Wipro seals $700-million IT deal with Metro AG

IT major Wipro on Tuesday said it will take over the information technology units of Metro AG — Metro-NOM GMBH in Germany and Metro Systems Romania SRL — under which more than 1,300 employees across Germany, Romania and India will BE transferred to Wipro. Metro is a leading international wholesale company with food and non-food assortments that specialises on serving the needs of hotels, restaurants and caterers as well as independent traders.

The estimated deal value for the duration of the first five years is approximately $700 million. With the intention to extend up to four additional years, it can be a potential spend of up to $1 billion, the company said. Wipro will deliver a complete technology, engineering and solutions transformation programme for Metro as it positions itself as a wholesale 360-degree provider in the hotel, restaurant and catering food industry fuelled by quality, focus and flexibility.

Wipro said that its transformation programme will encompass cloud, data centre services, workplace and network services, along with application development and operations to provide an integrated, flexible and robust digital infrastructure to help drive Metro’s transformation agenda.

At the core of the partnership is the formation of a joint transformation office and innovation council that will guide the businesses through the transformation and ensure collaborative innovation throughout the partnership.

“We are at a stage where we want to focus on the activities that are going to give us the strongest possible competitive advantage and to do that, we need to be confident in the digital infrastructure that underpins our growth. Partnering with Wipro allows us to simplify and streamline our IT landscape, and critically gives us access to innovation and the best digital practices,” Timo Salzsieder, CIO, Metro AG, said.

Thierry Delaporte, chief executive officer and managing director, Wipro, said, “Like us, Metro AG is focused on leveraging digital transformation for competitive advantage. Wipro’s role is to make that transformation efficient and effective. Equally important for us is welcoming 1,300 new colleagues to Wipro and ensuring this move is positive and empowering for each of them. Wipro and Metro share a great deal in terms of culture and values, which has guided our discussions throughout, and led to the formation of the joint transformation and co-innovation council. Our relationship with Metro is a significant and strategic partnership.”

Wipro had earlier said that it plans to launch a digital innovation hub in Düsseldorf, Germany to support Metro and other clients in the region. The proposed digital innovation hub will serve as Wipro’s flagship centre in Europe and enable organisations to cross skill and upskill, besides supporting talent development in local communities.