Software Offshore Outsourcing

			HOME 	
			ARTICLES 				
			LIST NOW FOR FREE! 
			ABOUT US 
			CONTACT US 
			LOG IN			
		

Offshore Outsourcing
How to Start and Operate a Successful Call Center in Pakistan ("A ship in port is safe, but that is not what ships are for. Sail out to sea and do new things." --Grace Hopper, Computer Pioneer)

Go to Web Site

How to Start and Operate a Successful Call Center in Pakistan

("A ship in port is safe, but that is not what ships are for. Sail out to sea and do new things." --Grace Hopper, Computer Pioneer)

In the year 2000, major research firms predicted that by 2003 approximately US$60 billion would be spent on call center services worldwide. It's a reality, and how much of that action does have? How much does it deserve to have?

Enter “IndiaCallCenter ” key words in google.com and get over 200 meaningful results. Enter “PakistanCallCenter ” and get seven meaningful results. was already employing 16,000 personnel for companies two years ago with the claim that Indian call center agents are more reliable and skilled and can operate at a much lower cost per transaction than call centers.

President Arroyo of the signed three major agreements with companies the same year. She is quoted, “To be successful, the ICT sector must be driven by the private sector, with minimal government intervention and regulation.” Today, the is a major player in the outsourced call center world. Some nations, with the same potentially well-qualified personnel for these “back offices,” are saying “thousands of jobs will be available in call center applications in next few years.” Meanwhile, the competition around those countries who are just simply waiting… are doing what it takes right now. Not right now, they began yesterday and before that. It is not thousands of jobs; it is millions. My main objective is to clear questions you may have in your mind about call centers in . Second, I hope to encourage every single one of you to create a plan today to take advantage of the huge and wonderful opportunities just waiting for you in the call center, back office, and remote sales to business. is an excellent example of a nation of many extremely fluent English-speaking and Internet literate people who have the future-thinking entrepreneurial attitude needed by companies looking for outsourcing their customer support, technical support, telemarketing, accounting and more. So, what is wrong? Internet must be more affordable, and bandwidth needs to be subsidized more. Such encouragement will bring these companies to the “Land of the Pure” instead of elsewhere in the world. What is the definition of a call center anyway? A call center can take many forms. A mother and wife can work from the privacy of her home as a medical secretary, never leaving her children. She will be able to practice her religious beliefs and still help her family financially. Pizza delivery, medical insurance claims, book orders, travel itineraries… there is no limit to the number of jobs that are now available. Young, elderly, men, women, handicapped, and those with families or without will now have new opportunities in to improve their economic status and use their often self-taught English, Internet, and people skills. Anyone can be a call center with these three skills. Manned by one or more than a thousand, it doesn't matter. So, what has accomplished in comparison to in the Call Center Choice race? Bangalore is known worldwide as IndoPak area'sSilicon Valley . They were first and quickest in capitalizing on the software market. Now, Bangalore and the rest of are moving to the hottest market, Call Centers. This is just a “dust in the wind” phenomenon. It is here to stay for several decades. Take a look at “Dialing for Dollars”IndiaCallCenter article and video show at http://www.pakistancallcenters.com/. On 30 December 2002, there were listed at http://www.people-one.com/searchjob/hotjobs.asp 250 call center positions in and zero in . supports call center operations in a huge way. See the following example. “THE INDIA ADVANTAGE (http://www.delhicall.com/why-india.html)

Language

» has the second-largest English- speaking population in the world.

» English is the principal language for the transaction of business

Manpower

» has the second largest and the fastest growing pool of technical manpower .

» High availability of English speaking & educated customer care professionals.

» Has the lowest manpower cost

» High availability of computer literate graduate manpower and technical manpower

Reliability and Security

The work force is highly reliable and can deliver world-class quality and ensure rapid delivery of service. Indian companies are also increasingly adapting to international quality and security standards.

Infrastructure

» Well-connected telecommunication systems on a world-class scale . · High availability of infrastructure resources.

» 's satellite-based telecommunication network enables almost instantaneous high-speed transfer of voice and data across the globe

Legislative Framework

» Highly liberal Government policies on Call- center operations

» Maintains High cost competitiveness in service sectors

» Proactive Government - 10yr. Tax holiday · Duty free import of capital machinery and software.

Cost Benefits

Indian companies can provide call center services to clients based in the or the at one-sixth to one-fourth of what it costs in the , or .

Time Zone

A virtual 12-hour time zone difference with the and other markets forCallCenter services is in 's favor.

Active Government

The department of telecommunications, Government of India has given a special thrust to the industry by reducing the prices of high-speed international private leased circuits. The recent IT boom has prompted the Government of India to announce exemptions from income tax and customs for the exports of IT enabled services. Central and the State governments have put emphasis to set up state-of-the art infrastructure for the projected boom for IT enabled services. Private Internet gateways and 100 foreign direct investments have been given approvals. "Potentially 50-80 percent of total process costs in most IT enabled services can be out sourced offshore. As much as 70 - 80 percent costs can be reduced primarily because of wage differentials. However, in order to manage operations in remote locations, expatriate management may initially be required to support the remote locations. This together with higher telecom costs could result in additional costs of 10-20 percent. Hence there could be 50-60 percent saving on out located processes." (VCare Technologies, Market Perception Memo III, July 2000)” Why is Pakistan not one of the choice call center locations in the world? Priorities? The infrastructure needs assistance. The opportunities must be publicized to the people. Call centers can have a location as small as a corner of one's home. Again bandwidth must be subsidized, Internet access must be affordable, and VOIP must be viewed as a friend, not the enemy. Look at these hard facts. About 2 MB of bandwidth will host about 68 phone lines at 30 Kbps per phone line. This costs US$6000/month in Pakistan and only US$1000/month in USA. Finally, why would a nation want to block VOIP when it should be the answer to economic improvement? Why block VOIP and not Playboy? Playboy uses 50% more bandwidth than VOIP, and it does nothing to improve the Pakistan citizenry. In fact, we all know it does a world of harm to one's emotional, social, family, and spiritual life and sometimes even causes a person to lose everything he has. On the other hand, VOIP, something that is still being blocked by a few governments of the world, is a necessity for any type of call center. Let us see that Pakistan is the smart example and choice call center location of the world with all the tools of success and encouragement ready to get in on the action.

Chapter 1 What is a call center? A successful one?

A call center in the year 2003 is different from the call centers of the past. Because of Voice over IP, it is now any location in any time zone where Internet is available. It is located physically at any place where incoming and outgoing phone calls are made between call center representatives and customers. Just during the month of Ramadan, over 3 million seconds passed and billions of customers were served by these global call centers.

(Two popular terms are used to refer to the call centers that are opened in locations that are geographically away from the parent company's location, “back office” and “outsourced center.” We will refer to them often.)

A customer does not care what a call center is nor where a call center is located. What truly matters is how well the call center representative treats the customer. The call center can be manned by one to an infinite number of representatives, depending upon the situation. It can be located in a corner of a residence, in the back room of a restaurant or other business, in the library of a school or university or again, on the top floor of the spice market, or anywhere that Internet is available. The call center of today and the future has no limits to the imagination. The limits are only those imposed by bureaucracy's “red tape.” It is clear now what a call center is. A huge number of those 3 million seconds of incoming and outgoing calls during Ramadan could have been placed to and from call centers in Pakistan. Why wait? What makes a successful call center in Pakistan? Certain types of manpower, Internet, VoIP long distance calling solution, and encouragement by the government are essential. A successful call center will employ persons with a minimum of good English speaking ability and good English listening comprehension; basic skills in computers and Internet such as e-mail, chat programs, and web browsing; and a polite and confident attitude toward customers. The ideal back office representative will have all of the above capabilities, but he is also motivated by something inside of himself to succeed. Other terms for this concept are motivation or self-initiative. He will pursue a good command of English written and reading comprehension, an understanding of English idioms and different types of American slang, and have a will to be persistent, caring, flexible, observant, and assumptive with each unique customer he deals with. He will know that he is serving often well-informed customers who expect respect. He will be able to adjust to changes in technology as well as the products and services he will offer.

Next, reasonably priced Internet service is vital to take advantage of low-cost VoIP services. Government and private industry should work together to encourage DSL and other fast Internet access to be a common standard; this allows the representative to use a computer on the Internet and still make outgoing and receive incoming phone calls at the same time. At the least, a mere minimum bandwidth of 30 kbps per phone line is required. The people of Pakistan must be empowered with the same tools of success as citizens of other countries.

In the year 2000, India ended its monopolies on long distance and Internet bandwidth. It is not a mistake to say that this has helped India to be in the top four choices for outsourced call centers along with the Philippines, Canada, and Jamaica.

What advantages does Pakistan have over other countries to be the successful call center choice of the world? Will it be possible that in less than one year's time, someone asks, “What is a call center?” Can we hope for the following reply to that question? “Let's answer that by showcasing the thousands of such prosperous call centers in Pakistan.”

Why not? It is a land of citizens who are proactive, future-thinking, entrepreneurial, self-starting, creative, tough people. It is a people who have undergone many challenges in life, who have learned how to meet their basic needs in innovative ways.