Ashish Garg, director of recruitment, Convergys, speaks about the emerging HR trends and challenges in the BPO industry and how Convergys is gearing up

What are the manpower-related challenges that the BPO-ITeS industry faces? Has the scenario changed after recession?
Talent acquisition, early engagement and retention are always big challenges across companies. After the economic recession we observed a significant slowdown in attrition rates. We found that BPO employees became more focused on building careers with employers that have proven stability and a respected brand. Convergys’ clear career path, focus on personal development and holistic package of employee benefits proved attractive to both current and prospective employees.

How did your organisation adapt to meet changing demands?
Convergys has refined its HR practices to care for all employees at every stage of their employee lifecycle with the company. As global competitive pressures intensified, our clients leveraged outsourcing as a strategic tool and Convergys’ capabilities enabled the company to weather the downturn. In addition, many businesses saw difficult times ahead and prepared to lower their cost structure by focusing on the business factors they could control: productivity, efficiency, quality, asset utilisation, innovation and retention, all of which we champion at Convergys.

How have the HR practices of the industry evolved over the years?
When the BPO industry first started gaining traction in India, HR teams had to convince prospective employees’ families and friends that the industry would provide strong careers and solid growth prospects. As the industry has matured and employees and their families welcome careers in the BPO industry, HR practices are much more focused on caring for and retaining the employee at the particular stage of employment.
The retention of established employees is likely to involve satisfaction with a company’s growth opportunities, compensation and/or work culture. A new hire, however, will place a stronger emphasis on early experiences with an employer. The experiences that the new hire has in the early months of the tenure with an employer creates an image of the organisation that helps the employee decide whether or not to stay with the company. If an organisation is unable to provide a comforting environment to a new hire, it risks losing that employee.

Is India ready for the emerging demands for more high-end services in outsourcing? How is Convergys addressing the changing skill requirements?
While India remains a vital region for the provision of quality customer support across many vertical industries, its unique talent pool has also ensured that India is the top global hub for complex technical support, back office services and other niche, knowledge-base skills.
Convergys has always provided a mix of customer support, technical support and back office services from India, so our skill requirements have always been varied. We keep evolving our recruiting, employee engagement, and retention practices to ensure that we stay on the top of employees’ expectations, support their increasing levels of maturity, help them gain more knowledge and enhance their skills for overall development and growth.

What are the emerging trends in the BPO industry? How will they impact HR practices?
With its unique and increasing talent pool, India has become the global hub for complex technical support, back office services and other niche knowledge-base skills. After the emergence of customer care outsourcing, we are seeing an increase in the outsourcing of specific knowledge-based functions in the healthcare, legal, medical, hospitality, travel and insurance sectors. The role of HR teams has become more and more critical and challenging to ensure that companies meet diversity requirements, meet the expectations of their Gen X and Y employees, and engage the behaviours that drive success efficiently and effectively. As a result, innovation in HR is at peak with more focus on learning and development opportunities for overall growth.