The phenomenal growth of call centres could not have come at an more opportune time.
When the manufacturing industry is in recession, and fresh graduates are finding it very
difficult to land up with a job, Call centres have definitely revived the job market. Call
centres can be classified in a number of categories.
- Inbound / Outbound
- Captive / Outsourced bureau
- Voice / Web / Blended
- Domestic / International
We are today going to discuss the fourth and important category – Domestic and
International Call centres.
Before we understand the difference between a domestic and an International Call centre,
let us understand the need for a call centre.
Personal Feel with the customer
Call centres are supposed to give a personal feel to all the customers. Customers may have a lot of queries and even may not visit the bank / telecom company, but when they call up the Call centre
of a respective organization, the customers should feel that the organization knows you.
Providing Communication link for the customers
When Tata Engineering launched its new sedan – Tata Indigo,
the organization also flashed its toll free number in all the advertisements.
This call centre has to provide proper information to the potential customers in
terms of the Features – Benefit analysis of the car. It is to be understood here
that the call centre provides the most interactive medium of communication in
informing the customer about the features of the new releases.
Hence key areas in which call centres operate are the areas in which there is a big customer base namely Insurance, Banks, Credit cards, Telecom.
Domestic Vs. International Call Centres
Domestic Call Centres
In India, when telecom organizations started rendering service on the phone, the main experience
most customers had was of hearing the now famous line – “You are in Queue, Please wait”.
With liberalization and globalization organizations in India had to face more competition and
are now adopting global standards for Customer service. Another reason for a number of increase
in domestic all centres is the fact that liberalization took place in the key call centre areas of
Credit card, Telecom, Insurance etc. adding a lot of new players in the market. So here we are
today with a large number of organizations adopting global service standards through the medium of call centres.
International Call Centres
Due to cost cutting pressures in the US, A lot of American organizations are outsourcing Call centre activity to third
world countries namely India. In this case when an American customer call up the call centre the call actually gets
diverted to India, where an Indian call centre executive takes the call and speaks in an Accent similar to the American accent.
The teleecommunication link is in the form of an IPLC ( International Private Leased circuit).
Let us now compare the domestic and International call centres on some key parameters.
Salaries
Domestic call centres have a starting salary between Rs. 4000/- to Rs. 6000/- p.m. for a call centre executive. Where as International Call centres will have a starting salary between Rs. 6000- 8000/- p.m. Few international call centres give a starting salary around Rs. 10,000 p.m. also but not in Pune as of now.
Selection criteria
Selection to a domestic all centre is by no means easier. Candidates should also have a strong desire and ability for selling on the telephone. In an international call centre, the candidate should have exposure to American Culture. So if you have bunked college to watch the latest American Movies, you stand a good chance of joining an International Call centre. Neutral accent is also highly desirable.
Graduation a must??
Most International call centres will consider only graduates, where as most domestic call centers consider under graduates also.
Shifts
Shifts is a part and parcel of a call centre job, more so if you want to work in an International call centre. In a domestic call centre, the shifts will be mostly in the day time, but if you work in an International call centre, you can forget seeing the sun, the way a man working on the ship forgets seeing the land for a long time. ( As a customer service executive working in an international call centre, you will work in the night and sleep during the day)
Organization Structure
Both Domestic and International Call centres provide a good professional environment for candidates. An International Call centre provides a number of other job profiles namely – Trianers, Process Analysts, Quality supervisors, Dieticians etc.
The author, Mr. Sandeep Tapaswi CEO, Fands Infonet Pvt. Ltd. and can be reached at response@fandsindia.com