People working in BPOs have recently started to discuss another fear factor. It is the Barack Obama effect. What would happen now?

The Barack Obama effect is another syndrome that is very fast catching the BPO population. You might find people in groups, standing at a canteen or, in the cafeteria discussing what would happen to the BPOs, now that Obama has been elected the President of the US. His policies were clearly against outsourcing and that would mean loss of jobs in the BPOs again. As such companies were now handing over the pink-slip toits employees and there were huge retrenchment happening.

The problem with most of the people working in BPOs is the fact that they tend to speak on subjects that they don’t really research about and know much about. Gradually these casual talks take the form of a rumour and tend to hurt everybody from the employees to the employer. Having said that, I would certainly want to discuss on the subject in question so that at least a few of us understand what the actual story is.

It is true that Obama has said something about outsourcing. What precisely is it that he has said? In one of his speeches he happened to say that "he would bring back jobs to America – jobs that are being offshored to countries like India, by withdrawing subsidies that companies outsourcing such jobs normally receives". It is indeed true that he wants to cut down on the jobs that are bing outsourced. But is it possible for one president to decide one fine morning that he would stop ‘Globalization’. Of course, not. Globalization is a phenomenon on which many a country, even the ones like that of America thrives and survives. Cost effectiveness, economies of scale and quite a few things are all what globalization has leveraged. So withdrawing a subsidy to a company that outsources business is a very small part of the benefit that such a company derives from outsourcing. In addition to these subsidies, there are multiple other advantages that these companies get by outsourcing their businesses. Will they be willing to sacrifice all of that? They have to be given quite a bit of compensation in order to do that. Is it possible for Barack Obama to do that? The answer would be a big "NO".

Finance minister Chidambaram was the best to sum it up. Chidambaram, who said he was speaking as an individual and not for the Indian government, maintained that the Indian software and information technology-enabled services industry should not be worried over Obama’s policies.’A comment here or a comment there on outsourcing should not bother us,’ he said when asked to comment on the promises by Obama during his campaign to look into the issue of Americans purportedly losing jobs to countries like India.’Once he is in office, he will realise that this is an inter-connected world and countries have to work together.’

So, just chill guys. There is no threat to the outsourcing industry. There could be a slight decrease in the growth, but the outsourcing industry is here to stay.

What is a written test? Ask this question and there would be a hundred different response to it. More often than not, a written test at any interview is one or, the other form of a Psychometric test.

Now what is a Psychometric test?
The term ‘psychometric’ comes from two Greek words and, literally translated, means ‘measurement of the mind’. The term ‘measurement’, as used here, does not mean that mental abilities or, qualities can be measured in the same way as physical quantities. Instead it infers that psychometrics involves a ‘scientific’ approach to the assessment of these abilities and qualities.

Psychometric tests cover areas ranging from intelligence, aptitude, values, emotions, motivation, personality, etc.
They have been created for three main reasons:

• It is easier to get information from candidates through tests rather than through interviews/ counselling.
• The information from these tests is more scientifically consistent than the information from an interview/ counselling session.
• It is harder to get away with lying on a test than in an interview/ counselling session.

There are a lot of people who refute the claims made by these psychometric tests, but the fact still remains that these tests have helped and are still helping recruiters in understanding the above discussed basic qualities of the candidates.

Things to keep in mind -

• Psychometric tests generally have no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ answers.
• Your answer to any question should be the first response that comes to your mind.
• Be honest with your answers and give answers that you feel describes you the best.

Tips to do well in Psychometric tests:

Though the tips mentioned below seem to be understood, they can prove worthy while appearing for a Psychometric test.

• Ensure that you don’t go for the test on an empty stomach. Research shows that skipping meals reduces intellectual performance.
• Stay calm; anxiety can affect your performance adversely.
• Psychometric tests normally need no prior preparation. In case you have an idea of the type of test to expect, for example, numerical ability, then you might practice a few sums before you appear for the actual test.
• Try to maintain both speed and accuracy, especially for timed tests.
• You will almost certainly be taken through a practice or instruction stage before the test begins. This will give you the chance to try one or two practice items, before the actual test.
• Listen carefully to the instructions given by the test administrator.
• Get the most out of the examples or practice session. Do not hesitate to ask questions.
• If you need a little more time for practice, ask for it.

Be as natural as possible and answer truly. Psychometric tests (especially the personality tests) have an in-built mechanism of detecting false responses. This is done by means of differently worded statements, which measure candidates on the same feature. So a false response from you would mean the end of the interview for you.
Psychometric tests are a useful aide in interviews. So do not look at it as an obstacle, rather treat it as a positive towards understanding your personality.