As president and head of Amdocs India, Anshoo Gaur is entrusted with the task of developing telecom products and solutions to enhance customer experience and enable maximum network monetisation by service providers. Talking about the key challenge before him, Gaur says, “The challenge is to build a culture of excellence, leadership, knowledge, effectiveness, quality and productivity to ensure development of world-class products and help add value to our customers.”

Gaur, who has more than 22 years of industry experience, has had the opportunity to work in various developed telecom markets such as the US. Comparing the Indian telecom industry with other global telecom markets, he asserts that the country needs a forward-looking and consistent regulatory framework that can allow free market forces to play out. Also, given India’s distinct telecom requirements, it may not be possible for it to replicate international telecom models. “The country will have to leapfrog technologies and take advantage of broadband and wireless communication in order to address issues related to education, health care, etc.,” he says.

With regard to the recent trends in the telecom industry, Gaur points out that with the latest round of spectrum auction receiving an encouraging response, the sector is likely to continue on the growth path. Further, the industry will witness consolidation following the finalisation of merger and acquisition norms by the government. The number of players is likely to come down to about five.

Going forward, he sees the telecom sector playing a greater role in transforming and supporting the growth of other industries and, therefore, contributing significantly to the country’s overall economic growth.

Gaur’s management style revolves around people enablement, mentorship and empowerment. “I play the role of a chief enablement officer and follow an open and transparent process while making decisions. None of us has all the answers. Therefore, it is important to listen to all the team members, learn from others and use these learnings to arrive at the right answer. I also focus on encouraging ownership and accountability in the team,” he says.