THE BPO sector in India owes its presence to Raman Roy, who pioneered the Outsourcing revolution in India. Quattro BPO Solutions is his fourth successful venture after stints in GECIS, Spectramind and Wipro. The Chairman and Managing Director, Quattro, speaks to Urmila Rao shredding the callous perception that people harbour of the BPO sector, the inability of Tier II cities to join the fray and the prediction of captive BPOs among other things

Raman Pruthi

We allow lateral movement. It helps employees actualise their skills sets and become well-rounded.

Q: BPO has primarily been seen as a stop-gap option. Is that perception changing?
A: Somewhat. There is still some distance to be covered. If you look at the history of IT and software companies, which are now mature but in their infancy, they were also treated as stop-gap arrangements.

At that time, parents didn’t want their kids to join these sectors. But as the industry matured and the next generation came in, parents got an idea as to what those industries are. Today IT is a career option for people.

BPO will become a career option. Actually BPO is a big misnomer. Banking, is that a career option for people in this country? 60 percent of what we do is BFSI (Banking, financial services and insurance). If people think that 13 billion US dollar per annum doesn’t offer a career then they would really struggle to find some thing that will form a career for them.

Q: Will the high attrition levels in the industry stabilise in the near future?
A:  No, it will not because we have a shortage of people. The appetite of this industry is so huge that it can absorb another 100, 000 people overnight. We are only about 750,000 people. Attrition is a symptom, disease is shortage of manpower. No one leaves job to join another for the same salary. The core of the problem is that there is no supply. What are we doing about it? If we as a country want our branding to say that we are the world’s back office, we are the top most in customer service then we have to make our policies, procedures, and education systems, in line with the requirements.

Q: What is BPO industry doing to overcome the shortage?
A: The BPO industry today runs more classes than the largest university in this country. This building (of Quattro in Gurgaon) runs 20 classrooms of which 15 run in three shifts. We hire and train people. Is there any other option? I compete with countries which hire people that are deployable and revenue generating within six weeks. In India, at times it takes 6 months to train people.
 
Q: BPO industry carries a certain harsh image in the minds of people, for example, it’s a high pressure job, it’s only for young crowd,  cab drivers are reckless..
A:  The understanding of what is BPO is driven largely by media and media is not necessarily kind. If today the bulb was discovered, the media in India will report is as the death of candle industry rather than a great invention. They try to sensationalise things. This industry is not sensational. To say that the impression is only negative will be erroneous because today due to this industry, the youth has an opportunity to get a job. Ten years ago when I started, there were unemployed female colleagues sitting at home, waiting to be packed off in marriage.
 
Q: Is it not a  demanding job with tough  productivity norms?
A: We don’t have norms of productivity that are higher than what is expected of an international workforce. If a human being in the US can do 100 transactions in a day, to ask a human being in India to do 100 transactions a day is not high pressure. In India where fathers are used to working only three hours for Govt of India, compared to that, yes, it is a very high pressure job! Why are we creating a culture that believes we can get away with lower standards than their global counterparts?

If we are able to generate enough revenue to be able to pay a decent salary, we pay a decent salary. As an industry we are more than fair to an employee, we treat them as co-participants. These youngsters don’t have much liability. They are able to buy big cars and homes.  So what? We have given them the ability to dream and be able to actualize their dreams. This industry offers jobs not just to youngsters. I have been employed with this industry for more than 15 years.

 The other fact is that we have to transport people and yes, car drivers can be reckless. What about the blue-line bus drivers in Delhi?
 
Q: It is said that due to shortcomings here, business will shift to other countries like Philippines and Malaysia?
A: It has already gone there. We are losing our edge, only our base is much larger but the rate of growth of Philippines and other countries is much higher compared to India. Somebody should be really worried. There are facts and statistics to prove it. Customer servicing jobs don’t come to India.
 
Q: How are Tier II cities faring in the BPO boom?
A: Not very well. Setting up a building there is like setting up an oasis in the desert. The middle management people have to be imported. And they are not willing to go there in absence of proper schools, hospitals, entertainment, roads and other necessary infrastructure that are essential China puts these systems in place and then they get the people to run the business.
 
Q: What is your prediction of domestic BPOs?
A: It is a booming industry, we have hardly penetrated. Do you transact with SBI? Is there a number where you can call to get details? Yes. Is there a number of Indian Railways where you can call up and get information? Yes. You have a problem with your LIC policy, do you have some one who you can approach?. These are all examples of  a robust growth of domestic BPOs. 


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