The customer always comes first. Except when it comes to HCL, the $6 billion Indian outsourcing -- make that co-sourcing -- giant led by CEO Vineet Nayar, who literally wrote the book on a philosophy known as 'employees first, customer second.' In this latest installment of our CEO Interview Series, Nayar spoke with IDG Enterprise Chief Content Officer John Gallant about how that philosophy is fueling HCL's rapid growth and why more CIOs ought to consider adopting it. Nayar also discussed how HCL has set its sights beyond competing with other Indian outsourcers like Infosys and Wipro and is squarely targeting what he believes are the many unhappy customers of services giants like IBM, Accenture and CSC. The outspoken Nayar took shots at the 'fear psychosis' created by services firms in trying to peddle their offerings and used a barnyard epithet to describe public cloud computing, which he claims isn't ready for prime time. He also outlined HCL's aggressive plans for hiring locally in the U.S. and Europe, and defended the company's use of the controversial H-1B visa program. In addition, Nayar talked about the new goals for IT departments in 2012 and beyond, and explained why treating mobile as a technology 'misses the point.'

Wipro, one of India's top outsourcers, reported slow revenue growth in U.S. dollar terms for the quarter ended March 31, and issued muted guidance for the next quarter, reflecting an uncertain outsourcing market.

Wipro's IT services revenue grew 12 percent year on year in U.S. dollar terms in the quarter ended Dec. 31, but its growth lags behind Indian outsourcing peers such as Tata Consultancy Services (TCS).

Even as CIOs continue to pursue the multi-provider model for outsourcing IT, the question remains as to how to do it successfully: amassing the necessary vendor management skills needed, avoiding vendor finger pointing, and achieving intended results.

India's National Association of Software and Service Companies (Nasscom) said Monday that an economic slump in the U.S. will benefit Indian outsourcers, as U.S. customers look to cut costs.