As the global economic turmoil rages on and shows no sign of abating, Genpact Chief Executive Pramod Bhasin believes “wait and watch” is the flavour of the season for business process outsourcing firms.

The flavour seems bitter for now.

Over the past few years, BPO services firms armed with competitive, English-speaking professionals working for relatively cheap wages have cashed in on an outsourcing boom. But they are now experiencing a lull in growth as the U.S. economy faces one of the worst crises in history.

Amid such grim conditions, CEO Bhasin doesn’t care to track his company’s stock price. “I don’t even know what my own share price was yesterday, for instance, and I don’t normally look,” he said. To hear the comment click here.

Genpact shares have lost almost half their value this year. Not a pretty sight.

But there’s still some hope for Bhasin on the flavour front. He hopes the company’s Moroccan venture is a success, because Morocco is a “great place to eat.” To hear the comment click here.

Bhasin was one of the featured guests during the summit, held in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore, India

It’s not just the global economic crisis that is weighing on Genpact Chief Executive Pramod Bhasin’s mind, but also several home-grown concerns.

Nothing works in India, Bhasin said, and rattled off a list of public utilities from water and power to security and transportation.

“Indian entrepreneurs are dragging us into the 21st century and our public services are dragging us back into the 18th century,” he said at the Reuters India Investment Summit. To listen to the comment, click here.

Bhasin wasn’t very appreciative of the Indian youth either.

A lot of young people today want to be capitalist when the returns are good and turn immediately socialist when their jobs are threatened, the head of India’s largest business process outsourcing firm said. To hear the comment, click here.

Wonder what he has to say about companies who are capitalist when the going is good but turn socialist when it comes to bailouts.

Bhasin was one of the featured guests during the summit, held in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore, India.

India has seen 9 percent-plus economic growth for the past three years and many thought it would remain relatively immune to the global financial crisis and the subsequent slowdown. But its stock market has tumbled 50 percent this year and all the signs point to a sharper slowdown than most were anticipating.
 
 
Corporate expansion plans, capital raising and partial privatisations by the government have all had to go on hold as investors, foreign and domestic, have run scared before the storm which has ripped through financial markets worldwide. Politicians too face a tough year, with national elections due in early 2009 and millions of voters for whom a first car, apartment or refrigerator is once again moving out of reach. 
 
 
What does all this mean for India’s transformation into an Asian powerhouse? Will it set the country’s infrastructure and commercial development back several years or is it just a blip?
 
 
Some of the country’s most influential figures will discuss these topics and their own firms’ plans to ride out the slowdown at the Reuters India Investment Summit, which will generate a package of exclusive stories, online videos, blogs and analysis.

Try the fact that in the youth-skewing software services industry, young people, fresh out of school, are leading entire teams of people.

You have dynamics where 18-year olds are managed by 19-year olds, are managed by 22-year olds, and they have an awful lot of power,? MphasiS Managing Director Deepak Patel said at the Reuters India Investment Summit.

So a key worry is whether team members and employees are being properly taken care of, he added.

Patel was one of the featured guests on the final day of the summit, held in Mumbai and Bangalore, India.

To hear Patels comment, click on mphasis_worries.mp3

As Wipro looks to expand its global footprint and develop new capabilities, the inorganic route is always an option.

But the company is not on the lookout for cheap buys, Suresh Senapaty, CFO of Wipro, said at the Reuters India Investment Summit.

Senapaty was one of the featured speakers at the summit, which brings exclusive news and views from leading corporate and banking executives.

To hear Senapatys comment, click on wipro_no_cheap_buys.mp3

The kind of investments one makes tells a lot about the risks one is willing to take. But do they also suggest something about the companies these individuals run?

At the Reuters India Investment Summit, two of Indias top IT executives shared how they would invest a $50 million bounty.

Suresh Senapaty, CFO of Wipro, would not hesitate putting the money to work in stocks of decently managed? companies. But he shies from short-term punting. 

On the flip side, Infosys CEO S. Gopalakrishnan prefers the safety that mutual funds and bonds offer. I dont dabble in the stock market and things like that,? he said. 

But a significant portion of his investments is still in Infosys, a company he helped set up.

Gopalakrishnan and Senapaty were featured guests on the final day of the summit, held in Mumbai and Bangalore, India.

To hear Senapatys comment, click on wipro_investment.mp3

To hear Gopalakrishnans comment, click on infosys_investment.mp3

If Biocons Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw were handed $50 million to invest in India, she would put the money into an innovative diagnostics company.

Diagnostics is a huge opportunity for India,? Mazumdar-Shaw said at the Reuters India Investment Summit.

Mazumdar-Shaw was one of the featured speakers at this years summit, which runs through Friday in Mumbai and in Bangalore, India.

To hear Mazumdar-Shaws comment, click on kiran-mazumdar-shaw_diagnostics.mp3

Ever wondered if one of Indias richest businesswomen has any regrets? 

How about - no MBA! 

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, who set up Biocon in her garage in Bangalore in 1978, says going to business school could have helped grow her company a lot faster. However, she ended up learning on the job. 

I feel like Ive gone to lifes business school,? instead, Mazumdar-Shaw said at the Reuters India Investment Summit in Bangalore on Thursday. 

To hear Mazumdar-Shaws comment, click on kiran-mazumdar-shaw_business_school.mp3

Worried that Indian curbs on participatory notes will slow the influx of foreign capital into India? Relax, says Naina Lal Kidwai, Country Head of HSBC India. Overseas money will continue to chase rapidly growing Indian corporates, which the world regards as “safe heaven” bets amid global uncertainty, she said at the Reuters India Investment Summit in Mumbai on Thursday.

To hear Kidwais comment, please click hsbc-naina-lal-kidwai.mp3

Think you know what the future holds for big pharmaceutical firms and their generic counterparts? Think again, says Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd Chief Executive Malvinder Singh, who believes a sea change is underway that will blur those lines and reshape the industry.

To hear Singh’s comment, please click ranbaxy-malvinder-singh.mp3