Entries by Jill Cookinham, Research Analyst

The Race for Digital Sovereignty: How 4 IT Services Leaders Are Positioned

TBR Fourcast is a quarterly blog series examining and comparing the performance, strategies and industry standing of four IT services companies. The series also highlights standouts and laggards according to TBR’s quarterly revenue projections as well as its geographic and segment estimates. With discussions about sovereignty in Europe only becoming louder, TBR thinks it is worthwhile to examine Atos Group, CGI, Fujitsu and Kyndryl. Our intent is to shine light on these similarly sized companies that have a strong presence in Europe and/or a strong presence in ITO and consulting and to discuss where each company’s opportunity lies.

Are Hyperscalers Really Competing for Services Revenue? 

TBR has consistently highlighted hyperscalers’ professional services units, despite their relatively small revenue streams, as potentially credible threats to IT services companies.  Hyperscalers do not intend to displace global system integrators (GSIs) in consulting or managed services, but their growing services capabilities create more margin pressure for (and anxiety among) the GSIs each quarter. This report examines where hyperscalers’ professional services units overlap with GSIs’ and how their roles continue to evolve, beginning with comparison of the companies’ services operating models.

HCLTech’s AI Strategy Signals the Future of Application Development & Modernization Services

Reengineering applications accelerates time to value and augments service quality; however, advanced AI capabilities evolve quickly. Over the next five years, HCLTech needs to protect margins, perhaps through fostering more value through IT consulting. The company also needs to protect itself from competition from other India-centric vendors, and TBR believes this will require persistent innovation and, most importantly, execution.

HCLTech Heads into 2026 with AI Advantages

Aligning alliance, acquisition and industry strategies around AI and then executing on that alignment should be one of HCLTech’s strengths. Taking full advantage of the breadth and depth of HCLTech’s AI Foundry should be another. HCLTech’s efforts in these areas have positioned it well in a wildly fluctuating market. TBR has written extensively about challenges in the AI space, particularly for IT services companies and consultancies. Based on TBR’s research, 2026 should be a pivotal year for HCLTech.

Manufacturing Growth Slows, But EMEA IT Services Vendors Find Lifeline in Public Sector Wins 

This quarter, we look at Accenture, Atos, Capgemini and IBM Consulting in the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) market, and compare how their industry diversification, portfolios and localization strategies position them for revenue growth. Atos and Capgemini, the two IT services companies whose EMEA revenue makes up over half of total revenue, experienced a steady decline in trailing 12-month (TTM) year-to-year revenue growth in recent quarters. Yet, Accenture and IBM were better able to maintain growth as macroeconomic conditions deteriorated in recent quarters.

Capgemini to Acquire WNS for $3.3B, Tripling BPO Revenue and Accelerating AI Ambitions

The acquisition undoubtedly serves as an important stepping stone to transform Capgemini’s BPO offerings, which are housed in its Operations & Engineering segment, yet Capgemini must be strategic with its approach, balancing new clients’ expectations with the introduction of incremental GenAI and agentic AI capabilities. Capgemini’s recent investments in partner-enabled portfolio offerings position the company well for a large change in the segment, such as its new agentic AI offerings announced with Google Cloud in April and its NVIDIA NIM-powered industry-specific agentic AI solutions and agentic gallery.

Well-placed Investments in Emerging Tech Will Enable CGI to Accelerate Growth Long Term

TBR believes CGI’s coinnovation with clients will create new opportunities tailored to industry needs; however, at the same time, other vendors in the past year have been leveraging partnerships to expand market share and provide industry-specific solutions. For example, Cognizant and ServiceNow expanded their partnership to reach midmarket banking clients, and Accenture is collaborating with S&P Global to jointly pursue financial services clients. Joint offerings may motivate clients to invest in these solutions rather than only implementing AI into existing solutions.