|
|
|
Infosys BPO, the
Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) arm of one of India's leading information
technology companies Infosys Technologies Ltd., was established in April 2002.
It was originally established as Progeon but in August 2006, it was rebranded as
Infosys BPO so that there would be a single integrated brand for consulting,
technology, and BPO.1
|
The company focused on integrated end-to-end
outsourcing in specialized and niche segments that included Banking,
Customer Service, Finance and Accounts, Healthcare, HR and Knowledge
Services, Insurance, Procurement, Securities and Brokerage, and Telecom.
In addition to India, the company had operations in the Czech Republic,
China, and the Philippines.
Though the BPO boom in India had led to many jobs in the country,
analysts felt that the industry itself did not have a very good image in
the eyes of prospective employees or the general public. This posed a
challenge to the human resource (HR) managers in the BPO companies when
it came to attracting quality talent.
Nandita Gurjar (Gurjar), Vice President and Head of HRD, Infosys BPO,
said, "Business Process Outsourcing is a people business. The Human
Resource function, therefore undoubtedly, becomes the backbone of a
company whose competitive advantage is the quality of its people. In an
organization that is witnessing rapid growth, the HR challenge is even
more pronounced.
We have to work hard to ensure that we have all that it takes to manage
scale. This translates into moving beyond the immediate and focusing on
long-term strategies of talent sourcing and enhancing talent supply."2
In 2004, the company started the 'Campus Ambassador Program' (CAP) in
India to bridge the divide between the student career aspirations and
industry expectations from the newcomers. Analysts viewed this as an
initiative by Infosys BPO to build a strategic link between the industry
and academia.
As part of the program, students selected as the Campus Ambassador from
select campuses around the country underwent a week-long training at the
Infosys Leadership Institute3 and the company's facility in Bangalore.
During the training program, the trainees experienced the BPO
environment, understood the scope of the industry, and also spoke to
clients.
They also received training in communication skills, team building
skills, leadership and influencing skills, assertive skills, etc., and
ways to dispel the myth that a BPO was just a call center that worked in
the night.
Many trainees noted that their perception about the BPO industry had
changed dramatically following their association with the company.
|
1] Leslie D' Monte, "Companies See Sense in Rebranding," http://in.rediff.com, September 28, 2006.
2] "Evolution of HR at Infosys BPO," www.growtalent.com, April 2, 2007.
3] The Infosys Leadership Institute (ILI), located in Mysore, India, was set up in 2001 to conduct various management development and personal improvement programs at Infosys. |
