolkata, India (Part 4)

Sramana Mitra: That’s wonderful. In fact, I would say that’s easier to do in Calcutta than in other parts of India and easier to do in other, smaller cities in India than a Bangalore or Bombay because the attitudes of people working in Bangalore, Bombay and so on is mercenary. They’re not interested in this kind of loyalty.

Srish Agrawal: Right. Absolutely, I agree with you. >>>