In this 2007 interview, Wim Elfrink, then newly appointed Chief Globalisation Officer at Cisco, lays out a bold strategy that positioned India as the company's second global headquarters. Speaking to Dataquest during a pivotal era, Elfrink explained how Cisco’s shift wasn’t driven by cost but by growth, innovation, and access to world-class talent.

He shared how India would anchor R&D, support, and strategic functions, ushering in a new model of co-creation with local partners to better serve emerging markets. This episode offers rare insight into how global tech giants adapted for scale and relevance beyond their home turf—and how Cisco saw India not just as a market, but as a full-fledged innovation hub.

Disclaimer:This episode is based on an archival interview originally published in Dataquest in 2007. It has been curated using Google’s NotebookLM to preserve historical context and accuracy. Some commentary has been updated for clarity, but no new facts have been added.

NotebookLM (Google NotebookLM) is a research and note-taking online tool developed by Google Labs that uses AI, specifically Google Gemini, to assist users in interacting with their documents