Global Dialogues: Expect India to lead on 5G technology, says Chuck Robbins of Cisco

In the last few months, the COVID-19 pandemic has seen companies and households actively adopt and adapt a more digital bend. But that does not mean that the tech space has been without challenges, nor has the increased demand been uniform across the global technology space.

Demand for online services and software soared during the pandemic. However, demand for hardware like servers, storage and networking equipment has not been as robust or sustained.

Global tech giant Cisco that manufactures computer networking equipment among other things has faced its share of challenges. The prolonged battle against COVID-19 has also left the global economy struggling, resulting in companies reducing their budgets, especially when it comes to enterprise and commercial orders.

Many are also delaying purchasing decisions in certain areas. All this has analysts pointing to the possibility of a broader downturn in the second half of 2020.

Cisco's revenues in the May-July quarter declined 9 percent from a year earlier to $12.2 billion - a drop for the third quarter running. For the full year, revenues have come in at $49.3 billion - a decrease of 5 percent.

More than 70 percent of this revenue has come from its software and services businesses. This business has seen strong demand as more and more businesses look to go digital to ride out the pandemic and prepare for life in a post-COVID world. Cisco has been working on strengthening its solutions in this arena.

For a pulse check on the world of technology and a deeper dive into what the future holds as the COVID-19 pandemic serves up new lessons in innovation and changing processes, Shereen Bhan spoke to Chuck Robbins, Chairman and CEO of Cisco.