After more than sixteen months of working on the revision of Cyient DET's strategy, CEO and Executive Director Sukamal Banerjee believes that fiscal year 27 will mark the beginning of the implementation phase for the engineering research and development (ER&D) firm.
As part of the changes implemented since Banerjee took office, the company has increased marketing and sales expenses, reduced overall administrative costs, and updated sales teams in certain areas. Additionally, a Chief Technology Officer (CTO) organization has been established.
These transformations are taking place against the backdrop of Cyient's drive to restore a stronger growth trajectory. The Cyient group reported revenue of $821 million in fiscal year 26, with services (DET) accounting for approximately $657 million. Banerjee expects the group to reach a revenue run rate of one billion dollars 'very quickly' over the next few quarters, including already announced acquisitions.
Paradigm Shift: From ER&D Services to Lifecycle
A key part of the new strategy is Cyient's transition from being predominantly defined as an engineering research and development (ER&D) service provider to a firm offering 'engineering lifecycle services.' The company looks beyond the product design and engineering stage, covering areas such as manufacturing, quality, and maintenance, where contracts can last several years or even decades.
Banerjee emphasized that the ultimate goal in every industry is 'more long-term, visible, sustainable business,' and the way to achieve this is to align with what is long-term and stable for the client.
He also noted that engineering work is increasingly extending far beyond simple product design, especially in sectors such as aerospace, automotive, energy, and medical technology. Banerjee explained that while product creation might take two to three years, or five to seven years in aerospace, these products can be operated for eight to one hundred years, opening opportunities throughout their entire lifecycle.
Reducing Volatility and Transforming the Portfolio
This shift is also aimed at reducing instability in Cyient's business. For instance, in the connectivity sector, a significant portion of the work is tied to client capital expenditures. Although the company may have an idea of how much clients will ultimately spend, forecasting the timing of these expenditures can be complex, affecting quarterly revenue predictability and capacity management.
To address this issue, Cyient is working to change the portfolio of work it accepts. In the connectivity vertical, for example, the company completely revamped its sales team, directing it toward areas with greater growth potential. Banerjee added that early signs of changes in the deal pipeline are already visible, including some advanced discussions of large deals.
Technology is the second component of the transformation. The CTO organization, which did not previously exist, has been created and is planned to be managed as an R&D organization rather than being evaluated by quarterly revenue. The team is already working in areas such as physical AI and quantum computing.
The company is also using artificial intelligence internally across all functions, including finance and sales. Banerjee stated that AI is one of the most pervasive general-purpose technologies in a long time, and therefore every employee should work with it.
Cyient has developed agentic AI platforms around its engineering lifecycle strategy and is actively negotiating with clients. However, the company currently views data as a larger business opportunity than AI itself, especially given its experience working with operational data from areas such as mining, plant operations, maintenance, repair, and production floor upkeep.
Strategy to Increase Deal Size
The company is also striving to increase the average deal size. While it is not yet ready to regularly win billion-dollar contracts, Banerjee reported that Cyient can compete for deals valued between $30–40 million to $50 million and around $100 million. He clarified that they are not trying to enter the 'red sea' that exists in IT outsourcing. Banerjee added that the company's strategy differs from the plans of some peers who want to disrupt the established order among larger system integrators.
Instead, Cyient intends to focus on product lifecycle opportunities, where demand for larger contracts is expected to grow as production volumes increase in the aerospace, energy, and automotive industries.
Regarding growth, Banerjee explained that the company has not provided a revenue forecast for fiscal year 27 and is initially targeting a return to quarterly growth. Its goal for fiscal years 28 and 29 is double-digit annual order growth. He also noted that without large deals, investors should expect growth in the mid-single digits, but major deal wins could push growth toward double digits.
Banerjee also believes that the group's exit and diversification into semiconductors (Cyient Semiconductors) and design-managed manufacturing (Cyient DLM) will be synergistically linked to Cyient's DET (digital, engineering, and technology services).