On the 20th of October, Volkswagen Group announced its goal to significantly grow its IT team in India. The company aims at doubling its workforce to 3,500 employees by the end of 2024. Volkswagen Group Technology Solutions India (VWITS) is the global in-house capability centre providing IT & technology solutions to Volkswagen AG, its ten brands and multiple regional companies.

“India has long evolved from an extended workbench into a true IT powerhouse. The amazing local tech talent pool provides us with the right skills, competencies, and attitude for New IT, powering Volkswagen Group’s New Auto strategy,” Hauke Stars explained. “This is why we want to scale fast in Volkswagen Group Technology Solutions India, aiming at doubling our IT workforce here by the end of 2024. Our next step is to empower VWITS to take end-to-end responsibility for key strategic projects that drive our in-house value creation.”

Dr Cornelius Menig, Head of Application and infrastructure, added: “One of the drivers in the next months will be to build in-house expertise for our key applications serving critical business processes. Volkswagen Group Technology Solutions India will play a significant role in the overall internalization strategy, reducing reliance on external suppliers and intellectual monopolies."

Sidharth Yadav, Managing Director of Volkswagen Group Technology Solutions India, emphasized on the availability of IT talent and innovation capabilities in India. He further stated that we want VWITS India to lead key IT initiatives on behalf of the Group. “Whenever the Group thinks about new technologies, they should think about VWITS. We intend to further develop our team in India into one of the key technology innovation hubs for Volkswagen’s Group IT. With our ITS.4 strategy, we are now getting ready to take end-to-end product responsibility by insourcing key knowledge within the Group.”

Launch of EVOLVE program

In addition to discussing the key projects for the Volkswagen Group, Hauke Stars wants to use the opportunity of her visit to inaugurate VWITS’ “EVOLVE” initiative. EVOLVE is a new flagship development program designed to groom female talent for leadership at VWITS, aimed at increasing gender diversity in the managerial cadre while being cognizant of the organization’s high standards of meritocracy.

“While women’s representation at career entry levels at our IT organization in India is comparatively good at 27%, it dips significantly at the managerial level to 14%,” Hauke Stars said. “I am confident that with the EVOLVE program, VWITS is taking the right approach to systematically encourage and groom emerging women future leaders, preventing this invaluable talent pipeline to leak.”