- Koenig Solutions provides value-addition to Indian IT

By our staff reporter
Dehradun, 26 Sept: One of the few units functional at the Software Technology Park on Sahastradhara Road, here, is Koenig Solutions, which has taken Indian IT beyond the conventional Call Centre or Backroom Operations to providing Microsoft Accredited training at 50 % of its in the US or Europe. With this, it has anticipated the Indian vision of becoming an international hub of quality education and training.
Koenig is presently providing training to students from all over the world at its centres in Delhi and Dehradun, at the rate of 125 trainees a month. The concept was institutionalised by Rohit Aggarwal in 2001, with operations begun in Doon a couple of years ago. An alumnus of Punjab Engineering College, Chandigarh, Rohit established Koenig Solutions as an IT firm in 1993, following the entrepreneurial example established by his father in the sixties and seventies.
As a pioneer in ‘Educational Tourism’, Koenig provides training to employees of companies in some 57 countries, including the UK, USA, Netherlands, Germany, as also third world countries like Nigeria.
Koenig has looked beyond just profiting from the IT industry and has given back to society by means of providing textbooks and after school tuition to children from disadvantaged groups, thereby helping them keep up with studies, and also training in IT to local youth so that they can become employable.
In recognition of these activities, Koenig was the only Indian company to receive the Microsoft Citizenship Partner of the Year Award 2009. It was also a finalist for the Microsoft Learning Partner of the Year Award for 2008.
A group of journalists was here to cover Koenig’s activities from Europe, representing several niche publications. These comprised Hilde Vereeckeu of HR Square (independent Flemish magazine on HR and Headhunting), Erik Verreet of Vacature (a widely read HR magazine), Diederik Toet of Computable (for IT professionals), Maarten Van der Schaaf of Sprout and Sven Moons of LUO. The idea was to acquaint them with Dehradun as an upcoming IT destination and Koenig’s operations.
An interaction was held between the company’s executives and the local media with the visiting journalists at the Koenig Farm House, here, on Friday, which covered the entire gamut of issues related to establishing industries in India and Uttarakhand – particularly in the context of the ongoing recession – impact of international relations on economic growth, the status of education in Uttarakhand, migration of youth and future prospects. The competition being faced by India in the IT industry was also discussed.
The visiting journalists also voiced the prevailing sentiment in Europe these days – concern for the global security situation, the condition of Europe’s economy, relative quality of health-care in the developed countries, the role of Indian industry in global economic revival, the changed conditions in the country since liberalisation, the competition with China, the global environment, etc.
Rohit Aggarwal expressed confidence that the IT industry would be able to provide value addition to its services, keeping ahead of the emerging global competition. He said that Koenig’s operations were set to grow in Dehradun, with local youth also benefiting in the future from its training.
Among those present on the occasion were Sandeep Dhawan, Nidhi Naithani of Koenig, Sasidharan TM of Software Technology Parks of India and Vijay Bansal.