The Hindu Business Line : India still hot favourite for call centre biz: Study

Manufacturing, financial and outsourcing companies are still heading to India, Malaysia, and Singapore, to manage their call centre businesses in Asia, according to a report released by Kelly Services today.

A study titled `The Asian Contact Centre Industry Recruitment Index' for 2006 analyses major trends in both the in-and outbound call centre industry in the region.

India still shows the highest recruitment pace at 15-20 per cent depending on the location, sector, and whether it is captive or third party contact centre, showing a strong pace of recruitment in the country.

India's contact centre business continues to grow despite closely emerging competitors such as the Philippines, Malaysia, and Thailand, the report added.

According to the study, which interviewed contact centres across nine countries in Asia, 44 per cent of recruitment is for new positions in the centres, thus pointing to growth in the industry.

Indian contact centres have the most positive outlook for recruitment, with 88 per cent of those studied foreseeing an increased headcount over the next six months.

Key industries looking to hire are ITES, IT, banking, financial services, automobile, telecom, and insurance companies.

Other countries surveyed in the region require talent in the areas of banking, finance and insurance, IT, telecommunications and media, and travel.