Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Business process outsourcing (BPO) is a subset of outsourcing that involves the contracting of the
operations and responsibilities of a specific business process to a third-party service provider. BPO is
typically categorized into back office outsourcing, which includes internal business functions such
as human resources or finance and accounting, and front office outsourcing, which
includes customer-related services such as contact center services.
BPO that is contracted outside a company's country is called offshore outsourcing. BPO that is
contracted to a company's neighboring (or nearby) country is called near shore outsourcing.
Sub-segments of BPO:
Talent Acquisition
The HR Functions in a BPO starts with recruitment. There are two different kinds of hiring in this
vertical, which includes fresher and laterals. Any talent joining this sector for the first time are
usually treated as a fresher. Laterals are talents who have worked in other companies in similar
roles. It is done for the new positions and the back-fills. Here the volume hiring is done through
walk-in where a large number of talents attend the interview as announced in the newspaper.
Recruitment drives are arranged to hire in large numbers. This is promoted through print media and
recruitment consultants. There are off-location and outstation drives. Business requirement may
weave Every Monday Induction. This implies that a batch of employees would be inducted every
Monday. Background verification and medical check-up is completed before the Induction begins.
Talent Management
The Employee Life cycle management which includes all activities strategizes to optimize the
talents capability as part of the Talent Management. The Entry-to-Exit HR Processes, leadership
development, succession planning, Compensation and benefit would all be clubbed under this area.
HR Process
Recruitment
It is the process of locating, identifying, and attracting capable applicants. The development of a pool
of job candidates in accordance with a human resource plan.
Internal search
Advertisement of a job vacancy
Web based advertising
Preliminary contact with potential job candidates
Initial screening to create a pool of qualified applicants
Methods
Selection
The process of assessing candidates and appointing a post holder to ensure that the most
appropriate candidates are hired.
Selection Criteria
Orientation
Introduction of a new employee to his/her job and the organization. It is designed to provide new
employees with the information needed to function comfortably and effectively in the organization.
Training
A process designed to maintain or improve current job performance. Most training is directed at
upgrading and improving an employees abilities or skills.
Most training takes place on the job because this approach is simple and inexpensive
Some skill training is too complex to learn on the job, in such cases it should take place
outside the work setting.
Professionalism
Corporate Etiquette
Assertive Communication at work
Business writing skills
Telephone Management skills
Personal Effectiveness
Self-Management-Basic skills
Personal Health
Achievement Motivation
Task execution excellence
Team working
Corporate Etiquette: It includes learning about corporate dress sense, Core corporate attitude,
accountability, reactiveness, Expectation and perception management and inculcating discipline.
Assertive communication at work: It includes learning communication at the workplace, benefits of
assertiveness, verbal and nonverbal indicators and applications.
Business writing skills: It includes basic e-mail etiquette, appropriate use of active and passive
voice, about the email dominated business world, sentence combining and paragraphs and being
consistent in writing. Telephone etiquette: It includes basic telephone etiquette, answering incoming
calls, effective listening and speaking skills.
Personal Effectiveness: It includes learning about various leadership styles, health & stress,
emotions, people and dimensions of personal effectiveness.
Business writing skills: It includes learning to write a standard business letter, to give a professional
tone to the letter, use of phrases, use of correct words and language. Customer Orientation: It
includes learning about customer expectations and experience. The critical deliverables are
responsiveness, Turnaround time and acknowledgement. The keys to achieving critical deliverables
are: v First impression v Empathy v Apology v Probe v Personalization
Performance Appraisal
A process of systematically evaluating performance and providing feedback upon which
performance adjustments can be made.
Performance appraisal should be based on job analysis, job description and job specifications.
Employee benefits are optional, non-wage compensation provided to employees in addition to their
normal wages or salaries. These types of benefits may include group insurance (health, dental,
vision, life etc.), disability income protection, retirement benefits, day-care, tuition reimbursement,
sick leave, vacation (paid and non-paid), funding of education, as well as flexible and alternative
work arrangements.
This is similar to the processes that are being run at any sector. The difference might lie in the way
incentives are drawn. Most of the BPO have different structures for monthly and quarterly payments
compared to other knowledge sectors where reimbursement would be higher and the incentives are
rolled at the end of the year with bonus and hikes. The MIS system is required to be robust as the
data provided would be upgraded at a very short interval.
Managing attrition:
The attrition remains the greatest concern. The employee turnover ratio remains highest in this
sector. The employee life-cycle runs shorter as the talent either fails to see a career path within the
company or fails to adjust with the organization culture. Often the job opportunities are marketed
so well that a new job is preferred over an existing job.
Employee Relations - HR
Employee relations may be defined as those policies and practices which are concerned with the
management and regulation of relationships between the organization, the individual staff member,
and groups of staff within the working environment.
Functions:
Other HR Initiatives:
Mostly the HR Initiatives are centered on increasing employability and employee engagement. The
events are planned, they are tactic and strategic. A monthly event is planned with fun activities.
These initiatives are on the transactional level. Whereas preparing the employee for career
progression through cross vertical roles and horizontal shifts are on the transformation level. This
increases the employability and builds a longer career path within the company. Few initiatives
remain perpetual such as building trust through open communication including intranet,
monthly magazines, focus group meetings, brown-bags and town halls. The employees are
encouraged to use open-door policy to get their questions answered. It further offers
them visibility to the top management in the firm.
The difference between the HR in a BPO and in any other sector will remain in its alignment towards
the robust talent base and dynamic business models. Managing ramp-up and ramp-down at a
shorter notice with minimum deviations to the balance within the company, makes HR unique.