Aegis’s Srinagar BPO has entered into a deal with Vodafone Essar to take care of its customer call traffic from Uttar Pradesh east. The Essar Group-run firm is now hunting for partners so that the unit in the troubled Jammu & Kashmir capital can begin operations.

The facility is offering hundreds of Kashmiris working in Delhi and NCR a chance to return home. The team that will manage the BPO also consists of those who had worked outside the Valley. Omar Wani, the Aegis Srinagar centre head, left Barclays to become the team leader. Parvez Sarfaraz resigned Wipro to head its HR.

Similarly, Aegis identified around half a dozen middle rung officials across India and posted them in Srinagar. “There could be a change in package but being at home is worth millions,” said an official.

“We have a vested interest in making it a success,” said Syed Andleeb, who has worked in HCL previously. “Over 10% of the workforce in BPO sector in Delhi and NCR is from Kashmir and they all are seeking an opening to be back with expertise.”

Adds Hilal Ahmad: “We have acquired the basics that you require in BPOs and now it is our turn to train the vast section of youth who do not wish to work outside.”

With around six million users serviced by seven cell phone operators, J&K has a huge call centre market available locally, but it’s one that is under-exploited. Market leader Bharti Airtel has tied up with its franchise, Access Communications, which runs a 150-seat call centre.

Dishnet Wireless has a tie-up with Oceanic, a 30-seat BPO in Jammu. Vodafone diverts its traffic to Chandigarh BPO Intelnet. The remaining operators are piggybacking on the BPOs to which they have assigned the mainland jobs. “We have taken up the issue at the corporate level with some of the operators, telling them that diverting local traffic outside may not be an economical option when they can do it locally,” said an Aegis executive.

“We will be getting an evening slot for around four hours initially to test the systems for few week,” said Mr Wani, the Aegis Srinagar centre head. “Right now, we are talking to at least two other companies for managing their customer call traffic.”

“We have the cutting edge technology in place and we can manage all types of jobs,” said Zahool A Malik, the Essar Group state head. “But for a start, we are looking at the telecom sector and bank outsourcing jobs.” The company has already spent over one-fourth of the Rs 100 crore it committed for its J&K operations.

Aegis head-hunters termed the selection process amazing. “We issued no advertisement and word-of-mouth by itself fetched us CVs of 1300 young men and women, all computer-literate, graduates,” said Tufail Hussain of Aegis.

Source:http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/infotech/ites/Aegis-Srinagar-BPO-to-kick-off-with-Vodafone-deal/articleshow/5861951.cms