According to Indian Government estimates, there will be
a need for one million trained and qualified employees in call
centres by 2009, but a likely shortfall of over 260,000
workers.
Gartner says this is due to the growing demand for offshore
business process outsourcing (BPO) resources, which has already
created a shortage for existing offshore call centre service
providers.
Many large multinational organisations that located their shared
service centres in India did so anticipating an unlimited supply of
skilled labour. According to Gartner, this expectation,
specifically for educated recruits with good English-language
skills, has not been met – even though India graduates more than
2.5 million college students each year.
Gartner predicts that high staff attrition will occur as
professionals switch companies to advance their careers or improve
their salaries. Although high employee attrition by itself is a
manageable issue, a shortfall in qualified personnel will affect
costs, as service providers offer employees better salaries and
benefits to stop the high attrition rates.
Over time, these measures will erode the competitive advantage
that India currently enjoys in the area of labour costs, says
Gartner.
The shortage will also impact upon the quality of staff employed
by the industry.
According to Gartner, the top available talent has already been
absorbed by the industry, leaving service providers with no option
but to recruit from a level below their optimum requirements. This
makes high-quality in-house training a critical factor.
Finally Gartner warns that any reduction in due diligence
resulting from the need for rapid recruitment increases the
possibility of less-trustworthy staff being employed. This
increases the risk of fraud and theft of confidential data.
The firm advises organisations to investigate carefully before
engaging with a call centre provider. Organisations should inquire
about attrition rates and security measures, and ensure that
adequate mechanisms — such as service level agreements and
resulting penalties, call monitoring and customer satisfaction
surveys — are built into contracts.
Gartner also urges organisations to review their offshore BPO
strategies regularly, looking for signs of improvement or
deterioration in the service provided to them, particularly over
the next two years.
In addition, Gartner urges the Indian government to consider the
long-term implications of the skills shortage, and suggests that
the government must work closely with call centre service providers
to implement a comprehensive, clearly defined policy and road map
for skill development to support the industry.
