Outsourcing-The Mantra of a new Kerala

chillibreeze writer — Nayanathara

Bangalore calling

Since decades, for an average south Indian, the word ‘south’ has been synonymous with Karnataka and Tamilnadu, especially the cities of Bangalore and Chennai. And Bangalore, for it's striking associations with Keralites/Malayalees. For the uninitiated, let me tell you at the outset that Keralites have always regarded Bangalore as one of those sought-after paradises on this planet. A fine confluence of two very distinct yet similar cultures. Thanks to India's Silicon Valley that has always hosted and nourished the aspirations of the vast populace of software professionals from Kerala.

Bangalore - seething, swarming, spontaneous and overflowing with life. A busy metro, in tune with the changing times. India's leading IT hub. A stark contrast to Kerala, where life is slow, passive and lagging. Perhaps, it's the need to shed this laid-back attitude coupled with a staunch determination to make it big in a South-Indian metro that has landed droves of Keralites in Bangalore. The city has undergone a fascinating morphosis through the years. Bangalore is not what it had been about ten years ago. A behemoth change has overtaken the ‘garden city’, be it in the infrastructure, the culture or its people. The city, with its sprawling malls, huge multiplexes, baristas, pubs and resto-bars, is testimony to the changing face of globalization in India. Besides, Bangalore is also home to a major cross-section of IT professionals in the country. Globalization and outsourcing being the key words these days, the metropolis has much to offer to the country’s booming Information Technology sector. So, Knock! Knock! It’s Bangalore calling!

India’s Outsourcing business at a glance

The country is going places, with the city of Bangalore emerging as the hotspot in India’s outsourcing business. India, which offers comparatively cheap labor and an excellent talent pool, has always been the focus of attention for offshore outsourcing companies. According to an analysis by the National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM), the country's software services and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) services business is booming. India’s software and services export is expected to grow by about 32% in the current year to March 31, 2005, to touch revenue of over $16.3 billion. Of the total software and services exports in the year, revenue from IT services, products and technology services grew by 25% with revenue of $8.9 billion, while the BPO business grew by 46% to reach a revenue of $3.6 billion. BPO subsidiaries of multinational companies accounted for 65% of BPO revenue.

In a country where unemployment has always been a major bottleneck, outsourcing guarantees immense job opportunities to the youth based on their competence and skills. Offshore outsourcing is indeed a boon for the thousands of fresh B.E. (Bachelors in Engineering) and M.C.A. graduates who wish to make a mark in the I.T. field. By 2008, the Indian outsourcing market will reach $77 billion, with 2 million employees, up from 770,000 currently, predicts McKinsey & Co.

Why India?

IT Outsourcing to India is very advantageous mainly owing to its cost effectiveness, premium quality, best resource utilization and optimum time management. According to an analysis of outsourcing locations, the Gartner Group ranks India ahead of China in language skills, labor pool, costs, educational system, government support, cultural compatibility, good broadband connectivity and data/IP security.

Outsourcing content development to India

Among the different aspects of outsourcing web-related services, content development outsourcing/e-learning outsourcing has already gained strong foothold in the country’s IT sector. India, China and other Asian countries have become the favorite breeding grounds of offshore outsourcing companies. Quality content development at effective costs is the major advantage of outsourcing e-learning to India. The content is the backbone of any good website. In addition to a good layout, a website should always have an excellent content to support it. Content development is sort of an exercise that calls for great deal of creativity and hard work on the part of the content/creative writer. The website, with its quality content, should be able to ensure more visitors, in addition to satisfying the various requirements of the corporate clients/companies. And what makes India the preferred destination for e-learning/content development outsourcing?

When it comes to e-learning outsourcing, India certainly has an edge over other countries. Apart from ensuring competent and skilled labor, India offers a little something different – a people who have accepted the English language as part of their day-to-day lives. India has the largest pool of computer literate, English speaking professionals, which makes it a favorable destination of offshore outsourcing companies.

English has never been an alien language to the Indian literary landscape. Call it the byproduct of colonialism or British imperialism in India; the English language has always been the single most significant factor uniting people within the country and abroad. With the advent of globalization, American English too made its way to India, thus becoming a part of the new Indian way of life. The English language has cut across cultural and linguistic barriers, paving the way for new developments in India’s corporate and IT sector. So, that’s indeed the key to outsourcing content development to India.

Outsourcing - Kerala on the move

Being a Keralite myself, I was wondering about the incredible, though gradual, developments that are taking place in Kerala’s IT scenario. Outsourcing is a phenomenon that has been gaining rapid momentum over the past couple of years, before that the word was strictly unheard of, at least in this part of India. From roadside Internet cafes and small multimedia companies to Info Parks, Kerala has come a long way in the IT sector with in a relatively short span of time. While the city of Bangalore, with its essentially futuristic attitude, has become the flourishing ground for BPO and IT-enabled services (ITES), the outsourcing trend seems to be catching on in the small state of Kerala too. And it well seems that the outsourcing business is here to stay.

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—About our writer:

Nayanathara says,

Just wondering as to what I should say about myself. In life, I’m passionate about three things – poetry, painting, and music. Besides my mom (she has always been my best friend), I love to spend time with some of my close friends I have known from my kindergarten days. Sometimes I feel that with out creativity, this world would have been a hell of a bore. So my motto is while you are in this world, do at least something everyday which makes you feel creative and alive.