We should not have any problem when Indian outsourcing biggies like Wipro and
Satyam set up operations in far-off countries like Egypt. In fact we should be
happy-because the National Outsourcing Association of UK recently judged this
ancient country the “Outsourcing Destination of the Year” for 2008. New
countries give a new perspective, open up new business opportunities, and it is
great in terms of re-risking also.
What however needs urgent discussion and action is why Wipro and Satyam can't
expand to more locations within India? The current global recession is forcing
many countries and their political leadership to look within and develop
domestic markets. Therefore it is important that India Inc also puts pressure
for the same. We need these big employment generation organizations to tell the
government of the day that unless power supply is enhanced, unless roads are
built, more colleges opened up, and good quality connectivity is available in
smaller cities and towns, they will be forced to look at other countries for
business expansion.
So what is so great and different about Egypt that India does not have? Egypt
has a young population much smaller than India but it is a multi-lingual
workforce. Egypt has a good and improving infrastructure, competitive cost
structure, and, most importantly, an unequivocal government support.
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| Ibrahim ahmad |
Cairo will have other geography and language advantages over Mumbai and
Gurgaon, which, incidentally, are also becoming very expensive. But if Indian
BPO biggies can have a center in Dehradun or Kochi, the cost of operation
advantage will be phenomenal. Unfortunately our governments as well as our
businesses have not been able to think beyond the top 10 cities of India.
At a time when the impact of the global meltdown on India is looming large,
and elections are around the corner, the government of the day will surely be
more open to make some promises in this regard. Obviously action will now take
place only when the general elections are over and a new government is in place.
It is also worth adding here that out of the sixteen awards given by NOA in
various categories no company from India, the self-proclaimed outsourcing
capital of the world, has got any award. Except for Infosys, which has been
given a special award for consistent excellence across all disciplines. This is
not a good sign for a country that has great aspirations. There is clearly a lot
of belt-tightening and re-invention required.
On a different and a more positive note, one is really happy to see an Arab
nation coming up in a list like this. One hopes that we will have a few more
countries in that region that will be inspired to build themselves on these
lines.
(ibrahima@cybermedia.co.in)