|
|
India losing IT-BPO business to Philippines: ASSOCHAM
|
|
|
|
Top Stories |
|
|
|
|
SME Times News Bureau | 07 Apr, 2014
India is currently losing about 70 percent of all incremental voice and
call centre business to competitors like Philippines and Eastern Europe
and unless the domestic BPO (business process outsourcing) industry
diversifies the delivery footprint to take advantage of low-cost
centers, our competitors will further consolidate their position,
according to an ASSOCHAM-KPMG joint study.
The study on Information and communications technology (ICT) jointly
conducted by The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India
(ASSOCHAM) and KPMG says, "IT-BPO companies could reduce the total
operating costs by 20-30 percent by moving to a low-cost city within
India with cost differential at around 10-15 percent for non-voice
processes and upwards of 20 percent for voice processes."
"It is estimated that in the ongoing decade India might lose about $30
billion in terms of foreign exchange earnings to Philippines which has
become the top destination for Indian investors, thus the need to reduce
costs and make operations leaner is increasingly becoming significant
across the BPO industry," secretary general of ASSOCHAM, D.S. Rawat
Sunday said, while releasing the findings of the study.
Reportedly, even a number of Indian firms have also set up substantial
operations in Philippines which has a large pool of well-educated,
English-speaking, talented and employable graduates (about 30 percent
graduates in Philippines are employable unlike 10 percent in India where
the training consumes considerable amount of time).
"Employees in Philippine call centers speak English fluently with a
neutral accent which is what customers look for and that is something
missing in Indian accents and that is a prime reason why BPO business is
thriving in that country," said Mr Rawat. "Cultural proximity to the US
together with availability of talented manpower are key reasons as to
why BPO companies prefer expanding their operations in Philippines."
Expansion of non-English BPOs in Tier-2 and Tier-3 centers, which can
provide services to the telecom and aviation sectors at low costs will
increasingly play significant role in growth of domestic outsourcing
industry, further noted the ASSOCHAM-KPMG study.
"Lower attrition rate in smaller towns is a big positive owing to lower
recruiting and training costs, while there is comparatively high
attrition rate of 30-35 percent in tier I cities," said Rawat while
quoting the study. "Besides, even transportation costs for BPO employees
and real estate prices in smaller cities are lower as compared to the
metros."
Cities like Ahmedabad, Chandigarh, Coimbatore, Dehradun, Jaipur,
Kozhikode, Nagpur, Nashik, Palakkad and others can help meet 50-60
percent of projected talent requirement of BPO industry over next five
years, it added.
In order to provide the content in local language there is need to
address challenges of fonts, poor bandwidth and the sector specific need
based services should be offered.
Besides, projects like the National e-governance Plan (NeGP), the Unique
Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) and other government
projects are likely to give a fillip to the domestic BPO sector in
smaller cities and towns if the industry is able to tap the talent
successfully.
The decision to set up BPO centers in Tier 2 and 3 cities requires
striking the right balance between all elements and a patient, long-term
approach is the key, added the ASSOCHAM-KPMG study.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Customs Exchange Rates |
Currency |
Import |
Export |
US Dollar
|
66.20
|
64.50 |
UK Pound
|
87.50
|
84.65 |
Euro
|
78.25
|
75.65 |
Japanese
Yen |
58.85 |
56.85 |
As on 13 Aug, 2022 |
|
|
Daily Poll |
|
|
PM Modi's recent US visit to redefine India-US bilateral relations |
|
|
|
|
|
Commented Stories |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|