Little known, CSC starts expansion plan in Brazil
Valor Econômico
Bearing Point consulting firm's February's filing for Chapter 11 in the United States was the opportunity CSC was looking for to put the expansion plan of its activities in Brazil in practice. With the difficult situation of Bearing Point, the subsidiaries were placed for sale and CSC acquired the Brazilian branch. "We had been seeking alternatives for more than a year and we were very glad with the success of the negotiation", said David Booth, President of Global Sales and Marketing of the American company specialized in the outsourcing of information technology (IT) services.
The deal made CSC leave a shy activity in Brazil, with some dozens of professionals, to a structure with 700 people that may double in size in 3 to 5 years. "It will depend on the demand of the market", says Booth. The executive does neither disclose the value of the investment that will be made in Brazil, nor the value paid by Bearing Point.
Besides the infrastructure, the acquisition gives CSC a less tangible asset, yet a very important one in the market of IT services and consulting: brand recognition. The company is a giant with 92 thousand employees spread throughout 80 countries. The earnings in the most recent fiscal year amounted to US$ 16.7 billion, with net profits of US$ 1.1 billion. In spite of that, few people know CSC in Brazil.
At a first moment, the strategy will be focused on the support to 30 clients the two companies have in common and to other 50 CSC global accounts that will begin being catered to in Brazil, too. The idea is to increase the current contracts and provided outsourcing services that were not Bearing Point's strong suit. The internationalization process of the Brazilian companies will be a driving force for the businesses, says Booth. "They will be able to take advantage of our global structure and of our knowledge of other markets", affirms the executive.