Attrition rate drives call centers to review HR strategies
By Lawrence Casiraya
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 09:21:00 05/23/2008
Filed Under: business process outsourcing (BPO), Computing & Information Technology, Technology (general), Labor, Employment
MANILA, Philippines -- Despite the phenomenal growth, call centers need to instill "desirability" among agents to balance attrition rates, according to an industry executive.
In an industry that depends heavily on worker supply for continued growth, attrition rate carries more weight than usual. The call center industry now employs around 200,000 people, based on industry estimates.
Over the years, however, the average attrition rate for the call center industry has remained consistent.
"Agents cite the same reasons every year -- pregnancy, health or moving to another industry or out of the country," said Raffy David, board director for the Call Center Association of the Philippines (CCAP).
According to David, attrition has always averaged around 19 percent, although most call center operators, when interviewed, would always claim to have lower than the industry average.
"There is no doubt anymore about acceptance (of a call center agent)," David noted in an interview with INQUIRER.net. "But we have to make it more desirable for the agents by establishing it as a serious career to have."
David admitted that some parents discourage their children from pursuing a career in call centers due to misconceptions about the industry, such as working night shifts.
"If we lift desirability in our agents, we would easily achieve our growth targets and improve further our reputation as the best destination for voice-based services," he added.
CCAP is targeting to grow industry workforce further to half a million by 2010.
David, who was recently reelected into the CCAP board, added that the group's human resource (HR) committee has been tasked to improve hiring and retention rates by focusing more on training and workforce management initiatives, not just recruitment.
Meanwhile, Ramona Velasco, country HR director for Accenture, believes a key message is that a career in a call center is not limited only to taking voice calls.
In the case of Accenture, Velasco said workers are encouraged to apply for other positions within the company, especially those involving IT.
"We sell that idea early on," Velasco said in a separate interview. "If they have an aptitude for IT, we encourage them to pursue further training."
Accenture partners with companies like Microsoft in providing regular training on technologies like the .Net platform, for example.
Accenture has around 15,000 workers in its Metro Manila and Cebu facilities. Though the company has been present in the country for almost three decades (previously as Andersen Consulting), it only began ramping up its call center and BPO business two years ago.
More than half of Accenture's workforce still does IT-related services such as application development and maintenance.
"The concept of a call center agent is already accepted. We're not selling the job anymore," Velasco. "Instead, what we are selling are solutions that revolve around different services for the customer."
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