Launching an international IT company branch in Tashkent: from concept to operational stability
Launch of a regional IT company branch in Uzbekistan — choice of legal form, registration, hiring of the first team, building sales and delivery processes. From concept to first operational revenue in 9 months.
A real case of an international IT company entering the Uzbekistan market — from concept to operational stability in 12 months. Legal model, operational structure, corporate sales.
Typical Problem
An international IT company decided to enter the Uzbekistan and Central Asian market. Uzbekistan is a growing digital services market with an active IT Park program, but local specifics on taxes, hiring, government contracts, and work culture differ substantially from the international model. The main risk is repeating a typical international company entry mistake — porting the same model from other markets and hitting local constraints in 6-9 months.
Why This Happens
The initial hypothesis was that the branch could operate as an extension of the international company — same team remotely, same sales processes, same financial instruments. This works for mature IT markets but not for Uzbekistan, where: government clients are the main paying segment, corporate sales require physical presence and personal relationships, IT Park tax benefits provide significant advantage but require local registration with specific structural requirements, hiring specialists goes through local ecosystem — not LinkedIn job posts but recommendations and community events.
How We Diagnose It
I started with inventory: what are the company's real strengths, what assumptions don't apply to the market, what target segment makes sense. The analysis showed that trying to work with the entire market at once is a typical entry mistake. Segmenting by 2-3 target industries with a clear proposition gives focus. In parallel — assessment of operating model: what should be in the local office, what stays at the international center. This determined the first-year structure.
The Right Model
Local IT Park resident company. Physical office for 10-15 people in the first year with expansion capability. Team: branch director from the international company for the first 18-24 months, local sales director, local delivery team, local financier and lawyer. Target client base — banks and telecom operators with specific product propositions. Support from the international center — methodology, technology solutions, security standards. Funding — start-up capital for 12-18 months of operating expenses to self-sufficiency.
How We Implement It
Legal company registration, obtaining IT Park residency with tax benefits. Hiring the first team core — 8 people in the first 4 months through a mix of recommendations and targeted contacts. Office lease and setup. Setting internal management processes — finance, HR, security. Launching the sales process focused on 2-3 large clients in the banking sector. First projects — long sales cycle but large average ticket. By month 9 — first operational revenue, by month 12 — operational break-even on local activity.
How the Team Works
I worked as advisor on market entry and operating model. Reviewed local specifics, designed legal and operational structure, helped in first negotiations with government bodies and potential clients. Did not directly participate in team hiring and operational management — that was the international company's work with their specialists. My role ended after operational model stabilization at month 12.
Results
Entering the Uzbekistan market is not scaling an existing business model but adapting it. Any international company trying to port the same model exactly hits local constraints in 6-9 months. The right approach is hybrid: local registration with IT Park residency, physical office, local team, support from the international center only on technology and standards.
Key Lessons
- • Local registration with IT Park residency is a key decision providing significant tax advantages
- • Trying to work remotely without physical office does not work in corporate sales
- • Hiring first specialists through recommendations is faster than formal channels
- • Banking sector sales cycle — 6-9 months, cannot be accelerated by money
- • Focus on 2-3 target industries is more important than broad company presentation
- • Funding for 12-18 months of operating expenses is mandatory reserve, not optional
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