From service hubs to innovation engines: the next mandate for Philippine GCCs. Posted on: August 3rd 2026 For decades, the global capability center model was built around a clear proposition: concentrate talent, standardize or optimize processes, improve service quality, and deliver at scale. That proposition remains valuable. But it is no longer sufficient. The most advanced GCCs are moving beyond execution. They are taking ownership of products, platforms, data, AI, and enterprise transformation. Their value is increasingly measured not only by efficiency or service-level performance, but by how quickly they turn expertise into innovation and innovation into business outcomes. GCCs must evolve from cost-efficient execution engines into strategic drivers of business innovation, digital transformation, and core value creation. India's GCC journey offers a useful view of this transition. It also raises an important question for the Philippines: how can a market renowned for operational excellence and customer experience convert those strengths into a larger global innovation mandate? India's GCC evolution is really an evolution of ownership. India's rise as a GCC destination began with scale and talent, but its next chapter is being defined by ownership. Centers that once supported global teams now co-create products, develop AI capabilities, manage enterprise data, and lead transformation programs. This change is visible in the mandates of global enterprises. Microsoft says its teams across India contribute across the product cycle, from model development and engineering to product innovation, including work on Copilot Studio, Azure AI Search, AI agents, speech and translation, and Azure Machine Learning. Novartis established its first Asian Biome digital innovation hub in Hyderabad to connect internal teams with startups and academia and turn ideas into scalable healthcare solutions. These examples matter because they show that a GCC does not become strategic simply by adding more technology roles. It becomes strategic when headquarters entrusts it with outcomes, gives it access to the right data and business context, and expects it to create capabilities that can be reused globally. Looking ahead: Can the Philippines shift from an operational powerhouse into a strategic engine that actively shapes global enterprise strategy? The Philippine opportunity starts from a position of strength. The Philippines has built a globally respected IT-BPM ecosystem on communication, service orientation, adaptability, and deep process knowledge. Those strengths are especially valuable as AI changes the nature of enterprise operations. AI does not remove the need for process expertise. It makes that expertise more important. The people who understand why a process breaks, where judgment is required, how customers respond, and which exceptions create risk are often best positioned to redesign the work around AI. The market is already showing signs of this evolution. The next-generation Philtech center in Cebu, for example, has been positioned around generative AI, software engineering, customer experience, digital transformation, and enterprise operations. It is an indication of what becomes possible when Filipino talent is connected to a broader transformation mandate. The opportunity, however, is larger than a handful of advanced centers. The Philippines can establish itself as a destination where enterprises do not merely locate work, but build AI-enabled operating models. Five imperatives for Philippine GCCs. * Move from a delivery mandate to an enterprise mandate A modern GCC needs a clearly defined role in the enterprise's innovation agenda. That means identifying the products, processes, data domains, or customer journeys the center will own, not simply the tasks it will perform. The mandate should be jointly designed by headquarters and GCC leadership, backed by decision rights, executive sponsorship, and a phased path from delivery to co-creation and ownership. * Build AI where the process knowledge lives If AI strategy and development remain concentrated elsewhere, Philippine GCCs risk becoming downstream users of tools created without their operating context. The stronger model is to bring process experts, data specialists, engineers, and transformation leaders together inside the GCC. This allows teams to identify high-value use cases, build proofs of concept, validate them against real operational conditions, and scale what works. It also gives the center a more visible role in enterprise AI transformation. * Treat data and knowledge as strategic infrastructure AI ambition cannot outpace data readiness. GCCs need trusted data, clear ownership, shared taxonomies, strong observability, and governed access. They also need to capture institutional knowledge that is often scattered across people, documents, and workflows. Treating data and knowledge as products creates the foundation for reusable AI assets, domain-specific models, better decisions, and more reliable automation. * Develop an ecosystem, not only a workforce India's experience shows the value of connecting GCCs with startups, universities, and specialized technology partners. These relationships help centers move faster from problem definition to experimentation and from prototype to scaled solution. The Philippines can deepen similar connections across Manila, Cebu, Clark, Iloilo, Davao, and other emerging hubs. A distributed innovation ecosystem can expand the talent pool while creating specialized clusters around areas such as customer experience, financial services, healthcare, analytics, cybersecurity, and software engineering. * Measure what the GCC creates, not only what it saves Cost, quality, productivity, and SLA performance will remain important. But they cannot fully express the contribution of a next-generation GCC. Leadership scorecards should also measure time to market, AI deployment and reuse, revenue or customer impact, risk reduction, intellectual property created, talent progression, and the number of global programs led from the Philippines. What an enterprise measures signals what it truly expects its GCC to become. The next advantage will come from combining human insight with AI. The Philippines does not need to abandon the capabilities that built its position. It needs to reinterpret them for an AI-first operating environment. Customer empathy can inform better AI experiences. Process discipline can support safer automation. Communication strengths can improve adoption across global teams. Domain expertise can help enterprises distinguish between a compelling demonstration and a solution that works reliably in production. This combination is difficult to replicate. It can become the foundation of a distinctly Philippine model of the next-generation GCC: human-centered, operationally grounded, AI-enabled, and accountable for measurable enterprise outcomes. The next chapter for Philippine GCCs. The global GCC landscape is changing quickly. As more enterprises distribute ownership of AI, data, products, and transformation, location decisions will increasingly follow capability and strategic value, not cost alone. For Philippine GCCs, the question is no longer whether the operating model will evolve. It is whether centers will help shape that evolution or wait for the new model to be designed elsewhere. The next generation of GCC leadership will be defined by centers that can build and run with AI, convert frontline knowledge into enterprise intelligence, and take global responsibility for outcomes. The Philippines has the talent and operating heritage to lead that shift. The imperative now is to turn that potential into mandate, capability, and measurable impact. Felma Magnata is Senior VP, Operations A seasoned and results-driven management professional with over 20+ years of industry leadership, specializing in scaling operations, driving profitability, and nurturing high-performing teams. Built on a foundation of Operational Excellence and a proven track record of optimizing complex workflows across Operations and Customer Experience to deliver sustainable growth and bottom-line impact. Known for an authentic, people-first leadership style, excels in Team & People Management - mentoring cross-functional teams to execute seamlessly under tight deadlines and high-pressure environments. Share with Friends:

ChrysCapital completes acquisition of an Indian subsidiary of a global pharma company. Jul 30, 2026, 6:38 AM Translate article text Choose a language and wait for the translated text. ChrysCapital, one of the biggest private equity firms investing in India, acquired a controlling 70.68% stake in Novartis India Limited (NIL). The transaction marks a defining moment for ChrysCapital and for the Indian pharmaceutical sector bringing one of India’s longstanding pharmaceutical businesses under dedicated private equity ownership, with the ambition to build a leading branded-generics platform for the Indian market. NIL has a legacy spanning several decades and a portfolio of brands that are trusted both by healthcare professionals and patients. NIL operates across key therapeutic areas including pain management, calcium supplementation, gynecology, neurosciences, and transplant immunology through brands such as Voveran, Calcium Sandoz, Tegrital etc. Built on a strong foundation of scientific excellence, physician trust, and nationwide reach, NIL has played a meaningful role in improving healthcare outcomes for millions of patients across the country. The acquisition marks ChrysCapital’s first majority-controlled investment in the Indian pharmaceutical sector and reflects the firm’s strong conviction in the long-term growth potential of India’s branded pharmaceuticals market. Building on a proven healthcare investment track record, ChrysCapital aims to leverage its sector expertise and extensive network to support the next phase of growth for NIL and strengthen its position as a leading pharmaceutical business. NIL will adopt a new name and corporate identity to celebrate the company's separation from its previous owners and the beginning of a new era. To support the company’s next phase of growth, NIL has appointed Dr. Vikas Gupta as the CEO and Managing Director. Further, Ramesh Ramadurai, Suchita Sharma and Shashank Sinha have joined as Independent Directors on the Board of NIL. "A strong management team is central to any successful organization, and NIL is fortunate to have Dr. Vikas Gupta at the helm – someone who brings both the experience and the vision this business needs. Combined with NIL’s legacy brands and market standing, ChrysCapital believes the foundation for long-term value creation is firmly in place." - Kshitij Sheth, Managing Director, ChrysCapital Advisors. Dr. Vikas Gupta, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, NIL, said: "NIL has earned its place in Indian healthcare over many decades. Today we begin a new and exciting chapter in NIL's history. We carry forward decades of scientific rigour and physician trust – from that strong foundation and with ChrysCapital's backing we have the resources and focus to grow our portfolio with purpose, reach more patients, and build on what this organization has always stood for." For this transaction, Kotak acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Novartis AG. Freshfields, AZB & Partners advised Novartis AG as legal counsels and Ernst & Young advised Novartis AG on the financial and tax diligence. Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co acted as the legal counsel and Alvarez & Marsal, Dhruva Advisors and Price Waterhouse & Co. were the financial and tax advisors for ChrysCapital. The post ChrysCapital completes acquisition of an Indian subsidiary of a global pharma company appeared first on Express Pharma.

Kenya to adopt new WHO-backed Kala-Azar treatment guidelines. July 29, 2026 Kenya is set to update its national treatment guidelines for kala-azar after the World Health Organisation (WHO) endorsed new improved treatments for leishmaniasis in Eastern Africa marking revision of the global recommendations in nearly two decades. The updated WHO guidelines introduce shorter, safer and more effective treatment regimens for visceral leishmaniasis (VL), commonly known as kala-azar, and post-kala-azar dermal leishmaniasis (PKDL), replacing lengthy injection-based therapies with a combination that includes an oral medicine for the first time in the region. The revised recommendations are based on clinical trials conducted at Kacheliba Sub-County Hospital in Kenya led by the Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) in partnership with the Ministry of Health and other partners. Trials were also conducted in Uganda, Ethiopia, and South Sudan. Welcoming the endorsement, Head, Division of Vector Borne & Neglected Tropical Diseases at the Ministry of Health, Kenya, Wyckliff Omondi said the government is working to incorporate the new treatments in the country's national treatment guidelines, so that patients can benefit from them as soon as possible. "Now that the WHO has updated its treatment guidelines, we are working also to include the new treatments in our national guidelines, so our patients can benefit from them as soon as possible," Omondi said. Adding that: "Kenya has been an active partner in the development of these new treatments through the Leishmaniasis East Africa Platform (LEAP), and we are hopeful that all our joint efforts will lead to the elimination of this terrible disease." The new WHO recommendations include for the first time in the region an oral drug. Patients with kala-azar or PKDL will receive oral miltefosine plus a once-daily paromomycin injection for just 14 days: from 34 injections down to 14 for kala-azar, and from 60-90 injections down to just 14 for PKDL. WHO says kala-azar is one of the world's deadliest parasitic diseases after malaria, and fatal in 95% of cases if untreated. In 2024, Eastern Africa accounted for 79% of global kala-azar cases, with half of all patients being children under 15. In Kenya alone, the treatments are expected to benefit patients in 11 kala-azar endemic counties by reducing painful injections, shortening hospital stays and improving treatment outcomes. "Until now, treatment for kala-azar meant enduring 34 painful injections over 17 days and PKDL treatment required 60-90 days. The new WHO recommendations include for the first time in the region an oral drug. Patients with kala-azar or PKDL will receive oral miltefosine plus a once-daily paromomycin injection for just 14 days: from 34 injections down to 14 for kala-azar, and from 60-90 injections down to just 14 for PKDL," The new regimens recommended for VL and PKDL in eastern Africa are free from sodium stibogluconate (SSG), long known for its painful injections and severe toxicities, replacing it for the first time with an oral drug, miltefosine (MF). In South Asia, new recommended treatment options for people with PKDL are now shorter and safer, with liposomal amphotericin B (LAmB) alone or in combination with MF. The guidelines also provide guidance for the management of VL relapse in South Asia. These new therapies recommended for VL and PKDL in eastern Africa and some of the recommended alternative regimens for PKDL in South Asia were developed by the non-profit medical research organization Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) and partners. "For too long, patients suffering from leishmaniasis have endured treatments nearly as punishing as the disease itself. These new WHO guidelines mark a turning point," said Dr Daniel Ngamije Madandi, WHO Director of Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases. "By recommending safer, shorter, and more patient friendly regimens, we are not just improving care; we are accelerating our fight to eliminate this devastating disease and offering renewed hope to communities across Africa and Asia." According to a statement, the disease is endemic in 80 countries, with 50,000 to 90,000 new cases estimated to occur each year, while only 25-45% are reported to WHO. PKDL is a skin condition that can develop months after successful kala-azar treatment. Though not life threatening, it is highly stigmatizing, and many people living with PKDL face social isolation and mental health challenges. PKDL can also contribute to ongoing transmission of VL in affected communities. The new treatments will significantly improve the standard of care for patients with leishmaniasis, ahead of the expected arrival in the coming years of even more patient-friendly, innovative oral therapeutic options now in development. This includes LXE408, a novel oral candidate for leishmaniasis that DNDi is jointly developing with Novartis "We are delighted that more patient-friendly treatments developed with our partners have been included in the WHO guidelines,' said Dr Fabiana Alves, Leishmaniasis-Mycetoma Cluster Director at DNDi. 'These advances are important steps towards elimination, but we are already looking ahead. We are now working with Novartis and partners on the development of LXE408, a promising new oral candidate that could help us soon finally move away from injectable regimens." VL, also known as kala-azar ('black fever' in Hindi), is transmitted by the bite of an infected sandfly and is one of the world's deadliest parasitic killers after malaria. It causes high fever, weight loss, anaemia, spleen and liver enlargement, and, if not treated, death. PKDL is a related skin condition that can appear months after kala-azar treatment. It causes visible lesions that often lead to social stigma, isolation, and significant emotional distress.