Case study on NIIT
N. Nagaraj
National Institute of Information Technology (NIIT) recently launched Boot It!, a unique computer education programme. Boot It! is a computer training programme with a difference: the medium is television (aired on Doordarshan from August 8, 1997). The channel's audience is an estimated 280 million people. Computer education for such a large audience, and through television? Difficult to achieve, but the efforts are on. The weakness of TV as a medium is that it is a non-interactive medium and the design of the programme has to be anticipatory in nature. The programme is designed for the whole family and is supported by a Boot It! kit that contains workbooks and audio tapes. It costs a very nominal Rs 995 and offers the buyer free practise at NIIT centres.
The company that's offering this product is one of the pioneers in the computer education business in India and has grown by leaps and bounds since its inception in 1981. It is, arguably, one of the best in the business and has a phenomenal position in the minds of the general public.
THE INDUSTRY
The business of education is a difficult business at any time in any environment. The two primary problems in education are curriculum and acceptability. These require capabilities related to: infrastructure; skilled staff; network; placements; and basically, quality. Each of these competencies may sound easy and simple to achieve or acquire but are not.
It is more difficult to succeed in the business of computer education because of the industry's close relationship with the information technology (IT) industry. The industry dictates that students have to be trained in the latest software and machines. The rate of obsolescence in the infotech industry is so high that it is necessary for computer training institutes to monitor the IT industry on a nearly daily basis. The infotech industry itself is a bundle of sorts: there is hardware, software, training, networking, multimedia, expert systems and systems integration; and all these components are interdependent in varying degrees. A computer training institute has to keep up with developments in all branches and adapt its curriculum to equip its students with requisite skills.
Who is the customer for computer training institutes: the student? Or the prospective employer? And, in case the company has franchisees, is the franchisee the customer? The truth is that all three groups of people are NIIT's customers and NIIT has to cater to the needs of all three groups. The student wants a good job; the employer wants a competent person for the job; and the franchisee wants a good return on investment, which is possible by maximising the satisfaction of both the student and the prospective employer. Viewed against this background, the student or even the franchise may be regarded as a medium of `value' in the marketplace for software skills.
There is also an additional dimension to this equation: the careers, and maybe the lives, of one group of customers, NIIT's students, depend on what NIIT can provide them. This dependence makes the choice of the training institute a rather emotional decision. The fact that the life of an individual depends on the course also heightens the importance of the word of mouth and this implies that the institute has to really satisfy its students.
One must realise that in this business, there is no second chance. The company has to deliver the goods right the first time, and then, every time. Any major complaints, and the company is done for. In this context, there is no question of retention of one group of customers -- its students. However, the company can look to retain another group of customers -- prospective employers -- through, again, providing the right people every time. NIIT has an envious record of retention -- prospective employers who come once, keep coming to NIIT for their manpower requirements. Customer focus assumes tremendous importance in this industry -- identify your customers, assess their needs, tailor products to satisfy the needs and deliver them the right way.
The question of satisfaction in this context does not stop with a good curriculum incorporating the latest software and technology or with excellent faculty. The highest importance in the spectrum of satisfaction lies in placement: the placement record; the quality of the prospective employer; and, the earning capacity of the student once he/she finishes the course. The other major group of customers, the prospective employer, also has to be satisfied. The satisfaction for this group of consumers again does not stop with a good curriculum but with the induction of quality manpower with skills and competence that match the requirements.
In the beginning, organisations saw computers as a basic input/output device for some basic functions rather than as a tool for business improvement. Financial accounting and payroll processing are examples of the limited application of computers at that point of time.
The development of excellent application packages like spreadsheets, and database managers helped managers realise the versatility of computers as a tool for managerial effectiveness. This was a defining moment for the training industry. Companies computerising their offices sent functional experts for training in their respective fields. The next major development was the entry of computers in the shopfloor and on managers' desks as an aid to decision-making. This development gave the momentum to an already booming industry. And by this time, the model for training within companies changed: the companies did not want to train people; they wanted trained people.
With the introduction of Local Area Networks (LAN), connectivity and sharing of data became very easy and this also brought in a shift in the office automation implementation process. The implementation process was no longer a `draw-the-existing-process flow-and-computerise-it' paradigm. It shifted to `draw the process flow; streamline it to reduce action time; and then use IT to develop a better process'. This paradigm shift also meant that computerising an operation was not an application but a process of change. By the time the shift took place, any organisation worth its name sought to computerise at least some part of its operations.
Lesson 1:A first class `market' and `technology' monitoring system and the ability to predict movements therein. The dynamics of the industry dictate a constant monitoring of the infotech industry, which means keeping track of developments in all branches of IT. This would be highly applicable to the manufacturer of any technology dependent durable.
THE NIIT CASE
In computer training today, there are two distinct types of training: corporate training and individual training. Although the core business is training, there is a world of difference between corporate and individual training. Earlier, corporate training had to do with equipping existing employees of an organisation with the requisite skills. Now, corporate training is more a course for upgrading skills rather than basic training.
There has been a lot of change in the individual training segment too over the last few years. In the beginning (for NIIT, it was 1982), the students did not know what they needed to know. The institute had to counsel them on the courses and what they would learn and how it would help them. With increasing awareness, students now know what they want; the institute only has to be in a position to offer what the students want.
PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT AT NIIT
NIIT has to provide the right mix of programming skills and application skills to make its curriculum acceptable to both the student and the prospective employer. The product development process in NIIT is a an interactive one -- and the interaction is not only with its customers but also with people who have an impact on the IT industry. For instance, the GNIIT course offers a balanced curriculum of applications, application development tools and languages.
In the first stage, there is a close monitoring of the IT industry looking for the latest developments and tracking concepts that hold a lot of promise for the future. In the second stage, NIIT assesses the impact of different developments on the user industries and makes an investment in the training infrastructure for these concepts. In the next stage, NIIT gets specific product development inputs from the industry and creates courses. The final stage for one group of customers -- students -- is the delivery of skills through the carefully structured course, and their placement. The final stage for the other group of customers -- prospective employers -- is when NIIT provides them with people who are competent in the required skill set for the job.
Rider to Lesson 1:Just putting a monitoring system in place will not do. The inputs have to be carefully analysed and translated into product features and/or benefits. The company has to have the R&D capabilities to translate trends and developments into workable options.
NIIT's Business
NIIT's individual training paradigm is one of structured courses essentially for career purposes that are updated regularly to include the latest developments. NIIT's corporate training paradigm is one of mass customisation. NIIT assesses the client's needs and suggests one of the following: One, a standard structured course that is the same as offered to individuals but delivered for a group from the same company; Two, the standard course with training in certain specific applications that the client is using or is planning to use; and three, completely customised courses.
This kind of a total package calls for skills other than just training skills. NIIT has to first possess the infrastructure required for the programme -- people, machines and software. NIIT also has to be able to assess the needs of the organisation in terms of the skill set required of each employee in the organisation. Most importantly, NIIT also has to be able to tailor very special modules depending on requirements: whatever said and done, each organisation is different and each client demands a special module, especially at the higher levels. NIIT has to be able to understand the business processes of its client clearly to offer such a special insight as to what IT can do for the business.
Lesson 2:An excellent production and service infrastructure has to be in place to enable the company to satisfy any of its customers' needs. In NIIT's case, production and service infrastructure is totally IT oriented. Computers, software and trainers are its infrastructure. For a manufacturing company, this would translate into a first-class manufacturing facility AND possessing (and using) IT to serve its logistics. When it comes to service, Connectivity is the key word.
NIIT'S CUSTOMERS AND ITS PRODUCTS
In 1982, when NIIT began operations, it offered career courses for students. The target audience was in the age group 15-25. In 1983, NIIT began offering corporate training courses which extended the age group of the target audience theoretically to 60 (in practice, the upper age limit went upto the late forties, at that time). NIIT's Leda family club programme and C-Plan for schools extended the lower age limit to 6 years. Now, NIIT is in a position where it caters to the needs of people from 6 to 60 years of age.
Customer focus is not just about isolating one group of the universe to a customer segment and pandering to its needs. It is much more than that: it is the ability to deliver value and quality to the customer in the best possible way. The operative clause is `the best possible way.'
NIIT's approach to delivering computer education to children in the age group 6 to 14 is a case in point. Children cannot be made to travel all over the city to attend classes. NIIT launched the Leda (Learning through Exploration, Discovery and Adventure) family clubs in 1996 in major cities to tackle the network problem for kids. The Leda family clubs (LFC) also offered the bonus of a `home' environment where the kids and their parents could be comfortable. Each LFC is a multimedia learning centre typically equipped with multimedia computers and guidance available from a trained instructor.
These clubs' main task is to teach academic subjects to children. This is done mainly with the help of multimedia. The higher level of interactivity (in playing with the models) makes learning fun for the children. The academic subjects available on CD-ROM are based on the Central Board of Secondary Education curriculum, which is an acceptable and recognised standard. The multimedia content is developed in-house at NIIT. NIIT actively involves teachers and students who are in the target age group while developing each title. This ensures that the level of instruction is just right for the student. NIIT has also tied up with Jostens Learning, Europress, Sierra On-line, Maxis Inc and Arome to market their products in India through the Leda network.
Another example of tailoring `best way of delivery' is the GNIIT course. These students want to learn the latest and the best and NIIT's career courses are designed in such a way that the student is always in touch with the latest. When it comes to career courses, NIIT has aligned its course content with the market rather than the government. The course includes an internship programme which equips the student with on-the-job experience. In most cases, this internship provides the edge to the student while looking for placement.
And how about the ability to offer upgrades and advanced skills? Well, there are courses for students looking to become hardcore IT professionals. NIIT has also taken the needs of the complete IT professional into account and has launched the higher level course ANIIT. The students are taught concepts such as system integration, systems development and project management in the first semester. This places ANIIT students at a higher level than a GNIIT student: The course prepares students for a role that is more managerial and supervisory in nature than a usual software engineer's role. NIIT also offers a doctoral level programme FNIIT for very advanced developers.
What about existing IT professionals? They can't spare the time for the ANIIT course and they don't want an ANIIT tag. All they want is a new concepts and skills package. NIIT offers the Microsoft Authorised Technical Education Centre (ATEC) and also 120 of its own courses for hardcore IT professionals. These provide IT professionals with new concepts and inputs on the latest application development tools. The foresight seminars bring down the technology gap between World IT and Indian IT.
What about policy makers -- the people who dictate company policy in terms of technology, infrastructure and investment? NIIT offers a series of seminars called the Foresight seminars where international experts in a specified field are invited to talk. These seminars are curtain raisers for technologies that are being developed and will be available for application in the future. This series reduces the time lapse between developments in the US and the awareness in India. A similar curtain-raiser series is Infotalks, the difference being Infotalks is geared for anyone from CEO to CIO to children.
Lesson 3:Recognising the form and delivery needs of different customers and delivering your products in the best possible way. For a consumer product company, this can be translated as using different product forms (as shoe polish in wax form or in liquid form) or different delivery systems (deodorants available in roll-on packs or in atomisers).
NIIT's Automated Learning Centre for executives is a case in point for a different delivery system. Senior executives, nowadays, need computer skills, but have a very tight schedule that may not allow them to come in for regular training slots. NIIT has used what it calls the `Doctor-Patient' model for a course for senior executives. NIIT has launched an Automated Learning Center (ALC) which removes constraints in terms of time for senior executives. The ALC is a product offering that has been weaved into the social life of the busy executive. The student has complete control over the offering and manages the product to suit his needs. The student has the freedom to pace his learning and learn what he wants when he wants. The student only has to fix up an appointment with his mentor and walk into the ALC (hence the reference to the Doctor-Patient model). The tutor then creates a `study path' for the student. The study path will list the technology inputs and the personal tutoring sessions. Technology inputs include lab sessions, Computer-based Training, and Video instructions.
NIIT's multimedia educational series on CD-ROMs and Computer based Tutorials for advanced users is a case in point for an alternative delivery form. NIIT's Multimedia educational products are available under the `Vista' and `Hyper Learn' brands and are sold in more than 40 countries. NIIT is one of only five Independent Courseware Developers for Microsoft Corp. NIIT's CBT Product Interface is licensed to Oracle Corp. for CBT development.
Lesson 4:Choosing the right franchisees and training them. NIIT's franchisees are chosen very carefully and significant weightage is given to their commitment to the venture (against the ability to just invest). NIIT also has an orientation programme for franchisees to enable them to understand NIIT's core and its processes. For a consumer product company, this would translate into putting a dedicated and understanding distribution network in place.
Rider to lesson 3 and 4: Delivery of the product/service does not stop with form or system. NIIT has over 400 education centres nationwide and over 300 of them are franchisees. For a consumer product company, this would translate into having an extensive network of distribution points and service providers, including after-sales service points.
PRODUCT DESIGN
NIIT's career package is a standard format of semesters consisting of modules further divided into sessions that have specific learning objectives. This gives NIIT two distinct advantages: Consistency, in terms of the pace of learning and in terms of content; and two, flexibility. The flexibility aspect is very important: the latest development in a particular module may necessitate a change in only a few sessions in the module and any change in technology would require the recomposition of one module rather than the whole course. If a major revamp is expected, the module can be shifted to a later part of the semester and the students can continue with another module.
The modular system also provides NIIT an easy way of doing away with concepts that are too old and bring in new concepts in their place. An example is NIIT's tie up with AT&T's curriculum development arm to provide telecom inputs to GNIIT students in 1994. At that time, NIIT could predict that telecom and computers would converge into IT. NIIT no longer offers the telecom module but offers higher levels of IT input (TCP/IP, network-centric computing etc.) through its Global Net curriculum.
Lesson 5:A product design that will allow the company to be flexible in its offerings. A related development is the ability to offer the resultant flexibility to the customer. For a manufacturing company, this would translate into offering a modular design enabling the customer to mix and match features and benefits to suit his requirement. An example for this is NIIT's ALC.
Derived from Lesson 5:The ability to offer mass customised products. NIIT's corporate training paradigm revolves around this skill. This would be a direct result of product design in the engineering sense but it also has to make sense for the customers to have so many options. What is needed here is, of course, a thorough assessment of needs and a frank recommendation by the service/product provider. This raises another important concept: That of counselling and advisory services.
SPEED AND INNOVATION
Lesson 6:The company has to be agile in the market through speed and innovation (NIIT calls it Spinnovation). This point could be extended to include:
Lesson 6a:The timing of the product offering -- in a fast moving industry, you can't afford to be early or late. You have to be just right on time. There have been cases where a product has been launched too early in the market and has lost. The market has to be prepared to accept the product. For example, Real Value (the makers of Cease Fire -- fire extinguishers) and Sterling Resorts (for holiday time-shares) prepared the market and waited for the market to accept their products.
Lesson 6b:Reducing the time-to-market -- the timing of the product offering also depends on how fast a new product can be developed and launched. This is very important, especially in a category where there is a high dependence on technology. An example is the Personal Computers industry. Spinnovation helps in this in the sense that the PC maker has to get the architecture of the PC right to fully utilise the latest chip's power.
NIIT's passion for involving itself in new and developing segments can also be gauged from the launching of the first University on the internet -- NIIT's NetVarsity. It is based on a conventional university model and offers a similar ambience. The varsity also allows the student to assess the knowledge he/she has acquired from the on-line service. But the biggest bonus is this: students will be eligible for certification for their education at the NetVarsity. NIIT also offers placement assistance to the students of the varsity through its global placement databank on the net. What is interesting about NetVarsity is that the internet itself is a new phenomenon for people in India and NIIT has set up a University on the net. Another point to note is that the NetVarsity is the first of its kind.
Agility is not only the ability to offer the latest as quickly as possible. It is also the ability to discard the old and the obsolete as quickly as possible. A case in point is NIIT's restructuring of its GNIIT course with respect to telecom inputs (already discussed in product design).
Rider to Lessons 6a and 6b: An excellent research and development base which will help in developing new products and adapting existing products to suit the market's needs is a prerequisite for speed and innovation.
And back to Lesson 1:A prerequisite for spinnovation is, of course, the ability to identify technologies that will become the rage and the ability to discard the ones that would fail (In IT, good technologies might fail just because the inventor was not recognised by the market. The best technologies do not always win).
SYSTEMS AND PROCESSES
Other than NIIT's curriculum and acceptability and delivery systems, its focus on customers is helped by a regular customer satisfaction survey and its CGRS (Customer Grievance Redressal System). And, in a service business, it need not be only systems that have to help focus the business but also the interpersonal skills of the service provider's people. The franchisees also have an interest in the market and are always looking for signs of dissatisfaction among customers.
Lesson 7:Use frontline personnel to monitor customer satisfaction. In India, there seems to be a diffidence on the part of customers to use any grievance handling system. Dealers/ distributors and service personnel are a highly effective and reliable source for customer satisfaction and grievance.
It was natural for NIIT to enter software development when it was training exactly the kind of people that was/is required by the industry. And, as it did in training, NIIT moved up the value chain in software too. It started off with off-shore development, entered the on-site development market and then started offering consultancy. NIIT's latest effort in this field is systems integration.
The business of software development itself involves a very high degree of interaction with customers. If NIIT doesn't understand what the customer's requirements are, it cannot deliver a good product. It is not only a question of understanding the client's requirements but also understanding the client's business and processes. Understanding processes is vital to deliver a comprehensive solution.
The synergies that are involved in NIIT's businesses is very precious. NIIT's R&D division is shared by both the software development business and the computer education business. Systems integration and software consulting brings NIIT's teams into close contact with the latest development in IT and these teams, cooperating with the R&D division, translate their knowledge into courses for NIIT's training wing. In response, NIIT's training division churns out people equipped with the latest in IT which gives NIIT's software development the edge in its market.
Lesson 8:Cross-business, cross-functional synergies are precious. Leverage them to the maximum for sharper focus on the customer in all businesses. For NIIT, both its businesses are related and it is easier to leverage resources and synergies across businesses.
NIIT comes into its own when it is dealing with a systems integration client. Earlier, NIIT had tie-ups with certain companies in each aspect of systems integration -- for hardware, software, networking etc. And, NIIT used to look forward to the integrated solution. It was a paradigm which went: `We have all these ready. This is the problem. Now find the solution'. A year back NIIT decided that it will have no vendor bias and will look backwards from the solution. Now, the paradigm goes like this: `This is the problem. Find the solution. Now, what all do we need?' This meant that NIIT had to shake up its existing relationships. For instance, NIIT was earlier a champion for Sybase. Now, if a client's system requirements need something different, like Oracle, NIIT will provide Oracle to the client.
NIIT has one great edge which helps in taking care of its customers: its people. NIIT's employees are put through an induction and orientation programme that clearly delivers NIIT's mission and values and ways of operation to the recruits. This function helps NIIT in inculcating the spirit of quality in its recruits. All of NIIT's senior personnel attend these induction programmes and there is a total commitment by the top management to NIIT and its people. In fact, senior officers of the company declare that NIIT is people. The work culture at NIIT is that of interdependence through cross-functional task forces and virtual teams for different projects. This brings together the best the company has for each assignment (the implication being the customer is best served). The company also has ongoing personal effectiveness programme and Philip B. Crosby's Personal Quality Initiative programme.
NIIT has a clearly articulated Vision that is put down in writing and this helps. NIIT's mission: `To enable individuals and enterprises worldwide to achieve greater success by providing knowledge, skills, solutions and services through pioneering efforts and usage of appropriate technology.' All their activities ranging from teaching kids to hardcore IT professionals to software development to system integration are fully supported by NIIT's mission.
Further, NIIT's quality policy aims at delivering top quality to customers. The foundation, of course, is top management involvement and the pillars of the policy are process excellence, individual excellence and innovation, resulting in top quality products and services. NIIT's customer focus policy is also along similar lines: The aim is successful customers. The foundation is MERIT (Meeting Every Requirement In Time). The pillars are the voice of the customer, team and process excellence and personal excellence. And, in a very different way of measuring performance, NIIT uses the price of non-conformance as the measure.
NIIT's most recent development in its GNIIT course reflects on its commitment to its customers and its customers' customers: NIIT offers Quality Management as an integral part of its GNIIT programme which will enable GNIIT students to achieve zero defect/ error free results. The course contains several modules such as quality management concepts, quality management tools, ISO 9000 for software and SEI-CMM software quality assurance. The evaluation of quality management skills acquired will conform to standards laid down by the Quality Guru, Philip B. Crosby.
Lesson 9:Building a team of committed people. NIIT's HR policies are totally customer and quality oriented and NIIT's culture is so replete with its own brand of zeal that NIIT's people are fiercely loyal to both the company and its customers. This is possible through the continuous interaction between top executives and the other employees. Other companies can earn the benefits of a HR policy stressing on `delivering the best, every time' and on total quality.
Rider to Lesson 9:A mission that completely supports each of the company's activities. Skeptics may think that an articulated vision may only be lip-service but the fact is that if the top management is completely committed, it makes a big difference to the culture, the people, the company's processes and eventually, the customer.
Lesson 9a:Quality -- Total Quality is an absolute necessity. NIIT's insistence on personal quality, team and process quality (ISO 9000 processes), and product quality provide a very good base for developing a relationship with customers. In reality, this should only be an afterthought, as it has been in this case, because quality is the absolute qualifier to get even into the consideration set of the customer.
Lesson 10:It is very important to build a strong brand. NIIT has branded each of its facilities (like its Mindroom, Computerdrome and NetVarsity), processes (like Personal Quality Initiative) and product offerings (Infotalks, Foresight seminars and GNIIT). Each is supported by a highly dedicated marketing exercise. This is very important in reassuring the customer of his or her standing with the company and is also the base for building a lasting relationship.
NIIT also has another belief: that the customer is best served by its alliances with the best in each of its businesses. In IT, there is no one best player. There are always many players offering the same technology. Witness: Its tie-up with two world majors in RDBMS - Sybase and Oracle. And, depending on the client's requirements, NIIT shows no vendor bias.
One quality of NIIT that has made it the best in its business is also the fact that NIIT is a learning organisation: prepared to learn from anyone, anywhere, anytime. Of course, the prerequisite is an open and highly interactive culture, that will prepare the organisation for the absorption and synthesis of ideas and the eventual translation into policy. NIIT's customer focus aim of `successful customers' is an enveloping theme that provides a direction and purpose to all of NIIT's activities including its learning processes.
IN CONCLUSION...
NIIT is the best in its business right now... and that's essentially because it got ALL its basic parameters right. Management professionals know that monitoring, infrastructure, R&D, design, delivery, quality, committed people, branding, strategic alliances, agility etc. are all necessary for effective customer focus. But the point is, how many companies REALLY possess or acquire these competencies ? In how many companies do all these work in harmony ? What we learn from NIIT is that all these competencies WORKING TOGETHER make a successful organisation.
One caution to be borne in mind is that all these competencies are dynamic with respect to change. In the present competitive environment and context, these competencies are APPROPRIATE. But companies have to continue changing with the times (and competition) and not rest on a set of competencies that is only appropriate for the present. More and new competencies have to be DEFINED and acquired.
(The author wishes to thank Mr P Rajendran, Chief Operating Officer, NIIT, and Mr Sanjiv Kataria, Vice President, NIIT, for their assistance.)