Part - I

No denial from here that BPO involving call centers, back office processing, etc., has made a major impact in urban India. Cities like Mumbai, Kolkatta, Bangalore, Delhi, Pune and many others are zooming with the BPO buzz 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Employing millions of Indians and the curve is still on an up trend.

No, I am not heading towards the anti-BPO outcry in US and the implications of those in India. My concern is a bit educational.

Since we have a big business, an entity of the service industry here contributing to the country's GDP, thanks to the huge pool of English speaking graduates who generate revenues by servicing clients in the US, UK and other countries. We also need to look at the other side of the coin where the issues related to this industry needs to be addressed. Young guns easily making 10K+ as salary but have no clue whether they are spending the money rightfully. Are they shaping a career for themselves or simply getting exploited by the inexperienced management team in many BPO organizations? Many managers are simply unable to earn the respect of the title, which they have got not because they deserve it, but simply due to a crazy number pressure game played by the Human Resources team of many BPOs. Today, if the people are not managed with strategy, time is not far where India might lose the competitive edge to another nations. How do we manage and groom this industry and take it to the next level?

Management graduates and aspiring MBAs, you need to look at this question very carefully, as there is an opportunity with a huge responsibility. B-school deans and curriculum developers for all management courses, don't you think its time that our courses should be designed to meet this industry's requirement?

There is a desperate need for good managers to stabilize the middle management in these organizations where they can give a direction to the youth jumping onto the BPO bandwagon, not only to achieve targets of the organization, but also to bring in values and ethical practices. The case study approach is an excellent tool, which if modified keeping the BPO firms in mind, can develop managers of caliber for the future. An excellent pay package involving flexible work hours is a definite attraction.

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* Contributed by -
Sandeep Jain,
Pursuing 3-Years Masters in Mktg Mgmt from JBIMS, Mumbai (2004-07),
Working as Sr. Executive Trainer at Wipro Spectramind.