• Investment World
• eWorld
• Catalyst
• Mentor
• Life
• Canvas
• Praxis
• Urban Pulse
• Brand Quest

STORY so far: With news every other day of one big company or the other switching over to India for BPO operations, I delve deep into the subject. I realise the advantage of being an Indian, when it comes to being the BPO destination. Infrastructure would soon be up for my company's new venture in the outsourcing field, and we get into headhunting.

Episode 38

If you are desperately searching for a safety pin, there is every chance that you may find so many of them in different unexplored nooks and corners of drawers and shelves.

Similarly, if, while driving, you wanted to spot Indicas, there is all the likelihood that those very cars would go past you. I am sure psychologists should be having a name for this, but of late, the news that catches my eyes is all about BPO, as if suddenly all these things are happening only now — such as IBM Global setting up a Bangalore call centre with 70,000 sq feet to accommodate 1,000 employees, and Computer Associates moving its support centre from New York to Chennai. Also, that GE India launched its ITES facility in Hyderabad — in a 14-acre campus — providing services ranging from data entry to transactions processing to high-end financial and software services. The more I read the more I am convinced that for those who want to work, there is enough work waiting. That is, if they are not going to be too choosy about the work.

********

I could see vividly my colleague standing at what looked like a lab table with an arm outstretched as if waiting for the nurse to poke a syringe and draw blood. But, shockingly, there were two other chaps from the office who were hammering hard into the arm, and ultimately extracting a foot-long metal screw. I winced.

But, before I could recover from the shock, there were scores of armoured vehicles and tanks racing down mud tracks and roads to a common destination, and that seemed to be the border. "Is war imminent?" I wonder, even as I prepare to roll over from left to right and continue my dream. "Enough," I tell myself, because otherwise, there would be no end to this passive `video-watching' and I would be left with a load of lethargy as a result of excessive sleep.

There used to be a time, during student days, when I used to dream of section numbers and case laws, or of journal entries for problems that I could not solve when awake. But, they don't give marks in exams for doing things right in dreams, do they?

*********

There is a two-day fair at the City Trade Centre for biotechnology companies and though it is a routine event, I understand that many business opportunities get created there. Also, during the public visiting hours, there is the opportunity to interact with people who have varied doubts about our products.

"Swati," boss had called me that morning, "Would you like joining the team in the stall?" "What am I to do?" I asked, wondering if they needed a CA to keep track of billing for counter sales. "Answer queries," he said, "and enjoy time-off from regular work." I knew he had successfully sold the idea, but I was sure the experience of rubbing shoulders with other companies in the same field would give me the breadth of knowledge.

Most companies simply send their marketing staff for such events, but I realised that such an attitude was too myopic. Because a trade fair is much more than selling. The right people to be at the stall are those in control, the decision makers and top executives, rather than a few college students hired for the few days and donned with a coat and tie.

*********

"How do you test your drug?" was a query from a visitor, and I observed how a staff form the R&D explained patiently the whole procedure. It was only in the end did we know that the visitor was none other than Mark B. McClellan, MD, PhD, Commissioner of Food and Drugs, the top official of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), appointed by the president of the US. FDA's mission is to promote and protect the public health by helping safe and effective products reach the market in a timely way, and monitoring products for continued safety after they are in use.

He smiled mischievously at us, as if to mean, "Hey, you see, I could move about without attracting too much attention", but said, "I am impressed with your procedure. You are doing more than what we demand of the US companies." Then the next visitor, from a neighbouring stall, and his mission was simple: Quiet espionage!

*********

Over the next few hours, I was meeting people who were interested in knowing about the company's software strengths, as also those who were looking for BPO services. As you would have expected, these were things I could talk confidently about, when I was not busy with securing the posters or collecting the visiting cards from the boxes to see who were passing by. "I am from Amgen," a visitor said. That is a top biopharma company, I remembered from what little I had gathered about the industry so far. "We want Indian companies to collaborate with us in research," he said.

There was another from Genentech, and also from Serono, Biogen, Immunex, Genzyme General, Chiron, MedImmune, Celltech and Gilead Sciences. All of them are international biggies, and why are they here in a small town, I asked myself.

"Swati," my boss said, coming into the stall after chatting with one of the visitors. I had not realised that he had come quite some time ago to the fair venue and was going about the alleys meeting people. "This is like a departmental store where everybody likes to come for shopping. And we have to be ready with our wares," he explained.

(To be continued)

Swati_CA@hotmail.com

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication

Stories in this Section
ABC of colas, greens and junk food

Copyright © 2003, The Hindu Business Line. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu Business Line