DevOps and CI/CD adoption has increased DTDC’s release velocity by over 40 percent, enabling quicker rollouts and real-time responsiveness to business needs, informs Rishi Sareen, CIO, DTDC Express.
(Source: financialexpress)
DTDC launched several innovation initiatives in FY23–24, right after you joined. Please elaborate.
I joined DTDC in March 2023. We then started a technology-led transformation journey, taking a two-tiered approach. First, strengthening our foundation, followed by application and customer platform modernisation.
The year 2023 was defined by the theme "Fixing the Foundation." We focused on laying down a solid digital and IT backbone to support the scale and ambition of the organisation. We became a 100 percent cloud-run organisation to ensure agility and scalability; and rolled out a comprehensive cybersecurity framework across endpoints, cloud, and applications.
FY25 marked a shift from readiness to real-time innovation. We adopted modern DevOps and CI/CD pipelines to fast-track development and delivery. Two Technology Innovation Centers—in Gurgaon and Bangalore—were launched to drive product and platform excellence.
Key initiatives under my leadership include ‘Limitless’ and ‘DIVA.’ The former is a multilingual, mobile-first digital platform empowering DTDC’s vast channel partner network with integrated shipment, finance, service, sales, and performance tools, all in one place. The latter is India and South Asia’s first GenAI-powered logistics chatbot, redefining customer experience with real-time, voice-enabled, sentiment-aware interactions.
We have redesigned the Customer Portal offering seamless booking, tracking, grievance redressal, and service upgrades, all through a single digital interface. We have also digitised and automated workflows across Operations, Finance, HR, and Sales to enhance efficiency and self-service across the board.
In essence, technology at DTDC is no longer a support function, it’s at the center of our business strategy.
As a consequence of the technology interventions, what are the benefits that you have already seen coming—numbers and statistics that you can share in terms of performance improvement?
Our technology transformation journey at DTDC has been strategic, structured, and outcome-driven and we are already seeing tangible results across multiple dimensions of the business.
Channel partner growth: Our 'Limitless' platform has driven a 24 percent Y-o-Y revenue growth for active partners by enabling smarter shipment handling, reconciliation, and performance visibility—all through a multilingual, mobile-first interface.
Faster tech delivery: DevOps and CI/CD adoption has increased our release velocity by over 40 percent, enabling quicker rollouts and real-time responsiveness to business needs. Additionally, the integration of web calling with TrueCaller identity and call recording has improved delivery success rates through higher connect ratios between riders and consignees.
Customer experience: Our GenAI chatbot, DIVA, has handled 1.2Mn+ conversations with under 90 seconds resolution time and over 70 percent self-service success, easing call center load and boosting customer satisfaction.
Speed and uptime: Unified tracking architecture has improved portal response times by 30 percent, while our 100 percent cloud setup ensures 99.98 percent uptime—even during peak loads.
Operational Efficiency: Workflow automation across Finance, HR, and Ops has reduced manual effort and improved process turnaround by up to 35 percent, enabling faster, data-led decisions.
To sum up, DTDC's digital transformation has moved beyond conceptuality and is now visibly reflected in business velocity, partner growth, customer experience, and operational resilience. And we are just getting started.
What are some of the learnings that you have extracted from implementing the many technology and digital initiatives?
The last couple of years at DTDC have been deeply transformative, not just in terms of technology, but in how we think, collaborate, and lead in a digitally evolving logistics ecosystem. This journey has reinforced some key learnings:
Fixing the foundation is non-negotiable: To drive visible innovation, we needed to strengthen our digital backbone through cloud adoption, network security, and application modernisation. These were not just technical upgrades but cultural shifts requiring alignment, resilience, and patience across the organization.
Simple is powerful: With a diverse user base—spanning channel partners, field staff, and internal teams—simplicity in application design emerged as a strategic necessity. Making tech intuitive while preserving business logic has helped us manage churn, drive adoption, and reduce dependency on intensive training.
Customer and partner centricity starts on the ground: Some of the most valuable insights have come from ground-level observations—shadowing riders, visiting hubs, listening to partners and end-users. It has taught me that technology works best when built with empathy and a first-hand understanding of pain points.
Security and agility must go hand in hand: Often viewed as trade-offs, I’ve learned that a well-architected infrastructure can deliver both. Our approach to DevSecOps, SD-WAN adoption, and endpoint hardening has shown that security can enable, not restrict, agility—if built thoughtfully from the start.
Innovation is a team sport: From launching DIVA to building Limitless, none of this could have been achieved without strong cross-functional collaboration. Setting up Technology Innovation Centers in Gurgaon and Bangalore was a pivotal move—not just for talent acquisition but for fostering a culture of co-creation and experimentation.
Digital transformation is not a project—it’s a mindset: It’s not about deploying one big system or launching a shiny new app. True transformation is continuous. It requires curiosity, courage, and course correction. Every rollout, every feedback loop has helped us improve—not just our systems but also how we lead.
Ultimately, leadership in technology is about more than problem-solving; it’s about creating possibilities, building trust, and motivating teams to challenge the norm with purpose. As we advance, we are shaping a more connected, inclusive, and intelligent future.
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