Delhi has become the hub of business processes being outsourced by
companies in the US and the UK. The Western world condemns the outsourcing
of call centre jobs to India but what do their Indian employees think?
Thousands of graduates are nowadays working in the Indian
call-centre industry. In order to sound more European, they
have been encouraged to adopt western names. A recent book by Chetan
Bhagat 'One night at a call centre', gives an insight into the lives
of these call centre employees in India.
Delhi
being the capital
of India has seen an unprecedented rise in the call centre industry.
It has also opened doors of employment for thousands of eligible graduates
from all over India. According to a recent survey, around 30% of Indian
graduates do not succeed in finding jobs. But the growth of call
centers and BPOs in Delhi has brought some respite for a large
group of English speaking graduates in India. The lifestyle and culture
of the call center industry is very different from other industries.
Working in a call center brings in you a feeling of the western culture
because most of the time you are interacting with foreign customers.
Call centers in Delhi generally work all through the day and night.
Call center job have always something to lure aspirants in the form
of better working environment, free meals, free transportation, on
job incentives, parties and recreational outings. The odd midnight
shifts and rotating duties often take a toll on one's health but good
growth opportunities make people stick to the BPOs.
The cost of hiring skilled professional in US or UK is very high as
compared to the same level of skill and resources in India. This is
the reason why multi nationals like British Airways, GE Capital, Dell
Computers, and IBM are outsourcing their businesses to countries like
India where labor cost is comparatively very cheap. Several other
multinational firms like Lehman brothers, JP Morgan Chase Bank, Aviva
insurance, and HSBC etc have already set up their international call
centers in India, opening up several new opportunities for the young
graduates here. If some predictions are to be believed, the revenue
from call centers in India would exceed $17 billion by the year 2008.
There are several cultural obstacles to working in a call centre.
Although English has been adopted by the educated elite in India,
the majority speak the Hindi-English combination, known as 'Hinglish'.
The call centre trainees have however overcome these barriers with
good training and sincere effort. Trainees in these call centers have
to apply themselves to the tough foreign accent.
This is a revolution brought about due to the improved international
communication and ease of travel. In short, outsourcing is a win-win
situation for both the outsourcing firm and the client. The job however,
is monotonous in nature but the culture and work environment in these
call centers are some of the reasons why young graduates are embracing
BPO as a career option.
With the outsourcing business increasing day by day, the workers or
the employees in countries like USA and UK are raising their voices
against such jobs being outsourced to India. Political parties and
people from several activist groups in USA have often raised this
particular issue. The subject of outsourcing still finds a place in
US elections and the entire political gamut seems united on the issue.
Well, what does this imply? Is the future of Indian call center industry
daisy? The answer is a big "NO" because the call center or the BPO
industry in India has developed as a strong force, contributing
a lot to the revenue of foreign multinationals. Also, in the current
scenario of globalization and open economy in some businesses, the
existence of these very BPOs becomes imperative.
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