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Dr Sanjeev Rastogi is a renowned leader in the Global Capability Centers (GCC) and Global Business Services (GBS) landscape with 30+ years of experience in building captives, Centers of Excellence (COEs), and enterprise shared services across HR, Finance, Procurement, IT, and Analytics. As the CEO of GCC at Adani Group, he leads India's first-ever multi-functional Global Capability Center. Known for driving technology-enabled transformations and delivering exceptional business outcomes, Sanjeev is recognized as one of India's top GCC leaders. He has created $500 million value through disruptive thinking and is a respected industry speaker and Board Member of SSON Global.
In an email interaction with Sejal Singh B G, Correspondent at siliconindia. Dr Sanjeev Rastogi shared his insights on talent as the key differentiator in building future-ready Global Capability Centers (GCCs).
A Leadership Viewpoint
Over the coming decade, Global Capability Centers (GCCs) will evolve far beyond their traditional mandate of operational support. As their role expands from that of a provider of transactional services to that of being a strategic driver of an organization’s strategic decisions, the impact that they will have on growth, resilience, and competitive advantage will be increasingly tangible. This change will be driven by advancements and momentum within the areas of technology, data, and A.I., but at the core of this transformation is one far more significant factor called talent.
Through its evolution to next-generation GCCs, the talent dimension has become both the most powerful enabler and the most significant limitation for GCCs. How GCCs will achieve successful value creation today and fulfill their future role as critical strategic partners to global headquarters will be determined by how they define their strategies for attracting, developing, and deploying talent. The next phase of value creation within this context will not be accomplished simply through the growth in the number of employees. Instead, value creation will derive from redefining the way work happens altogether.
With the use of AI and automation taking over routine and repetitive tasks, employees will increasingly focus their time and energy on orchestration, generation of insights and innovation, and making judgment-based decisions. To achieve maximum value creation, GCCs need to invest in fusion talent intentionally, align jobs with business outcomes, and develop strategic leadership pipelines that are actively aligned with enterprise strategy. The goal is simple: develop an adeptly aligned workforce capable of producing exponentially more value-added results. This evolution demands a fundamental rethinking of how leaders design roles, shape experiences, and build future-ready capabilities. The following shifts are critical for GCC leaders as they reimagine their talent blueprint.
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From Control to Enablement
In next-generation GCCs, talent can no longer be confined to executing predefined, transactional activities. Teams will be expected to own decisions, drive analytics-led insights, and manage operations with a high degree of autonomy. Leadership must therefore move away from tight operational control towards empowering decision-making on a scale. By deliberately decentralizing authority and accountability, GCCs can cultivate the next generation of enterprise leaders rather than just efficient operators.
The future of GCCs will be defined not by the size of the workforce, but by the strategic depth, agility, and creativity of the talent they cultivate
Culture as a Force Multiplier
Culture has the potential to be an important way to differentiate businesses. In order to prepare themselves for the future, businesses in the Gulf Cooperation Council region (GCC) must develop a culture that goes beyond compliance, and actively create opportunities for employees to take ownership of their work, demonstrate agility and engage in innovative practices. As such, business leaders should develop a culture that encourages employees to be comfortable questioning conventional wisdom, taking calculated risks, and consistently delivering results, while also keeping client-centricity at the centre of everything they do. The alignment of culture and strategy has the potential to enhance the business's ability to attract and retain talent.
Skills Over Scale or Location
Volume-based hiring models will steadily lose relevance. The focus will shift towards depth of expertise, digital fluency, cross-functional versatility, and most importantly the ability to adapt and learn continuously. Change-readiness must carry as much weight as formal qualifications or institutional pedigree. In parallel, governance models must evolve to track metrics such as skill velocity, internal mobility, and innovation output, rather than relying solely on cost or FTE-based measures.
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Purpose over Traditional Engagement
Gen Z makes up a large percentage of the workforce today; as such, employee experience will be based largely on purpose, autonomy, and growth rather than just perks. Talent will continue looking for meaning in their work and a personalized career path with the ability to work where they want to and how they want to. As a result, leaders must change from transactional HR practices to experience-driven talent management models that enable employees to flourish as they create value for their organizations.
Orchestrating the Talent Ecosystem
As niche and emerging skills become increasingly scarce, GCCs can no longer rely solely on traditional employment models. They must operate as talent orchestrators rather than just employers.
In essence, the future of GCCs will be defined not by the size of their workforce, but by the strategic depth, agility, and creativity of the talent they cultivate. This means seamlessly combining internal capability building with access to external ecosystems ranging from specialized hiring partners and contractual talent to academic collaborations, start-up communities, and digital upskilling platforms. The ability to fluidly build, borrow, and access skills will be a defining capability of high-performing GCCs.