BPO FAQ's

Q. What is BPO?

Ans: Business Process Outsourcing is the strategic use of outside resources to perform activities traditionally handled by internal staff and resources, none of which are core to the functioning of the company. It is a strategy by which an organization contracts routine functions to service providers who specialize in such functions. Thus the service provider is not only responsible for the execution of a business process but also for improving it

.Q. What is Call Center?

Ans. A Call Center serves external customers who need to make purchases, obtained information or assistance on product use, status request, and billing issues. The Call Center was born as a sales function, a major distinction between a Call Center and a Help Desk. Unlike the Help Desk, the Call Center has always had a 'business-focus, playing an integral role in customer satisfaction, retention and loyalty, as well as profitability for the organization

.Q. What is a Help Desk?

Ans. Help Desks started in the mid 1980's as 'back office' operations, with the introduction of desktop computing for inexperienced employees needing assistance. The Help Desk continues to struggle- transforming itself from a reactive catch and dispatch 'fix-it' environment. The Help Desk began as an afterthought, designed to assist internal customers with issues about the tools they are using day-to-day such as computer programs, file access, Internet connectivity, and email. The purpose of the Help Desk was clear; to resolve technical issues that directly affected job productivity.

Q. What does a call center really do?

Ans. Represent the business to its customers and potential customers
Maintain customer satisfaction
Maximize custom retention
Maximize new customer attraction
Generate revenue for the business
Act as a marketing tool for the business
Gather market data for the business
Fulfill its objectives in a timely and cost efficient manner
Interact successfully with other business units within the organization
Provide measurable statistics related to its objectives.

Q. What is outsourcing?

Ans. Outsourcing is the use of an outside vendor to handle a project that normally draws on internal resources. Using outside resources allows you to concentrate, cost effectively, on your core competencies.

Q. Why India an attractive destination for outsourcing?

Ans. India is well positioned to derive benefits from the ITES market and become a key hub for these services. The country's strengths in the form of low staff costs, a large pool of skilled, English speaking workforce, conducive policy environment and Government support has made India a popular choice for customers seeking outsourced services. India's advantage as the BPO destination can be summarized as follows:Two million graduates each year (Existing Pool: over 25 million)
Bangalore - the silicon valley of India has the highest number of software professionals in the world taking the first place from Osaka, Japan.
English speaking and IT savvy workforce suitable for Call center
Indians view BPO jobs as a good career option.
Availability of qualified personnel across various industries.
Cost reduction up to 50%
Government support for Call center & BPO industry
Improving telecom infrastructure to meet call center requirements
Adherence to leading quality practices by various organizations. Certifications are given importance.
Lower infrastructure costs
Favorable time lag: 12 hours with US & 5 hours with Europe
Overnight turnarounds possible
Resources with experience of financial and legal systems similar to the west
Strong domestic IT services industry to support BPO industry

Q. Is Delhi a good destination to run outsourcing processes in India?

Ans. Delhi is a very good destination due to following factors - low staff, a large pool of English-speaking, Western-thinking people and government support.

Q. Why BPO?

Ans. Availability of highly qualified skill pool and faster adoption of well-defined business processes leads to higher productivity gains without compromising on quality.

Q. Advantages of outsourcing?

Ans. Advantages of outsourcing includes possible reduction in cost, improved efficiency, and the additional of outside expertise that a company may not have, or be able to build, internally. Call center outsourcing services leverage the power of the World Wide Web with leading-edge call center technology to provide unique, transparent communications solutions. Using custom developed call center technology; a call center is able to provide customers with a powerful tool for customer relationship management. By employing a rapid application development tool, it can create multi-lingual customized call center scripts to suit the customer's specific needs with the fastest ramp up times in our industry. Furthermore, a call center can seamlessly integrate its call center solutions into the clients' systems to increase efficiencies and reduce costs.

Q. What are customer expectations?

Ans. Every customer has a number of 'ideal world' expectations when they contact a Call Center - namely:
- They will get through quickly to someone who can help them.
- The person with whom they speak will be able to hepl them.
- The person with whom they speak will be polite and attentive
- If they are promised a call back, they WILL get a call back.In addition, when a customer is contacted by a sales person from an outbound Call Center, it is understood that: - They will be polite.
- They will not attempt to confuse or trick the customer.
- They will answer all questions truthfully and accurately.
- They will 'have time' for the customer.

Q. What are Web Enabled Call Center services?

Ans. Customers filling out an online application or using an electronic shopping cart can often experience difficulties and on the Internet, a customer can walk out the door simply by clicking the mouse. Additionally, a growing number of customers prefer to go online when they want customer service, sometimes just to check a bill or monthly statement, but often with more complex questions. In today's business environment where your competition is just a click away, superior customer service is critical to profitability. Customers expect instant, well-informed responses to their questions - no matter how they contact you. Because a company's web site cannot possibly anticipate and answer all questions, the customer can become frustrated, especially when asked to "call during normal business hours." Web Enabled Call Center services provide the personal interaction-based support needed to ensure that your online customers are satisfied. The result: a positive outcome and/or completed transaction instead of a lost sale or disgruntled customer.