BPO- The Other Side

Images of Business Process Outsourcing(BPO) units are always full of young yuppies assuming a new identity and conversing in a foreign accent with clients abroad. So this invariably brings the argument that BPOs cannot help provide jobs to the millions of underprivileged youth. But there is another side to the BPO business that the media never potrays. There are thousands of small outfits working from dingy premises and employing not more than 20-30 people carrying out tasks such as data conversion , transcription etc. The persons employed here have to have some basic school education along with bare knowledge of computer operation and English. Though the salaries paid for such persons can in no way match the good pay packages of the top outfits atleast it is better than staying jobless at home.
It is in one such BPO outfit that i met Haribabu who had just completed his 12th standard at a government school. He was directly taken from school and trained by iLEAD(Institute for Livelihood Education and Development), a program run by Aid et Action for underprivileged youths. He was trained in the ITES stream for a period of 4 months and was placed immediately in a BPO outfit with a starting salary of Rs2000. Although this may not seem fantastic for most of us, it is still a huge sum for the vast majority in our country. Plus we should also realize the impact this has on the whole family. Haribabu comes from a family of 3 siblings where he is the eldest. His meagre salary will enable his siblings to complete their education and hopefully go for some higher education. I believe opportunities should be provided to more such Haribabus for only then will India's growth story truly shine.

Haribabu is first from right

Breakthrough Initiative in Youth Development

iLEAD(Institute for Livelihood Education and Development) is the brain child of Aide et Action, a French NGO. The iLEAD program was started initially for providing vocational training to children affected by the Tsunami in 2004. But later the project's scope was extended to cover underprivileged children who don't have the means to study. The program is designed to address the local needs in each area.

The foundation of this program is the Employability Potential Assessment(EPA) which is carried out in each area based on secondary and primary research. AeA carries out a careful study to determine the trades which are in demand and their employment potential. Using the EPA a list of trades which have the highest potential for providing employment are prepared. During the EPA process networking is done with the potential employers to get assurance that the candidates who pass out from iLEAD are given opportunity for employment. Then the location to setup the iLead centre is identified along with the feeder areas. Feeder areas are the areas which provide the candidates for this program. Once the trades are fixed, the curriculum development is carried out in consultation with the industry . Along with this begins the process of recruiting instructors and their training.

Once the instructors are recruited the Community Mobilisation Drive(CMD) is carried out 1 month before the commencement of the course. The instructors start the process of recruiting students. This is done either through the various stakeholders such as community heads, local NGOs or directly interaction with local people. Since iLead is a free program steps are taken to ensure the best and most deserving candidates get seats. An aptitude test is conducted for all the students who express interest in joining iLEAD. Based on the aptitude test, students are classified into different dimensions and this is used to evaluate their suitability for a particular trade.

Once the students are selected based on the aptitude test the course commences. The iLEAD program does not only import technical knowledge but also teaches spoken English and life skills. The iLEAD program typically lasts 3 months with 1 month on the job training depending on the individual trade. The instructors are not only responsible for teaching they also do networking with employers to provide their students with placement opportunities. They also do post placement followup with the employer to ensure the candidates are performing as expected or to iron out any issues that arise. The instructors are the bedrock of this iLEAD program and without whom this program would not be possible. The success rate of the placements are as high as 90% and majority of the organisations come back to hire more iLEAD graduates.

AeA has currently about 37 iLEAD centres all over the country and even Sri Lanka. They have planned to expand this to about 100 centres to help train 100,000 youth by end of 2oo8. Although the aim is ambitious it is not impossible not least due to the missionary zeal of AeA staff, iLEAD instructors and ambitious students. The private sector can help tremendously in this effort by providing financial support and placement opportunities for the graduates. Individuals also can make a difference because all it takes is Rs4000 to change one person's future.

iLEAD Chennai South Visit Part II

After observing the students in the Automobile class I moved on to observing the students in the remaining classes. I entered the ITES class and i found that it was the only class in which girls were a majority. Edwin who was with me encouraged me talk to some of the students. I started talking to a girl called Jaya who was physically challenged. One of the best things about the iLead program is its inclusive nature. There are atleast 3-5 students in every batch who suffer from physical or mental disabilities. Jaya came from a fairly large family with 2 elder brothers and 1 younger brother. Before joining this program she was staying at home doing housework. I could see that learning the computer gave her a sense of independence and hope to stand on her own feet. She also expressed a desire to go for further studies after completing the iLead program. I believe that with the Indian corporates becoming more sensitive to special employee's needs girls like Jaya will face lesser challenges in securing an employment. All she needs is an opportunity and she got it through iLead.

After this I was started chatting with Senthil who is originally from outside Chennai. He is from the previous batch of iLead graduates and is employed in Subway. He was previously employed in the security and courier field. He explained that though his starting salary in Subway was same as what he used to get previously, career advancement is faster in Subway. Within a span of 2 years an employee can become a Floor Manager earning more than Rs 10000. I then thought to myself this is the kind of impact that iLead has. Not it only does it transform unemployable youths into confident trained workers, it also provides them with good career growth opportunities. I also met another passed out hospitality trainee ThaneshKumar who came as a refugee from Sri Lanka and now is employed at Subway. Oh yeah before i forget I promised Senthil i would visit his subway outlet at Citi Centre and he has promised to give me double layer meat.

Starting from left Senthil, Edwin and Thanesh

iLEAD Chennai South Visit Part I

I visited the iLead Centre located at South Chennai located within the Life Help Centre for Handicapped. The centre is located on the 2nd floor of a two storey building. As soon as you enter you notice the building has a ramp to the second floor to help students with disabilities. Today was my first day of field work and i entered with absolutely no idea of what to do. Well in short the brief was to do a GAP analysis of the iLead Program. At the centre i met up with Mr Dilip who is the coordinator for the iLead program. I was introduced to the iLead faculty which consisted of the faculties for each of the trades vocation namely Automobile, ITES , Hospitality and the faculty for spoken english.I was introduced to the faculty as someone who is from Singapore and is here to conduct a GAP analysis study.

I started interviewing Mr Edwin who is in the hospitality faculty. He has a excellent command of english and seemed really eager to talk about his students achievements. He started out explaining the whole iLead process starting from the Community Mobilisation Drive. He explained everything there is to know about the hospitality industry and how all his students are placed in top hotels and fast food chains across the city. He himself had over 10 years experience in the F&B line and his previous assignment was in Iraq where he was the dining room manager. He frankly admitted that his initial purpose to join this program as a faculty was for getting into a job. But as he saw the kind of impact he could have on his students lives he started liking the job.

I then moved on to Mr Ramesh the automobile faculty. He is an impressive young man with a bachelors degree in mechanical engineering. He also had 1 1/2 years experience in a automobile workshop where he worked as service manager. I was invited to sit in one of his classes. After taking a few quick snaps the classes started. Today's topic was the two stroke engine.

Ramesh's teaching was very easy to understand and peppered liberally with analogies. The students were actively involved in the proceedings and were asking doubts regularly. In between all this i was served coffee in the middle of the class. I was really being treated like a VIP. Well once the class was completed the students were given some practical assignment. The students set about working on their practical assignment with gusto.

Chennai Visit

I have arrived in my hometown of Chennai after 3 long years. It is bang in the middle of summer and getting really hot. The humid weather hits you as soon as you step out of the airport. The drive back from the airport was like browsing through a old picture book with some new photos in them.
In many ways the city has not changed much. The roads are still the same but much more congested with traffic. The potholes seem to be present exactly at the same place they were 3 years back. The air is still dusty and it leaves a layer of grime by the time one gets back home. The auto drivers are still a mafia of their own who choose to charge whatever fare comes to their mind. Oh yeah the good old Adyar Bakery is still in the same place though it seems a touch more dilapidated since i saw it the last time.
But wait there are changes. Mobile phones are no longer the preserve of the rich. It has truly trickled down to the masses as one can see everyone talking on the mobile phone. In the midst of my journey in an auto the driver whips out a mobile phone and and talks to someone who requests his services later. The new middle class wealth is visible everywhere in the form of expensive cars, posh apartments and branded clothes.
What irks me the most is that there is very little change in the basic things we take for granted in Singapore such as good pedestrian pathways, efficient public transport, and good roads. The construction of new flyovers, metro stations and expansion of roads all moving at snail's pace. But one is hopeful that all these small changes snowball into something bigger that will be really change the landscape of India.