The Hindu Business Line : Call centres come calling for candidates in Kerala

AT least 2,000 job openings are available for the asking in Kerala this year for those planning a career in business process outsourcing and call centre firms.

A large majority of the openings thus listed are attributed to two companies, the Bangalore-based 24/7 Customer and the Kochi-based Nirmal Resources International, a spokesperson of the Kerala State IT Mission said here.

24/7 Customer has already hit the street looking for suitable candidates in the cities of Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram. The company intends to source its requirement of 500 professionals for its Bangalore office from colleges in these two cities alone. 24/7 Customer is a leader providing voice and e-mail based customer support services.

The IT Mission spokesperson quoted Ms Sowjanya Reddy, Vice-President-Human Resources, 24/7 Customer, as saying that the company intends to double its staff strength to 5,000 by the end of the calendar year, 20 per cent of which will be sourced from Kerala.

Meanwhile, Nirmal Sources International of Kochi is planning to come up with a 500-seater call centre facility. The company's requirement of manpower by the year-end is estimated at 1,200. According to Fr Joy Arambankudy, Chairman and Managing Director, Nirmal Sources has already recruited 40 candidates for the initial phase of operations set to begin soon.

Nirmal Sources is a joint venture between Source Results Corporation of Texas, US, and the promoters of Nirmal Agro Industries India Ltd. The primary objective of the venture is setting up the 500-seater call centre at the KINFRA IT Park in Kochi.

The company is currently setting up a modern call centre training academy that would cater to in-house as well as industry requirements of trained contact centre professionals.

A number of other companies are expected to join 24/7 Customer and Nirmal Sources International in the recruitment drive from as early as the beginning of the second half of the current year, the spokesperson added.

Akshaya second phase: In another development, the Chief Minister, Mr A.K. Antony, launched the second phase of the Akshaya bridge-the-digital-divide programme.

Announcing the launch at Chelambra grama panchayat in Malappuram, the Chief Minister said the successful Malappuram model of Akshaya would be replicated in phases in all districts in the State.

The second phase of the project would see the 620 Akshaya centres in Malappuram variously offering themselves as a communication hub, information kiosk, e-transaction centre and training centre for various Government-recognised courses.

Akshaya centres are also being primed to take up delivery of utility services currently dispensed through the FRIENDS counters. The State Government was considering the issue of reducing power tariffs for connections to Akshaya centres, according to the Chief Minister.

More Stories on : IT-enabled Services | Outsourcing | Kerala

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