Vanguard’s new Hyderabad hub to drive global innovation, talent, and technology excellence

In an exclusive interaction with Bizz Buzz during the launch of Vanguard’s Global Technology Center in Hyderabad, Jon Couture, Chief Human Resources Officer and Managing Director of Human Resources, and Venkatesh Natarajan, Head of Vanguard Technology Hub, Hyderabad, shared insights into the company’s vision, growth plans, and strategic investments in India.

As Vanguard continues its journey of digital transformation and global expansion, both leaders highlighted the firm’s commitment to fostering innovation, building diverse talent, and strengthening its technology ecosystem in Hyderabad — a city rapidly emerging as one of the world’s leading tech destinations.

Jon Couture, who oversees all human resources functions including talent, leadership, and culture across Vanguard, joined the company in 2024. Prior to this, he served as Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer at Principal Financial Group, managing HR for over 20,000 employees worldwide. His previous roles also include senior HR leadership positions at Wells Fargo and HSBC North America Holdings, Inc., where he played pivotal roles in shaping workforce strategy and organizational transformation.

Leading the charge at Vanguard’s Hyderabad Technology Hub, Venkatesh Natarajan has been with Vanguard since 2019, driving enterprise digital marketing and analytics technologies. Most recently, he led the Digital Channels for the Personal Investor Division from a technology standpoint. With prior leadership experience at QVC, Lowe’s, and Walmart, Venkatesh has been instrumental in advancing digital capabilities and enhancing omni-channel customer experiences across global retail platforms.

Together, they shed light on how Vanguard’s Hyderabad center is set to play a vital role in driving global innovation, technology excellence, and the company’s people-first culture.

Vanguard is celebrating 50 years this year. Could you share a brief overview of the company’s journey and mission?

Yes, Vanguard was founded 50 years ago, and we’re proud to be celebrating our 50th anniversary this year. The idea behind Vanguard has always been to give all investors the best opportunity for investment success.

Our founder built the company very differently — not as a profit-seeking business, but as one owned by its investors. Essentially, the people who own our funds also own the company. Our focus is on delivering strong investment performance at the lowest possible cost to help investors retire comfortably.

Tell us about Vanguard’s global presence and scale today.

We are a truly global company with major locations in the U.S., Europe, and Australia. Today, we are proud to inaugurate our Vanguard India location. Globally, we serve over 50 million clients through 16 offices, with around 20,000 employees. We manage approximately $11.2 trillion in assets on behalf of our investors.

What is the strategic importance of the Hyderabad office for Vanguard?

The Hyderabad location will be our ninth technology hub globally. It’s a key part of our expansion and primarily focused on accessing world-class talent.

Our technology investments run into billions of dollars, and Hyderabad offers a strong ecosystem — with a large pool of engineering professionals, vibrant startups, reputed universities, and a pro-business government. This makes it an ideal location for building technology solutions to support our global business.

How does Vanguard India plan to position itself in a competitive investment and management landscape?

Our differentiation comes from our purpose and mission, which align closely with Indian cultural values. Unlike typical global capability centers, Vanguard India is envisioned as a talent and innovation hub.

Our brand has already begun resonating strongly in the market. Moreover, we see Indian IT professionals as ambitious and growth-oriented — qualities that align with our long-term plans.

Vanguard’s people-centric and relationship-driven culture matches very well with India’s cultural values. This synergy will help us build a strong value proposition and differentiate ourselves.

What are your short- and long-term strategic priorities for Vanguard India?

In the foreseeable future, Vanguard India will function purely as a technology capability center. We are not planning to offer investment products or services in India. The focus is entirely on building technology competencies that support our global operations.

How is Vanguard approaching India’s regulatory and compliance environment?

Over the past six months, we’ve been engaging with various forums and legal councils to ensure full compliance with tax, data privacy, and financial regulations. This is consistent with our global approach — Vanguard operates with high ethical standards and ensures full alignment with local laws wherever we do business.

What trends do you foresee shaping the behavior of Indian retail and institutional investors in the next five years?

Our investment philosophy is conservative. We pioneered the index fund, encouraging investors to save consistently, invest broadly across markets, and stay invested long-term rather than chasing short-term market movements.

However, we see increasing speculative behavior among younger investors, including in cryptocurrencies. Education about disciplined, long-term investing is essential.

India’s digital transformation has been remarkable — from payment systems to financial inclusion. This infrastructure will enable more people to invest and focus on long-term financial well-being.

With the rise of fintech and digital-first investing, how does Vanguard differentiate itself?

We’re a digital-first, tech-forward company. While we don’t offer investment products in India yet, our global approach emphasizes seamless digital experiences.

At the same time, we’re learning from India’s fintech ecosystem — firms like Zerodha and Groww have built scalable, innovative platforms, much like Robinhood in the U.S. There’s a lot to learn from such models.

What role does India play in Vanguard’s broader Asia-Pacific roadmap?

India is a strategic talent and innovation hub for Vanguard. We currently have about 20,000 employees globally and plan to grow our India team to around 2,300 in the next few years.

This will make India one of our most significant global centers for technology and innovation.

What leadership principles guide your decision-making at Vanguard India?

Our leadership philosophy is built on three pillars — Clients, Crew, and Communities.

Clients first — we are a mission-driven, client-centric organization; Crew (employees) — we believe if we take care of our people, they’ll take care of our clients; Communities — we actively invest in the communities where we operate. In Hyderabad, we’re already exploring meaningful CSR initiatives to support local needs.

Yes, community contribution is integral to our culture. Even if CSR wasn’t mandatory, we would still do it — it’s who we are as an organization.

Vanguard globally emphasizes long-term value creation. How is ESG investing integrated into your strategy?

Our investment philosophy — as our founder Jack Bogle said — is “don’t look for the needle, buy the haystack.” We believe in investing broadly in the entire market rather than focusing on individual stocks.

Over time, markets grow, and so does investor wealth. ESG principles are naturally aligned with this philosophy, but our core remains long-term, diversified investing.

Do you see growing investor appetite in India for sustainable and impact-focused investing?

While we’re not offering investment products in India right now, globally there’s increasing interest in sustainability. In India, our focus is currently on talent and technology, not asset management. This center will build tech solutions that support Vanguard’s international business.

Looking ahead to the next decade, what key transformations do you foresee in India’s asset management industry, and how will Vanguard fit in?

Although we don’t plan to enter the commercial investment space in India right now, technology will undoubtedly transform global asset management.

Advanced technologies — AI, machine learning, and data analytics — will play a major role. Vanguard already invests billions annually in technology, and our India center will contribute significantly to this evolution.

India is a strategic investment area for us. Over the next four years, we’ll hire around 2,300 top-tier professionals specializing in AI, data science, cybersecurity, and cloud technologies — the foundation of our enterprise tech capabilities.

Any final thoughts?

We’re truly excited about Vanguard India’s future. This marks the beginning of a long-term commitment to building world-class technology and innovation capabilities in India.