India call centers face employee exodus

CNet News.com ^ | August 27, 2003 | Dinesh C. Sharma

[magellan]

Although India's call center industry is thriving, its employees are not impressed. The nascent business is witnessing high rates of employee attrition, making industry leaders sit up and take note.

The National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM) recently formed a special task force to address that issue, along with how to ensure availability of skilled talent in the long term.

"The current average rate of attrition faced by the industry is between 30 percent to 35 percent," Ashu Calapa, vice president of Icici OneSource, said recently at an industry meeting in Bangalore. "If you compare attrition rates for a voice and non-voice process, then attrition rates are significantly lower in a non-voice process."

Indian call centers currently employ about 160,000 professionals, who assume pseudo names and answer calls from U.S. customers. They have to learn foreign accents, work at night to cater to U.S. time zones, and adjust to an altered social and family life.

These factors, unique to the call center work environment, were cited in a recent study as reasons for the high churn of employees and their perception toward their work. These employees also face the risk associated with working in a new industry.

"All this, in totality, seems to be impacting professionals in the way in which they lead lives and the long-term prospects of continuing careers in call centers," said Manesh Mathew, director of PeopleEquity Consulting, a human resources firm based in Bangalore. "The inherent nature of the job is such that it is monotonous and lacks challenge."

India's call center industry, often locally referred to as information technology-enabled services and business process outsourcing, accounts for a quarter of all software and service exports from the country, according to NASSCOM. The market grew 59 percent to $2.3 billion between 2002 and 2003. Total employment in the industry is expected to reach 600,000 by 2007, according to IDC India.

PeopleEquity and NFO India, a part of the U.S.-based consultancy NFO WorldGroup, conducted a study on call center employees, interviewing 1,000 workers at 19 leading call centers including GE, Citibank, Transworks and Convergys. These units are mostly located in Bangalore, Chennai, Mumbai and Gurgaon near New Delhi.

The survey results indicated that although employees are aware of the unique demands of the job, they are not prepared to handle the "work-life balance." They believe their employers are not doing enough to reduce stress at work.

Furthermore, employees don't look at their jobs as a long-term career option and have low expectations of professional growth within the industry, the study showed. Most of the workers are well qualified or even overqualified. For instance, the survey found that 9 percent of employees hold M.B.A. degrees. Units in Chennai employ the highest number of engineers and workers with a master's in computer applications.

The study noted that although employees don't complain about their salaries, they have a lurking feeling that they are not "being paid as per industry standards."

Suren Singh Rasaily, a senior vice president at NIIT, said at a NASSCOM meeting last month: "We are encouraging companies to adopt responsible behavior in order to ensure that the industry does not become a victim of its own actions."

Copyright ©1995-2003 CNET Networks, Inc. All rights reserved.

[ChromeDome]

ping

[Tokhtamish]

If you have overqualified people doing third shift grunt work you will quite naturally have high levels of attrition.

[_Jim]

The nascent business is witnessing high rates of employee attrition ... although employees are aware of the unique demands of the job, they are not prepared to handle the "work-life balance."

Hmmm ... does the west retain that special ingredient that has propelled us to where we are today: a strong work ethic and the ability to handle the associated stress?

[grobdriver]

The study noted that although employees don't complain about their salaries, they have a lurking feeling that they are not "being paid as per industry standards."

BWAHAHAhahahaha!!!!!!!
That's rich!

That's why you have that job at all!
You are supposed to be cheaper labor because your economy doesn't require the pay scale required in the US.
Now you want "Industry Standard"?
BWAHAHAhahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[ChromeDome]

Personally, I'm hoping for 100 percent attrition. It's not a job I want, but I'm sure there are American's who'd be willing (at least until they finished night classes for something else).

-ChromeDome.

[lelio]

For instance, the survey found that 9 percent of employees hold M.B.A. degrees.

There's a couple reasons for that:
a) they are way overqualified
b) their call center job requires some MBA knowledge (although I doubt that)
c) Indian for "graduate of McDonald U" is spelled MBA

[Semper Paratus]

The old saying "You get what you pay for" still holds.

[SengirV]

And what is the turnover rate for tech support folks in the US? I'd be surprized if was lower than this.

[McGavin999]

They should never have even attempted this. By the time they get done with all the associated costs, the lack of service (I've talked to them and I'm sure they are exceptionally smart, but the language difference is noticable and they can't understand what you're saying. If you spoke Indian they would understand in a minute) will result in American firms losing customers. Suddenly, cheap labor doesn't look so cheap.

[Monty22]

But does it save money this quarter? That's all the US companies give a crap about.

[thtr]

Total employment in the industry is expected to reach 600,000 by 2007

And every one of them is a lost American job.

[Cogadh na Sith]

The survey results indicated that although employees are aware of the unique demands of the job, they are not prepared to handle the "work-life balance." They believe their employers are not doing enough to reduce stress at work.

Bwahahaha! They want American jobs, but they can't work like Americans!

I'm going to verbally abuse the next little wog I get on the phone for customer service. Maybe they'll quit...

[RobRoy]

I don't do business with people who speak with an obvious accent on the phone. I may take their time, but I never give them business... or information.

The telephone representative is your connection to your customer. If they can't speak your customers language FLUENTY, you are insulting your customer.

[Poohbah]

The telephone representative is your connection to your customer. If they can't speak your customers language FLUENTY, you are insulting your customer.

The language skills and work ethic of recent American high school graduates who are native speakers of English do not impress me.

I can deal with an accent. I cannot deal with a telephone representative who says to me, "Like, dude, why should I bother helping a pathetic lamer like you?" (I actually got that from Dell customer non-service representative.)

[LibKill]

Hmmm ... does the west retain that special ingredient that has propelled us to where we are today: a strong work ethic and the ability to handle the associated stress?

Some of us do. Really.

[UB355]

My wife picked up a pcs mobile phone today. She ended up dealing with an Indian call center. After 1 min she said to the sales associate at Best Buy take this phone, talk to this foreigner or take this phone and shove it.

[Johnny Crab]

1) LOSING CUSTOMERS

Boy are you right! I work in the tech field and had about 3 of these "failure to communicate" situations in one day! I noted that 2 of these resulted in me hanging up after 5 minutes of their failure to understand me. I noted the company names. I do specify and evaluate vendors. These will be rejected or on the "last resort" list because their after-the-sale support sux.

2) MBA REQUIRED etc

This one is easy to explain. Read this week's Dilbert columns! Some PHD's have a lot of clues and they usually do hands-on stuff and LOVE conveying their knowledge in an understandable way...and are a pleasure to work with. Others have no clue and it's "their way or no way" so you get to stand back and watch a mess happen....Paper in a frame on a wall sometimes means nothing.

[Johnny Crab]

Don't forget to mention the steak dinners!

[Johnny Crab]

After 1 min she said to the sales associate at Best Buy take this phone, talk to this foreigner or take this phone and shove it.

YOUR WIFE DESERVES PRAISE and THANKS for this action! Perhaps a detailed letter sent Certified Return Receipt to the CEO of the mobile phone company detailing your "wonderful experience" and its affect on your purchase....I've gotten very rapid response with this method of complaining straight to the top...