Hyderabad, April 22, 2025: Global Capability Centres (GCCs) continue to be a key growth sector for the tech industry in India, contributing nearly one-third of the industry’s total exports. Within this thriving ecosystem, mid–market GCCs are emerging as high-impact innovation hubs, driving agility, product excellence, and enterprise transformation at scale. Nasscom and Zinnov, today, released ‘India’s GCC Leap: Capturing Global Mid–Market Momentum’ report, highlighting a significant shift in the country’s GCC ecosystem. The report deep dives into the unique characteristics of mid–market GCCs, including their operating models and focus.
Today, India is home to over 480 mid–market GCCs, employing more than 210,000 professionals, and over 680 mid–market GCC Units. This segment has been instrumental in shaping India’s GCC narrative with accounting for 27% of all GCCs and 22% of total GCC Units in the country.
Over 45 new mid–market GCCs have set up operations in India in the past two years alone, accounting for nearly 35% of total GCCs, and 30% of total GCC units during this period. Despite operating at around 40% the scale of their larger counterparts (Non-Mid–market GCCs), mid–market GCCs are consistently delivering transformative outcomes across product innovation, enterprise agility, digital maturity and deepening niche skill capabilities. Their strategic focus and lean operating models have resulted in a 1.3x higher presence in transformation hubs, with a maturity curve advancing 1.2x faster than non-mid–market GCCs.
India is today home to 47% of global product management talent for mid–market GCCs and over 25% of their DeepTech workforce, cementing its position as a global hotspot for next-gen capabilities in AI/ML, cybersecurity, cloud, and data science. Nearly 60% of end-to-end product and platform ownership in enterprise portfolios—particularly across ER&D segment is being driven from India by mid–market GCCs. These centers are also redefining enterprise operating models by actively shaping hiring practices, performance metrics, and culture playbooks.
In terms of market distribution, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, NCR, and Chennai remain leading destinations for mid–market GCCs, attracting 74% of all new GCC units established. In addition to Bengaluru, Hyderabad has rapidly emerged as a leading talent hotspot for Mid–market GCCs in the last 5 years, contributing 25% of talent growth.
Rajesh Nambiar, President, Nasscom, said, “The next wave of global capability will not come from size, but from speed, specialization, and strategic influence. With world-class talent and a vibrant digital ecosystem, mid–market GCCs are no longer just delivery engines but are emerging as cultural innovation labs and centres of excellence, driving R&D, product innovation, and enterprise digitization for global impact.”
However, Mid–market GCCs often face hurdles in talent attraction, particularly among early-career professionals, owing to limited brand visibility on top campuses. Process-wise, many still operate without standardized operating procedures, which hampers scale and collaboration across functions. Moreover, these centres often struggle to establish strong innovation linkages with startups, academic institutions, and technology partners. Their minimal local brand presence also restricts their ability to influence and integrate deeply within India‘s broader innovation ecosystem.
“The most underrated transformation in India’s tech landscape is the rise of mid–market GCCs. These centers aren’t just scaled-down versions of large enterprises; they’re rewriting the playbook. Operating at 40% the scale, they’re 1.3x more likely to be transformation hubs and 1.2x faster in traversing the maturity curve. India already hosts 47% of global product management talent for these firms, but the real shift is this: 6 in 10 are driving end-to-end product ownership, and 8 in 10 are reshaping hiring and culture from India.” Added Pari Natarajan, CEO, Zinnov. “GCCs are moving from support engines to strategic value centers. As Global CXOs global firms eye expansion, the question is no longer ‘why India?’ — it’s ‘how fast can we get in?’ With GCC-as-a-service models, innovation clusters in Tier-2 cities, and faster market entry, India is set to be the birthplace of global digital-native enterprises. This shift is transforming India’s leadership DNA, enabling faster organizational change and positioning the country as a true capability hub.”
Despite these headwinds, the runway for growth is immense. Globally, there are 130,000 to 150,000 mid–market companies, and India stands to attract a significant share—estimated at 30,000 to 40,000, especially from markets like the U.S., U.K., Germany, and Japan and verticals such as software and internet, BFSI, healthcare. If nurtured right, mid–market GCCs in India can evolve into AI-native innovation hubs, capable of spinning off IP, shaping policy landscapes, and functioning as autonomous, high-growth enterprises.
To unlock this potential, India must focus on streamlining entry pathways, enabling cost-effective GCC-as-a-service models, and building vibrant innovation clusters and proactively driving favourable policies.
