Zensar is a premier technology consulting and services company that is embracing an experience-led everything philosophy. Pulse 2.0 interviewed CEO and Managing Director Manish Tandon to learn more about the company.
Manish Tandon’s Background
Could you tell me more about your background and your journey to CEO of Zensar? Tandon said:
“Growing up in a small town in northern India, I had to be resourceful and work hard. My family had very few graduates, and opportunities were limited. During schooling, I began to excel in math and science and eventually earned a degree from the Indian Institute of Technology in Kanpur, one of the top engineering institutions in the world.”
“Throughout the 1980s and 90s, I drew on my deep background in engineering and science, beginning at Citibank, where I worked in software development, analysis, and design, as well as project management. While I am introverted by nature, I learned to love working with clients, especially after moving to Infosys, where I was head of client services for retail and logistics. I stayed with Infosys for nearly 20 years, serving as a vice president for various sectors, including life sciences, healthcare, insurance, and hi-tech.”
“In 2022, I joined Zensar as CEO. As a smaller company, Zensar affords me the creative liberty to run our IT and transformation services in a highly personable way. We get to truly understand our clients and their needs and provide innovative solutions tailored to what they want to accomplish. I enjoy leading my team here at Zensar, all of whom are bright, experienced thought leaders. The best part is we’re always learning from one another because I’ve established Zensar as a place where everyone’s ideas are heard.”
“As a gold medalist from IIM Bangalore, I consistently strive for excellence in all my endeavors.”
“My primary responsibility is to ensure our collective actions result in the achievement of our vision and goals, which include reaching the industry’s top quartile in terms of performance and fortifying Zensar as the strategic partner of choice for our clients. Client Centricity is our core tenet, and it is reflected in all that we do.”
Favorite Memory
What has been your favorite memory working for Zensar? Tandon reflected:
“One of my most cherished memories at Zensar was our swift response to the CrowdStrike incident in July 2024. The team’s dedication and problem-solving skills were instrumental in mitigating the damage and earning high praise from our clients. This experience not only highlighted our capabilities but also reinforced my belief in Zensar’s potential to achieve great things. I’m excited to continue working towards our goal of reaching the top quartile, and I’m confident that our collective efforts will drive us there.”
Core Services
What are Zensar’s core services? Tandon explained:
“We solve complex IT challenges and provide innovative digital solutions to help our clients achieve their business goals. Our solutions and services span experience design, data engineering, cloud, AI, and advanced analytics. Serving more than 145 leading companies, our 10,500+ employees work across 30+ locations, with specialists in diverse sectors that include healthcare, banking and finance, insurance, telecom, manufacturing, and consumer services.”
Challenges Faced
Can you discuss a major recent challenge that you’ve faced as CEO, along with how you solved for this challenge? Tandon acknowledged:
“Being a CEO requires dedicated attention to not only outside factors but also those within. Again, I am an introverted person—it’s part of who I am. However, as a CEO, I must be extroverted to be a resource for employees, clients, stakeholders, and media. At Zensar, you can’t be afraid to get your thoughts and ideas out there, take risks, and be an approachable team member. For me, this means I’ve had to work on playing to my strengths while also improving on being a leader, focusing on the objective, handling one task at a time, and concentrating on today—not being worried about tomorrow or even the results. If I focus on what needs to get done and put in the effort, the results will come.”
Evolution Of The Company’s Offerings
How has Zensar’s technology offerings evolved since launching? Tandon noted:
“During my leadership, Zensar has undergone a remarkable evolution. We’ve shifted our focus from simply delivering technology solutions to creating exceptional customer experiences. By deeply understanding our clients’ needs and leveraging technologies like AI, cloud computing, and IoT, we’ve been able to guide them through their digital transformation journeys. To support this transformation, we’ve invested heavily in strengthening our engineering capabilities, forming strategic partnerships, and fostering a collaborative work culture. Additionally, strategic acquisitions like BridgeView Life Sciences have expanded our service portfolio, and our investment in generative AI technologies is driving innovation and automation. Zensar is no longer just a technology provider; we’re a strategic partner helping businesses thrive in the digital age.”
Differentiation From The Competition
What differentiates Zensar from its competition? Tandon affirmed:
“To position ourselves as the preferred partner for our clients, we continue to diversify our customer base, broaden our market reach, and nurture enduring relationships. I mentioned Client Centricity earlier, and it truly is the core of everything we do. To augment this focus, we’ve developed a robust go-to-market strategy that aligns with our Experience, Engagement, and Engineering pillars.”
“Internally, we’ve established a new platform for the sales function, comprising strategic alliances, presales, and inside sales operations. We are also making dedicated efforts to foster strategic alliances and leveraging leading cloud platforms to support sustained growth.”
“Likewise, we remain steadfast in our dedication to enriching our service lines through ongoing strategic investments. We have added service lines with key offerings from Enterprise SaaS (ESaaS) and Advanced Engineering Services (AES), among others.”
“Finally—and importantly—transforming talent through advanced skill development remains a top priority. Throughout FY2024, we launched immersive programs to enrich our associates’ capabilities in critical domains such as solution architecture, product management, and program management.”
Significant Milestones
What have been some of Zensar’s most significant milestones? Tandon cited:
“I like to say that the size and significance of a milestone are relative; however, one recent milestone we’ve achieved is undeniably transformative—the acquisition of BridgeView Life Sciences, which we secured in mid-July for $25 million. This strategic new deal will help Zensar expand its expertise in healthcare and grow into a leading life sciences solutions company.”
“Our partnership will help drive innovative solutions for drug development, manufacturing, and payer-provider relationships. Pratik Maroo, our head of healthcare and life sciences, and the BridgeView team have worked diligently to implement this deal, ensuring we’re on the fast track to helping healthcare and life sciences organizations improve the patient experience.”
Customer Success Stories
When asking Tandon about customer success stories, he highlighted:
“Two recent success stories particularly stand out for how they exemplify our Experience, Engagement, and Engineering pillars. First, we partnered with a major oil and gas provider to deliver a superior user experience for a fleet management portal paired with mobility technology. This solution serves an impressive 160,000 client customers spanning 35 different markets. Second, we worked with the City of San Diego to modernize its core systems and accelerate its standing as a leading smart city of the future. We helped to transform the City’s IT platform, enhancing security and reducing costs for taxpayers through an ever-growing portfolio of easily accessible digitized services.”
Revenue/Funding
Can you describe Zensar’s latest financials, revenue metrics, and significant funding? Tandon revealed:
“For the full year FY24, Zensar reported services revenue of $591.3 million and yearly YoY growth of 1.0% in reported currency and 1.3% in constant currency. We exited Q4 FY24 at EBITDA of 16.5%, while for the full year FY24, EBITDA stood at 17.8%. This represents an increase of 640 bps on a year-on-year basis.”
“For Q1FY25, our revenue stood at $154.4 million, a sequential QoQ growth of 4.2% in reported currency and 4.3% in constant currency. At the end of Q1FY25, we reported net cash of $280.9 million.”
Differentiation From The Competition
What differentiates Zensar from its competition? Tandon affirmed:
“As a global digital transformation firm, we provide solutions for some of the largest organizations across cybersecurity, insurance, banking, healthcare, and other sectors. What makes us different is our core philosophy of experience-led everything, which emphasizes not just the technology behind our products and services, but also the people who use them. Anchored by our three pillars of Experience, Engagement, and Engineering, this approach allows us to maintain an end-to-end focus on each client’s business, priorities, and users.”
“In addition, at Zensar, corporate responsibility is more than a tagline. It’s not just about dollars and cents, but about changing the way our world operates for the better. ESG initiatives and community-based outreach are a built-in part of our corporate model, as are proactive planning and rapid responses to regional and global events. During the July 2024 CrowdStrike incident, for instance, our team needed to respond quickly, devise a solution, and mitigate the damage. I’m pleased to report that we received consistently high praise for these efforts.”
Future Goals
What are some of Zensar’s future goals? Tandon emphasized:
“Our objective is clear: We aim to consistently rank in the top 25% of industry performers. Each year, we redouble our efforts, diligently using innovative thinking and smart collaboration to achieve meaningful outcomes for our clients and ourselves. We recognize that our success is intrinsically linked to that of our clients, so ensuring Client Centricity remains our foremost priority.”
“As we advance, we will invest in our long-term growth by continually expanding our reach, refining our services, and building future-ready talent. Embracing experience-led everything as our guiding principle, we are poised to navigate challenges, seize opportunities, and deliver unparalleled experiences and solutions that are value-driven, environmentally conscious, and human-centered.”
Additional Thoughts
Any other topics you would like to discuss? Tandon concluded:
“Generative AI (GenAI) is undoubtedly one of the most significant trends shaping our world today. Its potential to revolutionize industries, from healthcare and education to entertainment and business, is immense. I believe that GenAI will continue to be a major force in the coming years, impacting nearly every aspect of our lives.
