The City that never Sleeps

While many young call center employees are leaving their jobs, another kind is moving in, says a study.

IT looks like Bangalore is transforming into a fullfledged 24/7 City, thanks to the rising number of BPOs in the City. A finding by a project team of the Industrial Engineering and Management of the Rashtreeya Vidayalaya College of Engineering (RVCE) predicts that nearly half a million Indians are employed in the sector with around 80,000 in Bangalore alone and this number is expected to double in thenext ten years.

The team "Imacrea" which consisted of Dennis Ostern, Saurab Manglani, Muthu K L and Sharath Kowligi, guided by Prof K V S Rajeswara Rao and Prof K S Badarinarayana hint that despite the relative high pay, many call centre agents and BPO employees are leaving their jobs.

"Retired and mid-career individuals are going to be an asset, because they will bring with them talent and insight, not only this, these individuals are likely to stick with the company for a long time because of their commitments," says Asfaq Tapia of CLI3L.

More conversations with other BPO trainers and employers suggest that 40 percent of the employees recruited by the Call Centers in the next five years or so will be 30 to 35-year-olds. They will also consist of housewives, retired individuals, and people with physical disabilities. This means that while many young call center employees are leaving their jobs, another kind is moving in.

Youngsters joined call centers to make a fast rupee, now they are finding other means of keeping that rupee coming in while focusing on getting creative. On the other hand, the BPO's nowadays are also looking at employee retention, says the study. The trend nowadays is not only of youngsters looking for other options, but also of individuals in mid-careers looking for stability in Call Center employment.

Puja Goyal