On December 30th, 2021, the Pakistan Embassy in Denmark invited PSEB to attend the Digital Tech Summit exhibition hosted in Copenhagen for IT industry leaders from Pakistan to interact with the Danish market and Danish investors. In response, the PSEB arranged for a delegation of IT companies from Pakistan’s expanding IT scene to represent Pakistan in Copenhagen.
Genetech Solutions was part of the PSEB delegation, represented by CTO and Partner Mustafa Hemani, and COO and Founder Shamim Rajani. Besides, the delegation included prominent names like Pixako Technologies, Mortgage on Fire, Visnext Software Solutions, Narsun Studio, Vizteck Solutions, Quality Resource Management, and Kualitatem.
The discussion topics in the two-day conference revolved around emerging technologies, like blockchain technology, cybersecurity, the internet of things, and artificial intelligence.
At the exhibition, the PSEB delegation promoted the IT services that Pakistan’s tech ecosystem offers. The main objective was to communicate to the Danish audience that Pakistan has an up-and-coming tech ecosystem and is now known as a high-quality technology services hub.
Pakistan produces approximately 25000 graduates every year in the IT sector alone, and the IT industry is expected to rake in export revenue of nearly $3 billion. We have a young and energetic IT workforce ready to be employed in offshore services for technology-enabled businesses. The median age of Pakistan is 22.8, with an estimated youth population volume of 63%, aged between 15 and 33. Currently, the national gender diversity ratio of IT companies in Pakistan is also at a record high of 16%.
Foreign markets have no idea about these statistics. We received a very positive response when we informed the Danish audience about these facts. The PSEB delegation and Genetech Solutions’ had a promising experience exploring and developing leads to offer IT services in the Danish market.
Context of European Markets
Traditionally, Danish markets are very conservative regarding outsourcing their business. Especially in importing software services, they have very stringent standards and laws.
It is challenging for new companies from outside the EU and the Nordic block to start doing business and build trust. The general stance of European and Nordic markets is very skeptical initially, and they are very tight-knit amongst themselves.
It is a small ecosystem, and they are firm on being transparent, honest, and upfront. For offshore talent who are serious about providing the best services, transparency and honesty are extremely good for business.
Genetech Solutions has had a long working experience in European markets like Switzerland, Sweden, and Norway. We have enjoyed working in Europe and intend to explore European markets further. It was in this spirit that we visited Denmark as well.
It is important to note that excellent quality of work is essential for Denmark and other Nordic markets. When Genetech interacted with potential leads in Denmark, the primary conversation was the quality of work that Pakistani talent can provide. Danish markets and investors are eager to see whether talent from Pakistan can meet their expectations.
The Tech Scene in Denmark
Currently, Denmark has a highly digitized economy and culture. They are far ahead of Pakistan regarding the digitization of industry and society, but they are falling short of skilled talent, and the gap is getting wider.
Denmark faces labor shortages across the board, affecting skilled labor and the IT industry. Hopefully, Pakistan’s IT sector can pick up on the resource gap.
Pakistani Diaspora in Denmark
Denmark has an estimated population of 30000 Pakistanis. The Pakistani diaspora at the networking sessions was from the 2nd and 3rd generations who grew up in Denmark. They were very fluent in Danish and with Danish customs and traditions. It is important to note that language is a significant barrier for IT companies to do well in Nordic countries.
During Genetech’s interactions with the Pakistani diaspora in the IT sector of Denmark, we met many ex-pats who want to invest in Pakistan. They want to give back and are very keen on investing in the startup ecosystem of Pakistan.
Expat investors are eagerly looking for suitable road maps to be a part of the startup boom in Pakistan. They have built trust with foreign markets; now, they need local talent from the IT sector Pakistan whom they can trust.
Itinerary of the Digital Tech Summit
The two-day event consisted of seminars and an exhibition with an audience from Copenhagen, surrounding cities, and other Nordic countries.
The event started on December 30th. To start, companies had set up stalls to exhibit their products and services. On the 1st and 2nd days, there was an audience of nearly 5000 tech enthusiasts from universities, academia, and IT companies.
Guest speakers from the IT sector in Denmark and leading business executives hosted interactive seminars for the audience. Out of these, Capgemini hosted the most insightful session. They told the story of how they started their company and about the work they are doing. They also spoke about where they are nearshoring and offshoring their services, and their plans for the future in the Nordic region. Capgemini has a team of 325000 professionals worldwide, and they are interested in expanding further in Pakistan. Amongst other companies that showed an interest in Pakistan, there was also Teo.
On the 29th, the Pakistani diaspora in the IT industry of Denmark hosted a dinner for the PSEB delegation. The dinners on the 30th and 1st were hosted by the Pakistan Embassy and attended by PSEB leading officials, Pakistan Software Houses Association (P@SHA), Pakistan IT company executives, and the Ambassador of Pakistan to Denmark.
The Ambassador was very keen on meeting companies associated with P@SHA and building relations with the industry leaders of Pakistan. The conversation evolved to figure out the way forward for business opportunities in Denmark that the Pakistan IT sector can collaborate with. To follow up, meetings have been held between Genetech Solutions, PSEB, P@SHA, and the Embassy of Pakistan in Denmark, to develop leads and continue the momentum of progress achieved at the exhibition.
Ending on a Hopeful Note
Less than a decade ago, we found out that there was a severe lack of knowledge about the IT sector of Pakistan. Between 2017 and 2019, Genetech visited countries like Canada, Sweden, and Norway to find that the Pakistan embassies themselves did not know the Pakistan tech industry’s work, its size, and how much revenue was generated.
In the olden days, there were only a handful of big companies, but we have seen hundreds of new tech companies open up in the past few years. The Pakistan IT sector is not nascent anymore. The Pakistan IT sector has grown explosively with tech startups and fresh talent in the past five years. We have to go abroad and talk about the growth we have undergone in the last few years. We need to go to foreign countries and introduce the Pakistani tech industry to create jobs and export our services.
To this end, the Pakistan Embassy in Denmark is doing excellent work under the new Ambassador.
Conclusion
For Genetech, this is also a way to market the company. Our marketing model is based on our partner network. We do not run Ads; instead, we go with delegations, visit exhibitions, and participate in conferences. When we meet the customer, we try to find the best fit. We like to choose our customers and build trust with our potential leads.
Genetech Solution’s visit to Denmark has been quite fruitful. After the exhibition, we got a few leads that we had to follow through. Currently, deal closures are in process; we have been working on them since we came back, and we are pretty close to converting potential leads into customers.
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