Why the Hybrid GCC Model Is Winning in India and how Enterprises are Leading the Change 

Global Capability Centres (GCCs) in India have undergone a dramatic transformation. What once started as offshore delivery hubs has now become strategic engines that power product engineering, AI, cloud transformation, data excellence, and innovation.  

But as enterprises rethink how they scale capabilities globally, one theme is clear: the choice is no longer “build or outsource.”   

The future belongs to the hybrid model of build-plus-partner. 

In India, this hybrid approach is no longer just a trend; it’s rapidly becoming the dominant blueprint for enterprises seeking both speed and control. Global firms like Costco and JPMorgan Chase are expanding their India-based GCCs to combine strong internalcapabilities with partner-driven execution. This shift reflects a broader move away from pure outsourcing toward GCCs that own core capabilities while selectively partnering to accelerate delivery. 

India’s GCC ecosystem, hosting over 1,800 GCCs and generating $60–65 billion annually, has grown at an extraordinary rate over the last two decades, contributing significantly to India’s technology and IT services exports. Representing more than 50% of all GCCs globally, it employs approximately 2 million professionals across IT, engineering, AI, and cloud functions.  

By 2030, the GCC industry in India is projected to exceed $100 billion and employ 2.5 to 4 million professionals across banking and financial services, retail, SaaS, and product engineering, with tier-2 and tier-3 cities contributing over 35% of new GCC talent growth.  

India is not the world’s back office anymore, rather it’s now the innovation lab. 

Why the Traditional Build vs Outsource Debate Is Obsolete 

Outsourcing had been primarily about cost efficiency and scale, while GCCs focused on control and long-term capability building. Both approaches have pros and cons. While outsourcing can create dependency and limit strategic impact, building a GCC entirely in-house can be slow, resource-intensive, and difficult to scale for specialized capabilities such as AI, automation, and cloud.  

The hybrid model addresses these challenges: own what differentiates, partner to accelerate execution. This approach allows enterprises to retain strategic control within their GCC while leveraging specialized partners to enhance delivery, drive innovation, and accelerate speed-to-value. 

The Hybrid Model: What Winning Looks Like in India 

A modern hybrid GCC is typically structured around two complementary layers: 

Strategic GCC Core

 
This core is the enterprise’s nerve centre, focusing on high-value functions such as: 

Partner-Enabled Delivery Engine 

External partners amplify the core by providing: 

The outcome: a hybrid model that balances strategic ownership with execution scale, enabling faster innovation, higher quality, and measurable business results. 

Speed + control + innovation = competitive advantage. 

Xebia’s Differentiators: Building Capability Beyond Delivery 

At Xebia, we help enterprises design, launch, and scale hybrid GCCs that deliver immediate results while building long-term capabilities. 

The question for most enterprises is no longer whether to build or outsource, but how to strike the right balance between ownership and partnership. 

In that equation, the hybrid model is emerging as the most practical answer, and India is where it’s being proven at scale.