Visa processing will continue to be growth driver for VFS Global

Dubai - More governments are seeing benefits of outsourced model, say CEO Zubin Karkaria

Despite a change in ownership, Kuoni Group is committed to make all its businesses more dynamic to compete in a digital environment. All business verticals will be developed to become self-sufficient and cost-efficient, according to its top executive.
Zubin Karkaria, chief executive of Kuoni Group and VFS Global, said visa processing will remain a key growth driver for VFS Global as the travel business is expected to sustain upward trends. He said two of three divisions - global travel distribution and VFS Global - have exhibited above-market organic growth in 2015.
"In the group travel business, which we are currently restructuring, we reduce complexity of products and focus more on attractive and profitable customer segments. We have not made any revisions to the mid-term targets set for 2017," Karkaria told Khaleej Times.
Karkaria has become the first Asian to head the 110-year-old Swiss-based Kuoni Group as its chief executive officer. Since his appointment last November, he has been dividing his time between Switzerland and the UAE, handling both responsibilities.
"I will continue to remain the CEO of VFS Global, which is an integral part of the Kuoni Group. Considering the dynamic nature of the business we are in, we have re-aligned the top management team to be more in line with industry trends, new businesses and markets we are focusing on," Karkaria said.
About the change in ownership, he said it would be good for all stakeholders. "The planned takeover by EQT brings some attractive long-term benefits to the company, its business partners and employees."
He said the transaction allows Kuoni Group to continue developing its position as a leading global service provider for the worldwide travel industry and governments. This will be done through investments in technology, in a wider portfolio of services and in acquisitions of other companies, he said.
"EQT intends to make investments to develop the market positions of different businesses and increase profitability. Our latest results are a good starting point for the successful expansion of Kuoni's leading positions under the new ownership."

Growth driver
Karkaria said visa processing will continue to be VFS Global's core business as more governments see the advantages of an outsourced visa service model, which is cost-effective and transparent.
"From a unique concept of outsourcing the visa process we pioneered in 2001, in a short span of 14 years, we have grown to serve 50 client governments and processed over 119 million visa applications," he said.
He said travel from emerging economies accounts for 46 per cent of international travel and the industry's contribution to global GDP is expected to rise by 3.8 per cent annually until 2025.
"This growth will continue to drive business as more governments are seeing the advantages of having an outsourced visa services model," he said.
VFS Global has a presence in 123 countries. "We are working towards further expanding our presence. Besides this, we also see strong growth potential in our identity management and citizen services vertical.
"Within this framework, we support local and national governments in large-scale ID solutions, in projects such as e-passports, resident permits, national identity schemes, driving licences, etc. Our biometric solutions are used in 113 countries by 31 client governments and we have processed over 31 million biometric enrolments since we began in 2007."

VFS Global's ME operations
About VFS Global's operations in the Middle East and the UAE, Karkaria said the company started its services in the emirate over a decade ago.
"VFS Global's association with the UAE goes back to 2002 when we signed an agreement with Emirates airline to process their passengers' UAE visa applications under the brand 'Dubai Visa Processing Centre'. Later, we set up visa processing operations for the Australian government in the UAE in 2004. Since then, we have grown to 217 visa application centres for 28 client governments and are present in 11 countries in the region. We currently process around 1.64 million applications annually from the Middle East.
"We have always seen immense growth potential here, with the Middle East's fast pace of economic development and political stability. Both Europe and Asia are easily accessible from Dubai and hence the city has become a global hub for business and leisure travellers," Karkaria said.
He said innovation is a key business driver for the company as it has introduced several cutting-edge technologies to aid client governments in services that the group offers. "We are developing 'self-service kiosks' to allow applicants to submit their applications independently, without having to wait in queues," he said.
On leadership style, he said nurturing a culture of entrepreneurship in an organisation is critical to transform an opportunity into a success, considering competition in the market.
"I feel one has to lead from the front by setting the right example and expectations. For a leader, the most important thing is to quickly assess the situation and provide a clear direction," he said.
- muzaffarrizvi@khaleejtimes.com