‘Specialization’ is the term of the day. And with specialization comes ‘perfection’ which is what certain jobs demand.

There used to be a time when an employee in a BPO joined a company with the sole aim of growing up the ladder as early as possible, so that he could get off the "Calling job", which he termed as monotonous and repetitive with no excitement. But as the industry matured, the options to grow vertically to a management position reduced and the responsibilities that came along with these management positions increased. Increased responsibilities meant additional burden, more stress and so on. Suddenly the odd new employee in a BPO realized that what he wanted is money and not position that demanded extra work, more burden and a life full of stress. He chose to be at the same position and did not want to opt for growth. But staying at the same position did not get him that extra money that was looking for and he started jumping jobs for an extra Rs. 1500. In doing what he lost was his continuity and his specialization.

With the industry, maturing companies too, have now realized that there would only be able to provide the best services if they are able to retain people and utilize their specialization. Employees who were in a certain role for some time knew the policies and processes in and out and were much better equipped to handle customers, thus generating better customer satisfaction. This is when they decided that they would empower their frontlines and give them additional benefits for staying in the current role. They also decided that they would not stop the growth of this employee in this process, rather would treat them as special – special employees of the organization.

This solved the needs of that employee wanting to stay in the current role and the organization who wanted to retain a specialized and exprienced employee.

With services like customer care, technical support, back end processing etc. requiring specialized hands, companies are now come up with this idea of rewarding employees who are in the core role in a BPO and wants to be in the same role, but at the same time are looking for better and increased salaries and a change in grades. These companies are paying such employees much more than what a management level employee at the same grade would get and in addition to this are giving them extra benefits.

So now, you have more reason to join a BPO. Grow with your favorite company and earn more while doing what you have always wanted to do.

Most of the BPO employees, I have come across have very little knowledge about the industry in which they are working. Yet there are many who assume that they know everything and that they are the best analysts when it comes to predicting growth.

One of my friends younger brother was very upset because he couldn’t find a job. He was a graduate in commerce and had been hunting for a job for quite some time. He was working in a BPO and had quit the job some time back. As we sat over a cup of coffee, he started discussing about the difficulty in finding a job. I stopped him when I heard him say, "There are no jobs in the market because of the fall in dollar value".

I asked, "what does that mean"? He looked at me and said,"The profit margins have decreased so there are less jobs in the market". I asked him, "If that is so, why did you quit your job"? The reply surprised me. He said, "Brother, the BPO industry is the worst hit because of this recession. I knew that this industry is about to die. So I thought I would look for something in my field of education".

There are many more such youngsters who speak like this guy. There are many others who take such drastic steps like this guy. But is it the right step? We need to understand that is there is recession and is there is a fall in dollar value, it is equally applicable for other industries. These terms sound good to your ears but carry much more that what you hear. The economy of every country go though such turbulent periods but the governments take such steps as are necessary to control it and in some time the economy manages to tide over it. Such a turbulent period doesn’t mean that we throw away everything and start looking for greener pastures. You will find no green grass and would be late to realize that you have thrown away the little that you had.

The BPO industry is not a writing on a slate with a chalk, that it will be erased by a wipe of your hand. The reports prove that its is here to stay. Just wait for the right opportunities to knock your door and when it does, grab it with both your hands.

The BPO industry is here to stay. In a series that I would start now, I would publish news from leading english dailies that proves this fact and would also give you a fair idea of the magnitude of growth that his industry is expected to grow at.

A reader of my blog said once that I state with such authority that the BPO industry is indeed here to stay but what proof do I have to establish the fact. This series of articles is a response to this question.

An excerpt from the Times of India dated 1st May 2008, Delhi Edition:

NEW DELHI: The Indian software and BPO segment will grow at a rate of more than 16 per cent to become a 132 billion-dollar industry by 2012, global infotech analyst International Data Corporation said on Wednesday.

"The India domestic IT and ITeS market is expected to cross the Rs 2,00,000-crore (50 billion dollar) mark in 2012. This translates into a CAGR of 18.4 per cent in the five-year period. It was Rs 90,014 crore in 2007," IDC said.

Together with IT and ITeS, and exports revenue of Rs 3,20,278 crore, the total IT and ITeS industry would grow to Rs 5,29,976 crore (132 billion dollar) by 2012, representing a growth of 16.5 per cent, said IDC.

Exports continue to be the biggest segment at Rs 97,492 crore. In 2008, IDC expects the IT and ITeS industry to grow at 20 per cent, with the domestic market growing at 22.4 per cent.

The overall industry is projected to be of the size of Rs 5,29,976 crore, or 132 billion dollar, by 2012-end, with the share of domestic IT and ITeS revenues being 40 per cent of the total compared to the current 37 per cent.

The IT and ITeS exports market is likely to more than double to Rs 3,20,278 crore in 2012, IDC claimed.

In 2008, IT and ITeS exports segment is expected to clock a growth of 20.4 per cent to touch Rs 1,86,142 crore. "The domestic IT and ITeS industry CAGR of 18.4 per cent (during 2008-12) is expected on the back of a robust growth of the past five years (2003-2007), IDC India Country Manager Kapil Dev Singh said.

The Indian IT and ITeS industry grew to Rs 2,46,609 crore in 2007 from Rs 2,01,413 crore in 2006, representing a growth of 22.4 percent.

If this is not enough proof we would read many more such articles in the days to come which would stamp the authority of the BPO industry.