What Cognizant gets wrong in Energy
Cognizant's energy and utilities practice applies offshore IT delivery to an operational technology environment where the delivery model creates specific compliance and security risks. NERC CIP requirements for Critical Infrastructure Protection include supply chain risk management controls that limit the access rights of vendors — and an offshore managed services team accessing utility OT systems from outside the US creates compliance complexity that the NERC CIP standards were designed to prevent.
Utility OT environments require engineering teams who understand the boundary between information technology and operational technology. The SCADA systems, energy management systems, and distribution management systems that run the grid are not IT systems that happen to be in a utility environment. They are OT systems with specific integration constraints, security architectures, and operational requirements. Cognizant's offshore IT delivery model does not produce engineers with this background.
Grid modernization and smart meter deployments create data infrastructure challenges that require both OT domain knowledge and modern cloud architecture expertise. Cognizant's managed services model is designed for ongoing IT operations — not for the boundary-crossing engineering that grid modernization requires.
What we deploy instead
Our energy technology teams are OT-qualified with NERC CIP compliance embedded in the engineering practice. Grid modernization, AMI integration, and OT/IT boundary architecture designed with security controls enforced at the infrastructure layer.
US-based delivery for utility OT environments — satisfying NERC CIP supply chain risk management requirements without complex vendor access control architectures.
NERC CIP and NIST built into the architecture from day one — enforced automatically by ALICE at every commit.
Fixed-price engagements. Production system in 8-20 weeks. No discovery phase. No change orders.
Domain-qualified engineers with energy experience. The senior engineer who scopes the engagement is the senior engineer who delivers it.
Full source code and documentation transferred at close. No licensing. No managed services dependency.
The compliance difference
NERC CIP, FERC cybersecurity requirements, NIST frameworks for critical infrastructure. OT compliance requires onshore delivery and engineering teams with actual OT experience.
What switching from Cognizant looks like
Energy technology engagement: 14-22 weeks. Team: 10-16 engineers with OT/ICS experience and NERC CIP qualification. Fixed price. Full IP transfer.
Architecture review and scope definition. We review existing deliverables and identify gaps.
Scope locked, team assembled, first sprint underway. Working code from week two.
First production milestone — a working integration or system component, not a document.
Full IP transfer. Source code, documentation, operational runbooks. Your team runs the system.
Failed Vendor Recovery Playbook
Step-by-step framework for recovering from a failed Cognizant engagement — from emergency stabilisation through full re-platforming. 4-phase playbook covering stabilise, assess, transition, and normalise.