Cold calling, Bangalore style MBNA mulls India call centre outsourcing; may cost Canada jobs Peter Brieger Financial Post, Canada Wednesday, July 16, 2003 MBNA Corp. is looking at using call-centre agents in the Indian city of Bangalore to service the credit-card issuer's Canadian clients, part of a growing trend among U.S. and European firms to shift a bigger percentage of their workload to low-cost countries.
Should MBNA decide to establish a permanent call centre in India, it would be a first for a Canadian company or subsidiary. However, experts say other domestic firms may also be eyeing the world's second-most populous country for workers who can collect on bad debts or hawk company promotions. The strategic shift has not garnered accolades from those who say it comes at the expense of North American and European workers. According to U.S.-based Forrester Research, the move to outsourcing could see as many as 3.3 million U.S. jobs and US$136-billion in wages shuffled offshore in the next decade -- with almost three-quarters going to India. To plug the drain, lawmakers in New Jersey, Maryland and Connecticut are already mulling new rules that would prohibit contracting government services overseas, after welfare recipients in New Jersey discovered their queries were being handled by Indian agents. New Brunswick is one of several provinces that has gone to great lengths to attract call centres as a means of bolstering its resource-based economy. Any move to India, or other low-cost countries, could be a blow to the province's financial health. Judy Cole, spokeswoman for Business New Brunswick, said the province, which is home about 20,000 call-centre workers, doesn't view India as a threat to the province -- at least for the moment. Bob Ellis, a spokesman for Saskatchewan's Department of Industry and Resources, said the province's $60-million call-centre payroll is not in immediate danger, although he said the trend is something to watch. "Clearly there are these considerations because call centres can be global in their operations and are very mobile as a result of new technologies," he said. Jim Donahue, an MBNA spokesman, declined to discuss details, but played down suggestions the company is opening an Indian call centre, calling the project a "test." He added the move will not impact jobs at Ottawa-based MBNA Canada, which employs more than 1,000 people. Whatever comes of MBNA's project, the number of major call-centre operations in India has mushroomed in recent years as companies including Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard, British Airways, Ford Motor Co., IBM and Lufthansa, all look to the country as a low-cost alternative. Much of that work has settled in Bangalore, a city of six-million in south-central India, also dubbed the Silicon Valley of Asia for its reputation as a software development hub. "The main advantage is cost," said Vince McGlone, head of Call Response Consultants, a U.S. firm that acts an intermediary for companies looking to set up call centre work in India. "In some cases, companies are saving 50% or more." Mark Kobayashi-Hillary, author of Outsourcing to India, said Indian labour costs are 25% to 30% of "western" salaries, while firms can employ highly skilled university graduates who view such jobs as career launching pads. But even at a fraction of North American salaries, US$2,000 to US$4,000 wages are many times average Indian pay, he added. Moreover, English is widely spoken while agents frequently adopt a western moniker when they are on the phone. Modern technology means customers need never know they are calling India, and agents typically go through a training period to work on their accent -- and figure out the meaning of terms such as "rain cheque." And the presence of Web-based news and North American television overseas helps well-trained agents discuss a recent episode of Friends or last night's baseball score. "When you are calling to renew your car insurance and the operator comments on the Blue Jays game last night, most people would never imagine that the speaker may be located in a technology park on the outskirts of Bangalore," Mr. Kobayashi-Hillary said. [EMAIL PROTECTED] ______________________________________________________________________ Post your free ad now! http://personals.yahoo.ca ########################################################################## # Send submissions for Goanet to [EMAIL PROTECTED] # # PLEASE remember to stay on-topic (related to Goa), and avoid top-posts # # More details on Goanet at http://joingoanet.shorturl.com/ # # Please keep your discussion/tone polite, to reflect respect to others # ##########################################################################
