MAM
GroupM launches India Digital Playbook 2014-15
MUMBAI: “We recall that, at WPP Stream India in February 2014, the renowned filmmaker Shekhar Kapur metaphorically referred to digital marketing as Shiv Tandava. We whole-heartedly agree with Kapur’s viewpoint,” is how the GroupM opened and launched its India Digital Playbook.
The Playbook seeks to guide brand advertisers on the fast evolving digital media space in India.
With India now standing at third position globally in internet users after China and US, the user growth is brisk- India today has 2.3 times the users that it had three years back. As of June 2014 India has 243 million internet users. For marketers, this comes as a significant challenge as well as opportunity to re-look media priorities and mix to take advantage of this shift.
The always moving, always new, always-on digital and mobile screen experiences that are prevalent today constitute a new media phenomenon. This brings immense opportunities as well as new challenges on how brands now need to converse with their customers. Successful brands will be those that can adapt to the unrelenting pace of digital innovation.
To help brands in this endeavour, GroupM has got some of the best digital minds in the country to come up with seven actionable opportunities in the coming year – like mobility, real time content and media, digital and experiential platforms.
The playbook further details several milestones – including creating a matrix of outcomes and drafting a mobile first view- that brands should aspire to achieve this year to capitalise on these opportunities. The playbook recommends that brand advertisers adopt holistic insights and data driven approach with integrated marketing technology framework as the key enabler.
GroupM Interaction managing partner Tushar Vyas said, “The digital revolution has now become an avalanche. This in turn opens greater avenues for brands to reach out and communicate effectively with their target audience. The Group M India Digital Playbook aims at providing a blueprint to help guide marketers through the twists and turns that await us.”
The report goes on to say that currently the marketplace is very cluttered and fragmented in India and Programmatic Advertising has become a “catchall” term that the industry is using for behavioural targeting, real time bidding, exchange buying and all sort of things. Through the Playbook, the media agency wants to help marketers traverse this maze where it has outlined a few key recommendations on the Programmatic Advertising Strategy.
Click here to read the Playbook
Brands
Wipro hires 7,500 freshers, withholds FY27 hiring outlook
Profit rises to Rs 3,522 crore, Rs 15,000 crore buyback announced.
MUMBAI- Hiring may be on, but visibility is off, Wipro is adding talent even as it pauses the crystal ball. The company hired 7,500 freshers in FY26 but stopped short of offering any hiring outlook for FY27, underscoring the uncertainty gripping the IT services sector as it pivots towards an AI-led operating model.
The disclosure came alongside its fourth-quarter earnings, where management flagged volatile demand conditions and refrained from committing to future workforce expansion. Chief human resources officer Saurabh Govil noted that over 3,000 of the total hires were onboarded in the March quarter alone, signalling continued intake despite a lack of clarity on deployment pipelines.
This divergence active hiring without forward guidance reflects a broader industry pattern where talent acquisition continues even as deal conversions remain uneven and client spending cycles stretch. Wipro expects its IT services revenue for the June quarter to range between a decline of 2 per cent and flat growth sequentially in constant currency terms, reinforcing near-term caution.
Chief executive officer Srini Pallia pointed to artificial intelligence as both a disruptor and an opportunity. He said evolving client priorities are pushing the company towards outcome-driven engagements, with Wipro increasingly focusing on a services-as-software model through its AI Native Business and Platforms unit. The shift marks a structural change from traditional headcount-led growth to AI-enabled delivery frameworks.
The company has already committed over $1 billion to its AI ecosystem, with investors closely watching how these investments translate into revenue. For now, the numbers present a mixed picture. Net profit rose sequentially to Rs 3,522 crore, while revenue grew 3 per cent to Rs 24,236 crore. However, core IT services performance remained under pressure, with full-year revenue declining 0.3 per cent in dollar terms and 1.6 per cent in constant currency.
Large deal bookings offered a counterpoint, rising 45.4 per cent year-on-year to $7.8 billion, highlighting a widening gap between deal wins and actual revenue realisation. On a quarterly basis, IT services revenue slipped 1.2 per cent sequentially, signalling continued softness in execution.
Margins, however, told a more optimistic story. Operating margins expanded to 17.3 per cent in the fourth quarter, up from 14.8 per cent in the previous quarter, reflecting improved cost discipline. That said, the company cautioned that upcoming wage hikes and the ramp-up of large deals could exert pressure going forward.
Attrition stood at 13.8 per cent in the March quarter, indicating stabilisation after periods of elevated churn. Alongside its earnings, Wipro also announced a Rs 15,000 crore share buyback, reinforcing its focus on shareholder returns, with a payout ratio of 88 per cent over the past three years.
Taken together, the numbers capture a company in transition investing in AI, maintaining hiring momentum, but navigating a demand environment where growth is uneven and visibility remains limited.
