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CHAPTER 1
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Employee Attrition is a global phenomenon that every business enterprise faces
as it tries to capture the talent of human resources available in the market. HR
professionals are breaking their heads to formulate Retention Strategies. This
PROJECT seeks to ascertain the causes of attrition
The objectives of the study include determining whether job content factors or
job context factors affect attrition more and the factors. It also will seek to predict
next years attrition analysis.
A questionnaire was designed and survey was conducted with the target
population. It was pre-coded, pre-tested and edited. A sample was taken using
disproportionate random sampling. The data analysis helped determine the
following factors of attrition.
1. Job Content Factors
Factors pertaining to the tasks, duties and responsibilities of the job that
gives motivation. The main factors in this category are
a) Lack of Awareness of Job Responsibilities
b) Vague career growth plan
c) Mechanical mode of doing the job
2. Job Context Factors
Factors pertaining to the environment of the job that help the employee is
carrying out his tasks, duties and responsibilities.
a) Poor Team characteristics
b) Insufficient compensation package
c) Stressful work environment
CHAPTER 2
TITLE OF THE STUDY
“MANAGING ATTRITION IN BPO AND KPO WORLD”

OBECTIVE OF THE STUDY
The main objective of this project study is to try and understand those various
aspects/factors that really affects the attrition in BPO and KPO industry, and
trying to figure out the several factors which forces an employee or employer to
change the company.
Especially the study is sought to describe the importance of the following
nine attrition factors:

1.

Compensation Package as the factor of attrition

2.

Career Growth as the factor of attrition

3.

Nature of Assignment as the factor of attrition

4.

Skills as the factor of attrition

5.

Grievances as the factor of attrition

6.

Challenges in Job as the factor of attrition

7.

Personal Policies as the factor of attrition

8.

Employee Expectations as the factor of attrition

9.

Feedback Mechanism as the factor of attrition

2
SCOPE OF THE PROJECT STUDY
The success of any study can be measured by the usefulness of its outcomes to
the business concern or an organization and the society at large. Any
organization would love to have an extremely motivated force since it is the key
to a successful business.
The study is an effort towards analyzing the different factor prevailing in the
organization, which have for reaching effects on the overall performance of the
organization.
The survey being an exercise, the employees without revealing their identities
can comfortably express their opinion. It acts as an indicator of the overall
atmosphere in the organization useful for the management to implement any
changes, if fells necessary.
The scope of the study is indicative of the possible domains of population,
wherefrom the data is supposed to be compiled and analyzed with reasonably
good parameters of sampling so that conclusions thereof be applicable to the
said population under study motivation being a broad based phenomenon for
any organization among HR cutting across the hierarchical levels the general
variable and dimensions of motivation need to be identifies in different working
environment and different structural setups and different organizations.
An attempt to be made to identify the attrition level parameters, and how much it
is affecting the enhancement of productivity in day to day activities of an
operational establishment. The survey is an amateur effort towards initiating, any
change if at all required for the benefit of the organization, in providing a better
work environment and work culture.
3
CHAPTER 3
LITERATURE REVIEW

In less than two decades, the study and practice of Employee attrition and
Retention have spread apace. Recent reviews of the theoretical and empirical
literatures invariably conclude that the bottle is, at once, half full and half empty

Becker & Gerhart, 1996; & Dyer & Reeves, 1995 in the companion volume
These researchers have determined the efficacy of horizontal and vertical
alignment or fit -- that is, the virtue of bundling HR practices into synergistic
systems that, in turn, interact with extant organizational contexts to produce
desired results. They have tried to explain the importance of the organizational
hierarchy in reducing attrition. They have come to the conclusion that it is either
job content or job context factors that affected attrition. But have not been able
to prove it.

4
RESEARCH ALREADY CARRIED OUT FOR ATTRITION

UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA
Population - private sector firms
Sample n = 297
Factor analysis
Firm characteristics, work force characteristics, location, and employee benefits
practices.
Research Tool
Hierarchical regression analysis
Findings
Benefit practices are associated with turnover, even when controlling for firm
characteristics, firm setting, and work force characteristics, specifically, firms
where benefits were a higher percentage of total labor costs and firms whose
benefits packages were described to be of higher quality experienced less
attrition. Implications of the findings for human resource management are
discussed.

2. WIPRO TECHNOLOGIES
White paper - Suvro Raychaudhuri
Research Tool
Markov Analysis
Findings
The CPP – Attrition Instrument is the best one to project or predict the attrition
rates for the next calculation period in an industry.
5
DEFINING ATTRITION:
"A reduction in the number of employees through retirement, resignation or
death."
Normal and uncontrollable reduction of a work force because of retirement,
death, sickness, and relocation. It is one method of reducing the size of a work
force without management taking any overt actions.
- Dictionary of Business Terms
A gradual reduction in work force without firing of personnel, as when workers
resign or retire and are not replaced.
- Phill and Ralph Peters

DEFINING ATTRITION RATE: "the rate of shrinkage in size or number"
In the best of worlds, employees would love their jobs, like their
coworkers, work hard for their employers, get paid well for their work, have
ample chances for advancement, and flexible schedules so they could attend to
personal

or

family

needs

when

necessary.

And

never

leave.

But then there's the real world. And in the real world, employees, do leave,
either because they want more money, hate the working conditions, hate their
coworkers, want a change, or because their spouse gets a dream job in another
state.

6
BACKGROUND STORY
The IT enabled services (BPO) industry is being looked upon as the next big
employment generator It is however no easy task for an HR manager to bridge
the ever increasing demand - supply gap of professionals. Unlike his software
industry counterpart, the Telecommunication HR manager is not only required to
fulfill this responsibility, but also find the right kind of people who can keep pace
with the unique work patterns in this industry. Adding to this is the issue of
maintaining consistency in performance and keeping the motivation levels high,
despite the monotonous work. The toughest concern for an HR manager is
however the high attrition rate.

In India, the average attrition rate in this sector is approximately 30-35 percent. It
is true that this is far less than the prevalent attrition rate in the US market
(around 70 percent), but the challenge continues to be greater considering the
recent growth of the industry in the country. The US Telecommunication sector
is estimated to be somewhere around three decades old. Keeping low attrition
levels is a major challenge as the demand outstrips the supply of good agents
by a big margin. Further, the salary growth plan for each employee is not well
defined. All this only encourages poaching by other companies who can offer a
higher salary.

The much hyped "work for fun" tag normally associated with the industry has in
fact backfired, as many individuals (mostly fresh graduates), take it as a passtime job. Once they join the sector and understand its requirements, they are
taken aback by the long working hours and later monotony of the job starts
7
setting in. This is the reason for the high attrition rate as many individuals are not
able to take the pressure of work.
The toughness of the job and timings is not adequately conveyed. Besides the
induction and project training, not much investment has been done to evolve a
"continuous training program" for the agents. Motivational training is still to
evolve in this industry. But, in all this, it is the HR manager who is expected to
straighten things out and help individuals adjust to the real world. I believe that
the new entrant needs to be made aware of the realistic situation from day-one
itself, with the training session conducted in the nights, so that they get
accustomed to things right at the beginning.

If a person leaves after the training it costs the company about Rs 60,000. For a
300-seater company facing the normal 30 percent attrition, this translates into
Rs 60 lakh per annum. Many experts are of believe that all these challenges can
turn out to be a real dampener in the growth of this industry. This only raises the
responsibility of "finding the right candidate" and building a "conducive work
environment", which will be beneficial for the organization. The need is for those
individuals who can make a career out of this.

All this had induced the companies to take necessary steps, both internally and
externally. Internally most HR managers are busy putting in efforts on the
development of their employees, building innovative retention and motivational
schemes and making the environment livelier. Outside, the focus is on creating
awareness through seminars and going to campuses for recruitment.

8
HIGH ATTRITION
Another major problem is the high attrition and growth aspirations of the
workforce. At least 60,000 of the 171,000 workforce change jobs every year.
About 80% of them look for better leaders. Team leaders want to upgrade to
supervisors, quality professionals or operations heads. The HR problem
threatens to soon become grave. Good agents are becoming hard to find and
with tardy infrastructure, big moves to the much talked about smaller towns will
take longer. This means costs will rise making it difficult for small VC – funded
companies to survive.

Attrition Rates
US 42%
Australia 29%
Europe 24%
India 26.9%

THE CHALLENGE OF EMPLOYEE ATTRITION
National projections suggest that, during the decade of 2000-2010 about 1/2 of
all employees in many major industries and settings nationally will need to be
replaced. This is due to the maturity level of the "baby boomer" generation.
While these national level data are alarming, most decision makers would rather
know their own organization's attrition rate AND the actual cost of that attrition to

9
the organization and its stake holders. Clearly, locally specific staff and cost data
are better for motivating local action.

If Calculating in monetary terms, it includes the following:
COSTS DUE TO A PERSON LEAVING
1. Calculate the cost of the person(s) who fills in while the position is vacant.
Calculate the cost of lost productivity at a minimum of 50% of the
person's compensation and benefits cost for each week the position is
vacant, even if there are people performing the work. Calculate the lost
productivity at 100% if the position is completely vacant for any period of
time.
2. Calculate the cost of conducting an exit interview to include the time of
the person conducting the interview, the time of the person leaving, the
administrative costs of stopping payroll, benefit deductions, benefit
enrollments.
3. Calculate the cost of the manager who has to understand what work
remains, and how to cover that work until a replacement is found.
4. Calculate the cost of training your company has invested in this employee
who is leaving.
5. Calculate the impact on departmental productivity because the person is
leaving. Who will pick up the work, whose work will suffer, what
departmental deadlines will not be met or delivered late.
6. Calculate the cost of lost knowledge, skills and contacts that the person
who is leaving is taking with them out of your door.
10
7. Subtract the cost of the person who is leaving for the amount of time the
position is vacant.

RECRUITMENT COSTS
1. The cost of advertisements; agency costs; employee referral costs;
internet posting costs.
2. The cost of the internal recruiter's time to understand the position
requirements, develop and implement a sourcing strategy, review
candidates backgrounds, prepare for interviews, conduct interviews,
prepare candidate assessments, conduct reference checks, make the
employment offer and notify unsuccessful candidates. This can range
from a minimum of 30 hours to over 100 hours per position.
3. Calculate the cost of the various candidate pre-employment tests to help
assess candidates' skills, abilities, aptitude, attitude, values and
behaviors.

TRAINING COSTS
1. Calculate the cost of orientation in terms of the new person's salary and
the cost of the person who conducts the orientation. Also include the cost
of orientation materials.
2. Calculate the cost of departmental training as the actual development and
delivery cost plus the cost of the salary of the new employee. Note that
the cost will be significantly higher for some positions such as sales
11
representatives and call center agents who require 4 - 6 weeks or more of
classroom training.
3. Calculate the cost of the person(s) who conduct the training.

LOST PRODUCTIVITY COSTS
As the new employee is learning the new job, the company policies and
practices, etc. they are not fully productive. Use the following guidelines to
calculate the cost of this lost productivity:
1. Upon completion of whatever training is provided, the employee is
contributing at a 25% productivity level for the first 2 - 4 weeks. The cost
therefore is 75% of the new employee’s full salary during that time period.
2. During weeks 5 - 12, the employee is contributing at a 50% productivity
level. The cost is therefore 50% of full salary during that time period.
3. During weeks 13 - 20, the employee is contributing at a 75% productivity
level. The cost is therefore 25% of full salary during that time period.
4. Calculate the cost of mistakes the new employee makes during this
elongated indoctrination period.

NEW HIRE COSTS
1. Calculate the cost of bring the new person on board including the cost to
put the person on the payroll, establish computer and security passwords
12
and identification cards, telephone hookups, cost of establishing email
accounts, or leasing other equipment such as cell phones, automobiles.

2. Calculate the cost of a manager's time spent developing trust and
building confidence in the new employee's work.

LOST SALES COSTS
1. Calculate the revenue per employee by dividing total company revenue
by the average number of employees in a given year. Whether an
employee contributes directly or indirectly to the generation of revenue,
their purpose is to provide some defined set of responsibilities that are
necessary to the generation of revenue. Calculate the lost revenue by
multiplying the number of weeks the position is vacant by the average
weekly revenue per employee.

What does this mean?
Well it means that if a company has 100 people doing a certain job paid 25,000
and that turnover or attrition is running at 10%, the cost of attrition is:
(Total staff x attrition rate %) x (annual salary x 80%)
•

100 staff at 10% attrition means 10 people leave and are replaced each
year.

•

A replacement cost of 80% of a salary of 25,000 means the cost of each
replacement is 20,000.

•

The cost of turnover is therefore 10 x 20,000 or 200,000 a year.
13
The oncost to the overall salary bill is 8%.

•

(Saving 8% of salary costs would make the average HR manager a hero.)

EMPLOYEE ATTRITION
Employee attrition is a very big problem not only in India but outside India
too. Attrition rate is increasing day by day and its especially the software industry
which is affected the most. Why an Employee leaves a company is the question
asked by most of the employers. Companies even hire Private HR professionals
to study the company's work and find out why an employee is dissatisfied.
HR department does the recruiting of new employees and then send them for
training so that they can understand work and work culture and become better
professionals. Each and every company faces employee turn over problem
whether big or small. An employee leaves his present job for another job to get
better

pay

package

and

good

working

conditions.

Every Company calculates Employee attrition rate and takes measures to
reduce it. The facts and figures are not made public as it may tarnish the image
of the company in front of its own employees and its loyal customers.
A survey has found out that there are various reasons for Employee Attrition 1. Higher Pay Package in another company
2. Good working Conditions
3. Opportunities for growth in new company
4. Change of Place problem
5. A better Boss in new company
6. Brand Image of the new company
Employee attrition costs a lot to the company. There are various costs which are
borne by the company at the start when the employee is under training period.
Costs such as 14
1. Conveyance Cost
2. Cost of lodging of the new employee
3. Trainers cost
4. Cost of venue where training will be conducted
5. Materials to be supplied during training process

FACTORS AFFECTING ATTRITION

AMBITIONS OR CAREER ASPIRATIONS
It is but natural in a growing society and growing economy that employees at all
levels aspire to build their career. There are economic aspirations, professional
aspirations, family aspirations and all kind of aspirations and ambitions that
affect a persons desire to move. It is rare not to have such career aspirations. In
the past, organization grew at a pace and stability and individuals mostly saw
their career in the current organization and stuck to the same. Now a days either
organizations don’t grow at the pace at which the individual career aspiration
grow or other organizations grow at a pace that matches the individual causing
individuals to move. It is better to appreciate the growth and mobility and
movement of the mind and take attrition as a natural phenomenon than to be
agitated about it and have sleepless nights. However, if the organization can do
something to create new opportunities, that meet the growing aspirations of
competent people, it should certainly be attempted.

COMPARISONS AND EQUITY CONSIDERATIONS:
Comparisons with peers or classmates from the same college, batch, age group,
organization, first job, city, etc. there are numerous dimensions on which
similarities can be picked up and compared. Individuals today are flooded with
15
such comparisons. Business magazines, compensation surveys by consultants
and MNC companies have only aggravated this situation and enhanced
comparisons. Organizations in their zeal to compete with one another in the
market places commission such compensation survey and further fuel the
situation instead of controlling it. Unfortunately some of these organizations have
to suffer the consequence of what they have created in their hay days.

PARENTAL AND FAMILY MOBILITY
Sometimes the desire to be with the closed ones also pushes the person to
move. Although we have largely moved away from the joint family concept, there
are still strong affiliations and affections. Need for being close with the family,
spouse, children, parents, etc. at different stages of ones life to fulfill different
types of affiliation needs prompt a few people to leave their jobs and move from
one city to another.

JOB RELATED FACTORS:
The job related factors that cause the decision to leave are as following:
•

Inability to use ones’ competencies

•

Lack of challenge

•

Boss and his style

•

Lack of scope for growth in terms of position, salary, status and other
factors

•

Role clarity

•

Job stress or role stress or role stagnation

•

Lack of independence or freedom and autonomy

•

Lack of learning opportunities
16
•

Lack of excitement and innovation, novelty etc. in the job

These factors may be intrinsic and job related or extrinsic and job related or job
chemistry related. Intrinsic factors are the factors related to the characteristic of
the job. These are in plenty in BPOs where the work conditions (night work, work
at odd hours, the nature of clients to deals with, etc) pose difficulties.

EXTRINSIC FACTORS
Are factors like role clarity, independence and autonomy, bad boss, wrong
chemistry of the team, work conditions that can be changed easily, lack of
respect shown to the individuals, etc. a large number of the extrinsic factors can
be controlled.

ECONOMIC FACTORS:
This deal with the aspirations in relation to salary and perks, housing, quality of
living, need for savings etc.

IN ADDITION TO THESE THERE COULD BE MANY OTHER FACTORS THAT
AFFECT DECISIONS:
•

Mobility of partner

•

Fatigue

•

Family reasons like having to look after old parents

•

Closeness to kith and kin ROI in education

FACTORS AFFECTING INDIVIDUAL DECISION TO LEAVE:
17
The factors can be classified as the following:
•

Individual related factors

•

Role or job related factors

•

Organization related factors

•

Professional factors

•

Societal factors including Peer pressure factors and socio-economic

•

Environment related factors

CALCULATION OF ATTRITION RATE
Attrition in an organization simply refers to resignations in a particular month,
quarter or year. To simplify it further, it refers to the number of employees who
leave an organization. And formula for calculation fo attrition % is
Attrition%=(No. of Employees Quit) /(Avg. Employees during that time frame)
%100
Inputs for computing Annualized Value is

Monthly – Multiply the Value by 12
Quarterly – Multiply the Value by 4
Half Yearly – Multiply the value by 2
Annual – Do not multiply :-)
Just to elaborate with example with respect to data shared below is:
If in a month there are 65 no. of quit cases and average no. of emp strength till
date was 3012 then:
18
Attirition%YTD=65/3012*100=2.15% hence, monthly attrition %(YTD) for that
month will be 2.15%*12=25.8%

WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR ATTRITION?

HR Heads are worried about employees leaving their organizations. Not only is it
costly to lose trained employees but their replacements are not easy to come by.
Hence

the

HR

strives

hard

to

keep

attrition

at

the

minimum.

I came across a public poll that was conducted at Cite HR (a popular meeting
point for HR professionals) to find the opinion of the HR community on the
reasons for attrition. The poll was titled 'Who will held responsible for
attrition?' and participants have to chose an option responsible for attrition. The
options were:
1. Employee
2. Supervisor or Line Manager
3. Compensation and Job Profile

19
The Poll Results: The HR community welcomed the poll and a large number of
them participated. The results of the poll on a specific date were as follows (The
poll still continues and numbers of voters have increased, however, the result
remains more or less same).

Reason for exit
Employee
Supervisor or line manager
Compensation & Job Profile

% of respondents
08.03%
38.15%
53.82%

20
Attrition Rates in India During 2007 Different Sectors
The attrition rates in different sectors for the year ended 2007 are shown in the
following table: -

21
From the above table, we can deduce that for the year ended 2007, the attrition
rate in some sectors is grim. It is 50% in Retail Sector and Voice-based BPOs.
On an average, the attrition rate in Indian economy is around 20% where as
global average is around 24%.

BPO INDUSTRY AN OVERVIEW
Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) is the delegation of one or more ITintensive business processes to an external provider that in turn owns
administers and manages the selected process based on defined and
measurable performance criteria. Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) is one of
22
the fastest growing segments of the Information Technology Enabled Services
(ITES) industry.
The Indian business process outsourcing industry, roughly around 4-5 years old,
is growing at a phenomenal pace. The number of BPO companies in Indian
cities has mushroomed from a handful a few years ago to about 500 in 2009.
The size of the Indian BPO market is likely to be around $9-12 billion by 2012
and will employee around 400,000 people (ICRA, Indian BPO industry report).
For a fresh college graduate, a call centre job pays about 2.5 times as much as
other job openings. And the boom shows all signs of continuing considering that
the cost per transaction in India is estimated to be the lowest at 29 cents
compared to 52 cents in China.
Even after displaying impressive statistics about the growth and future, the BPO
industry in India is bleeding with heavy attrition. According to several recruitment
firms in the country, attrition in the ITES (IT enabled services)-BPO industry is
close to 35-40 %. The worse news is that, this is only the reported figures and
the actual figures are much higher and can be as high as 80% annually.
Nasscom in a report said the outsourcing industry was expected to face a
shortage of 262,000 professionals by 2015. This impediment is likely to affect
the industry severely in the long run by creating a man power shortage as well
as bringing up the cost arbitrage on which the Indian industry is playing at the
moment.

Attrition cannot be blindly classified with a negative connotation. A healthy
attrition rate in any industry is necessary for new ideas and innovation to flow in
as well as to facilitate the overall growth of the industry in terms of knowledge
sharing. But after a particular level the same boon becomes a bane.

23
Recruiters explain that the high attrition rates significantly increase the
investments that are made on the employees. The problem of losing funds in
employee acquisition is more prominent in the high-end BPO segment.
Companies invest a lot of time and money in training a candidate for the first four
months. But these investments do not always get converted into actual profits. In
case of the BPO industry, each agent level recruitment roughly costs the
company Rs. 10000/-. This is the amount which a company needs to pay the job
recruitment agency. Other than the direct cost, an associated cost of training
and administrative service is also involved. Each agent works is non-productive
or partly productive in the organization for nearly the first 2-3 months. Hence an
employee leaving the organization within the first 6 months is a bad investment
for the company. Also, as stated earlier the cost of attrition in the industry is 1.5
times the annual salary.
However, there is another perspective for attrition which is specific to the BPO
industry in India. India at the moment is working on low end Business Processes
which do not require quite a lot of amount of high skills. The reason for India's
success has been primarily the low cost, high quality labor which India provides.
Compared to other competitors such as Philippines, South Africa, Ireland; India
is the only country where we have a balance between the cost involved and the
quality provided till now
For Indian companies to remain successful in future they would have to keep the
cost low. Since the tasks performed by an agent are pretty standard and does
not require added skills, there is no benefit in retaining a highly experienced
employee. At the floor level operation, a non-experienced candidate could work
with the same efficiency of a 2-3 year experienced employee after minimal
training. Hence the industry players consider the present attrition as a positive
attrition which is serving the industry by keeping the cost low.
Few of the motivation factors as to why BPO is gaining ground are:
•

Factor Cost Advantage

•

Economy of Scale
24
•

Business Risk Mitigation

•

Superior Competency

•

Utilization Improvement

DIFFERENT TYPES OF SERVICES BEING OFFERED BY BPO’S

Customer Support Services
25
Our customer service offerings create a virtual customer service center to
manage customer concerns and queries through multiple channels including
voice, e-mail and chat on a 24/7 and 365 days basis.
Technical Support Services
Our technical support offerings include round-the-clock technical support and
problem resolution for OEM customers and computer hardware, software,
peripherals and Internet infrastructure manufacturing companies. These include
installation and product support, up & running support, troubleshooting and
Usage support.

Telemarketing Services
Our telesales and telemarketing outsourcing services target interaction with
potential customers for ‘prospecting’ like either for generating interest in
products and services, or to up-sell / promote and cross sell to an existing
customer base or to complete the sales process online.
Employee IT Help-desk Services
Our employee IT help-desk services provide technical problem resolution and
support for corporate employees.
BRAND EQUITY:
People still consider BPO to be “low brow”, thus making it difficult to attract the
best talent.

CAUSES OF ATTRITION IN BPO INDUSTRY
26
Attrition in the BPO industry is two fold. One part of the attrition is where the
employee leaves the industry entirely. The other section of attrition is where the
employee joins another firm in the industry. Both the sections have separate
reasons which need to be identified.
The primary reason for people leaving the industry is due to the cause that the
industry is viewed as a gap filler occupation. There seems to be a flaw in the
way the industry is structured. The industry has been mainly dependent on
youngsters who are taking out time to work, making money in the process also
while thinking of career alternatives. Hence for this group BPO is never a long
term career but only as a part time job. The easy availability of BPO jobs is only
a source of easy money till the time there is no other source of funding. Also the
unfriendly working conditions, late night work shifts, high tension jobs acts as a
deterrent for people to stick to this industry for long time. In addition, the BPO
jobs are not being taken with a positive spirit by the society on a large. Research
says that nearly 50 per cent of those who quit leave the industry.
Regarding the attrition between firms, the chief cause is the unavailability of
resources in the job market causing a great demand compared to the supply
available. Presently there is no certified institute providing BPO specific training
and education. The scarce resource in the market leads to wide scale poaching
and head hunting amongst the competitors for the common pool. Due to the
immaturity prevalent in the industry, the industry also has not witnessed mature
HR processes such as Work force planning being implemented by the firms.
Usually new projects in the BPO industry, requires a transition stage to be
implemented within a short time. The lack of preplanned recruitment leaves the
firms with no option but to fulfill their immediate requirement by poaching
resources working on similar projects in other firms.

ROLE OF HR DEPARTMENT

27
Attrition Rate is good for the organization as long as the rate is at normal level.
This will help the organization to get new blood into the organization and for the
organization to develop. But it becomes a problem when the attrition rate is
abnormal. Therefore, HR Department has the most crucial role to play in any
organization. At the time of conducting interviews, the HR personnel try to bring
right candidate to the right job. Similar is true even when the attrition rate is
abnormal, so they have a very crucial role to play.
Following are some of the tips to reduce attrition rate: -

Hiring individuals who are truly fit to succeed in the position for hire will
dramatically increase the chances of that employee being satisfied with his or
her work, and remaining with the company for an extended period of time.
Employees should not only be selected on the basis of communication skills and
educational qualifications.
Communication of employee's roles, job description and the responsibilities
within the organization, new policies will help to retain employees.
Participative Decision Making - It is incredibly important to include employees
in the decision making process, especially when decisions are related to
employees. This can help to generate new ideas and perspectives that top
management might never have thought of.
Multi-Tasking - One of the ways to retain the employees in the organization is
try to get people with different qualities like smart, adaptable, and capable of
multi-tasking.

28
Sharing of Knowledge with Others - Allow the members to share their
knowledge with others. This helps in retention of information. This also lets a
team member know that he is a valuable member of the organization. Similarly,
facilitating knowledge sharing through an employee mentoring program can be
equally beneficial.
Shorten the Feedback Loop - This helps the employees to know the feedback
to their work within a short period. This also helps to keep performance levels
high and reinforce positive behavior among employees.
Pay Package - Any employee wants to be appropriately paid and fairly for the
work he or she does. For this, conduct a research to find out the pay package in
other similar type of organizations at regional as well as at national levels.
Balance Work & Personal Life - No doubt family is exceptionally important to
employees. When work begins to put pressure on one family, no pay package
will keep an employee in the organization. Therefore, there should be a balance
between work and personal life.
Organizational Culture - Try to select the candidates who believe in the
organization culture and adopt with ease to organization culture.
Exit Interview with the employees who are leaving the organization will help the
organization to find out the reasons why the employees are leaving the
organization. This will also help to find out any drawbacks in the organization.
Motivational Training - It is sure that motivational training helps to retain the
employees. One of the crucial aspects to motivate employees is to ensure that
they have ample growth opportunities which can be provided through training.

29
TACKLING ATTRITION HEAD-ON
Industry experts feel, as the industry was still in its nascent strategy there was
lot of strategies available to reverse this trend and make it an attractive
employer.

NASSCOM ITES-BPO forum has identified HR as one of the key challenges of
the ITES-BPO industry and has formed a special task force to address shortterm challenges such as Attrition and also long-term challenges such as
ensuring availability of a skilled talent pool.
To arrest this trend, companies can look into various options like good rewards,
bonding programme, flexible working hours and stronger career path. With
attrition rates ranging between 30-60 percent in the BPO industry, HR specialists
feel that a scientific and analytical approach should be implemented.

The tremendous turnover rate is undeniably one of the main problems faced by
the BPO industry globally. HR specialists at the Nasscom 2004 summit
brainstormed on various approaches to handle this bugbear- either declare war
on attrition and tackle it head on, or adopt a more scientific analytical approach.

Pay cheques alone are not enough to retain employees. Management also
needs to consider other aspects like secure career, benefits, perks and
communication. The attrition battle could be won by focusing on retention,
making work a fun place, having education and ongoing learning for the
workforce and treating applicants and employees in the same way as one treats
customers.

30
Companies need to go in for a diverse workforce, which does not only mean
race, gender diversity, but also include age, experience and perspectives.
Diversity in turn results in innovation and success. The 80:20 rule also applies to
recruitment, she quipped, since studies showed that 80 percent of the
company's profit comes from the efforts of 20 percent of the employees. So
BPOs need to focus on roles, which have the most important impact.
According to experts, the cost of attrition is 1.5 times the annual salary. Age
should not be a barrier for training employees and could in fact bring in more
stability to the company.

Update In November 2008
With the global financial meltdown it appears employees prefer to stick to their
current jobs as much as possible. In November 2013 BPO attrition is 50-60%
The attrition rate in few leading companies are,
•

Infosys BPO 17.3%

•

Wipro BPO 13.7%

•

TCS BPO 10.9%

•

Tesco HSC has seen a 6% drop in attrition

In 2013 the attrition rate was about 50-55%.
Created in September 2013, last updated Nov 2013.

31
BENEFITS OF ATTRITION
Attrition is not bad always if it happens in a controlled manner. Some attrition is
always desirable and necessary for organizational growth and development. The
only concern is how organizations differentiate “good attrition” from “bad
attrition”. The term “healthy attrition” or “good attrition” signifies the importance of
less productive employees voluntarily leaving the organization. This means if the
ones who have left fall in the category of low performers, the attrition in
considered being healthy.
Attrition rates are considered to be beneficial in some ways:
•

If all employees stay in the same organization for a very long time, most
of them will be at the top of their pay scale which will result in excessive
manpower costs.

•

When certain employees leave, whose continuation of service would have
negatively impacted productivity and profitability of the company, the
company is benefited.

•

New employees bring new ideas, approaches, abilities & attitudes which
can keep the organization from becoming stagnant.

•

There are also some people in the organization who have a negative and
demoralizing influence on the work culture and team spirit. This, in the
long-term, is detrimental to organizational health.

•

Desirable attrition also includes termination of employees with whom the
organization does not want to continue a relationship. It benefits the
organization in the following ways:
o

It removes bottleneck in the progress of the company

o

It creates space for the entry of new talents

o

It assists in evolving high performance teams

32
Attrition rate in BPO Companies is 7.8% points higher than
Other Industries
Attrition rates in India’s lucrative BPO industry are about 7.8 percentage points
higher than in other industries, according to a report released today by Hay
Group, a global management consultancy firm.
The finding comes from a new report, BPO Special Sector Survey 2008, based
on Hay Group’s global online compensation and benefits database, PayNet. It
showed that in general, staff turnover in India is 15.7%, but at BPO companies,
attrition is the country’s highest at 23.5%, followed by Communications and
Retail.
The report explained that one of the factors is that the remuneration structure
design is not as attractive when compared to other industries in India:
- Short-term incentives account for only 4% of total remuneration, compared to
10%
- Benefits are limited to those that can be enjoyed only post-retirement, like
pension

fund

and

gratuity,

and

not

during

the

employment

period.

- While pay is generally designed to give employees more take-home cash, a
higher portion is allocated to allowances like housing/rent and not base salary.

33
KNOWLEDGE PROCESS OUTSOURCING (KPO)
India is soon going to see the rise of KPO’s, a glimpse of which has already
been shown by the BPO sector. The BPO sector and the KPO sector are closely
related to each other in terms of outsourcing of the processes.
Quite different from Business Process Outsourcing (BPO), KPO signifies high
end value added tasks in which execution depends on skill, expertise, domain
knowledge and experience of the experts handling the tasks. KPO usually
includes a segment of Business Process Outsourcing (BPO), Research Process
Outsourcing (RPO) and Analysis Proves Outsourcing (APO). It deals with highly
knowledge intensive tasks and activities and focus is on depth of knowledge,
experience and judgment. On the other hand, a BPO deals with improving
process efficiency and is focused on single processes, size volume and
efficiency.
It can be said that the growth and maturity of the BPO industry led to the
significant rise of the KPO industry. The success and substantial results
achieved by many organizations in outsourcing operational tasks have led them
to outsource high end knowledge and skill intensive tasks. Cost and time
feasibility, sound infrastructure, skilled and knowledgeable workforce, and
improved quality are some the factors that have worked to the advantage of
KPO organizations the world over. KPOs in India benefit from the easy
availability of skilled and

trained specialists, technologically advanced

infrastructure and advanced communications tools that the country wields.
Knowledge process outsourcing calls for the application of skill, knowledge
and expertise pertinent to a high level area of specialization. These prerequisites
are being discovered and tapped by leading businesses across the globe
resulting in the outsourcing of high-end processes to low-wage destinations.
Hence Knowledge Process Outsourcing involves offshoring of knowledge
intensive business processes that require specialized domain expertise.

34
India emerging as a leader in KPO market because of the following
reasons:
•

Well established IT services and BPO sector

•

Excellent project management skills

•

Highly qualified professionals

•

Proficiency in English

•

Supporting government policies

Some challenges which KPO industry is facing are as following:
•

Expected dearth of domain expert professionals

•

High attrition rates

•

Talent retention

•

Data security and confidentiality

Growth drivers of KPO sector:
•

Shortage of knowledge professionals in countries like USA, UK, etc.

•

Low wages labour

•

BPOs moving up the value chain

•

Single vendor services

•

Talented workforce

Areas with significant KPO indluence include:
•

Pharmaceuticals

•

Integration and management services

•

Financial services

•

Research and analytics

•

Computer aided design (CAD)

•

Engineering design and professional services

35
RECENT TRENDS IN THE KPO INDUSTRY
According to a report by GlobalSourcingNow, the Global Knowledge Process
Outsourcing industry is expected to reach USD 17 billion by 2010. A report by
Evalueserve predicts that India will capture more than 70 percent of the
Knowledge Process Outsourcing sector by 2010. Apart from India, countries
such as Russia, China, the Czech Republic, Ireland, and Israel are also
expected to join the Knowledge Process Outsourcing industry.
The future of KPOs is not restricted to the ITES sector alone. The major
segments in a KPO include legal services, financial services, engineering, R&D,
market research, analytics, education, training, content development, healthcare
services, pharmacy, and biotechnology, etc.

BPO JOBS VS KPO JOBS
BPO jobs are great for beginners with limited experience, while KPO jobs
require in-depth domain expertise. Although, BPO jobs might pay more initially,
but considering the direction of career growth and salaries of senior employees
in KPO, it is definitely a better choice for those looking for a more fulfilling and
long-term career. Qualified individuals who perform well can get handsome
salary packages in this sector – much higher than BPOs. KPO jobs require a
higher commitment level and a positive attitude towards work.

BENEFITS OF KPO
The primary benefit of KPOs remains the same i.e cost savings, but it does not
end there. KPOs allow the added advantage of leveraging the expertise and
experience of seasoned professionals, experts and specialists in their specific
areas. Outsourcing your knowledge intensive projects or parts of your projects
allow you the time, flexibility and resources to take on more and more
challenging projects. Hence knowledge process outsourcing provides you more
than traditional cost feasibility.

36
BPO TO KPO: PROFITABLE TRANSITION
As the KPO market is expected to rise and touch $17 billion by 2010, the
transition of leading Business Process outsourcing (BPO) companies to
knowledge process outsourcing is but obvious. NASSCOM predicts a 45 % per
annum growth in the KPO industry till 2010 and lucrative areas include
engineering, design, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, basic data search and
integration and management.
The global economy is increasingly driving towards knowledge intensive
processes and hence, the creation, protection and monetization of knowledge is
becoming increasingly important. BPO services are process intensive while KPO
services are more domain knowledge intensive.
It has been established within most leading Indian BPO companies that BPO
services alone can keep the profits flowing. Though BPO services remains the
support business of many KPO services offer a 15-20 % higher profit margin
than pure and plain BPO work such as data entry, mortgage processing and
customer support. Global markets are becoming more flexible and products
more complex, creating a demand for higher level of analysis of trends based on
technical data. Hence, growth is more or less parallel to delivery of high-end
competency on demand.
Niche KPOs in areas such as decisions support services and financial data
services are built on domain capabilities and will thus remain unaffected by any
future advance in BPO services. It can be safely said that a business model
based solely on the execution of outsourced non core tasks cannot sus sustain a
company anymore as it is in BPO outsourcing. The money spinners are the
knowledge based, domain expertise intensive processes. Which is why niche
KPO companies are battling higher competition and attrition of clients to newbie
KPOs.
37
CHAPTER 4

COMPANY PROFILE

Syntel

Syntel, Inc. (NASDAQ: SYNT) is a global provider of Information Technology
(IT) and Knowledge Process Outsourcing (KPO) solutions, with global
development centers in India, and US.
Syntel was founded in Troy, Michigan in 1980 by Indian Bharat Desai, a
graduate of University of Michigan’s Stephen M. Ross School of Business and
Neerja Sethi with an initial investment of $2,000. Originally named “Systems
International,” the company began providing software staffing services to local
corporations, earning $30,000 in its first year. As of December 2008, Syntel has
over 12,300 employees and annual revenues in excess of $410 million
On February 24, 2009, Syntel announced the promotion of Keshav Murugesh,
formerly the company's Chief Operating Officer, to the position of President and
CEO. Founder and former CEO Bharat Desai will continue to serve as Chairman
of the Board, and is the majority shareholder.

38
Company History

1980: Syntel founded as a staff augmentation firm, an offering later known

as

TeamSourcing.
1988: Syntel begins providing full lifecycle maintenance, development, and
migration services, which later evolve into the IntelliSourcing service
offering.
1992: Syntel opens its first two Global Development Centers in Mumbai and
Chennai India, making it one of the first U.S.-based IT service companies
to employ a global delivery model.
1994: Syntel’s revenues top $50 million and employs over 1,000 staff.
1994: Syntel opens a third Global Development Center in Cary, North Carolina,
which serves as US hub for Syntel's global voice and data network.
1997: Syntel becomes a public company in August, as the stock begins trading
on NASDAQ as SYNT; 3.45 million shares floated in its Initial Public
Offering (IPO); Syntel opens offices in London and Singapore; revenues
pass the $100 million mark.
1998: Syntel's Mumbai and Chennai Global Development Centers earn ISO
9001 certification; Syntel ranked #2 in Forbes’ “200 Best Small
Companies in America”
2000: Syntel begins exploring BPO service offerings by migrating its own HR,
Finance and Helpdesk operations from the US to India.
2001: Syntel’s Global Development Centers assessed at SEI CMM Level 5,
making Syntel one of only 15 U.S. companies to achieve this standard;
Syntel

opens

healthcare-focused

Global

Development

Nashville, TN and a regional office in Munich, Germany.
39

Center

in
2002: Syntel opens Global Development Centers in Phoenix, AZ and Pune,
India.
2003: Syntel’s Global Development Centers in Mumbai and Chennai achieve
ISO 9001:2000 certification.
2004: Syntel opens dedicated BPO center in Mumbai; Syntel’s Global
Development Centers achieve BS 7799 security certification.
2005: Syntel's Global Development Centers achieve SEI CMMi Level 5; Syntel
opens the first phase of its Pune Technology Campus. Syntel acquires a
27-acre (110,000 m2) parcel of land in Chennai for a second technology
campus.
2008: Syntel breaks ground on its Chennai technology campus and records
more that $400 million in revenues for the first time.
2009: Syntel promotes Keshav Murugesh to the post of President & CEO.
Bharat Desai remains as Chairman of the Board.

40
FACT SHEET

525 E. Big Beaver, Suite 300
Contact information

Troy, Michigan 48083
Tel: 248-619-2800
Fax: 248-619-2888

Ab Initio, Actuate, AMEX, BEA Systems, Borland, Business Objects,
Citrix, Cognos, First Data, IBM, Identify Software, Informatica
Notable Partners

Corporation, Mercury Interactive, Microsoft, MicroStrategy, Oracle
Corporation, Serden Technologies, Sun Microsystems, TIBCO,
Vianeta Communications

Energy
Financial Services
Insurance
Health Care
Industries Served
Manufacturing/Automotive
Retail
Telecommunications
Logistics

Quality Certifications

SEI CMMi Level 5, ISO 9001:2000, ISO 27001, Project
41
Management Institute (PMI)

Applications Outsourcing: Custom Application Development,
Maintenance, Platform Migrations/Enhancements. (67% of
revenues)
KPO: Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Administration,
Billing, Bookkeeping, Call Center, Claims Processing, Contract
Management, Customer Service, Distribution Services, Due
Diligence, Financial Services, Helpdesk, Logistics, Payment and
Services

Collection Services, Payroll, Sales and Marketing, Staffing, Strategy
and Analysis, Telemarketing and Transaction Processing. (20% of
revenues)
e-Business: Web Architecture/Integration, Data Warehousing,
Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Enterprise Application
Integration (EAI), Business Exchanges/Marketplaces. (10% of
revenues)
TeamSourcing: IT staff augmentation (3% of revenues)

Corporate Plus member of the National Minority Supplier
Minority Certifications

Development Council (NMSDC); Member of Michigan Minority
Business Development Council; and certified as a Minority Business
Enterprise by several other organizations

42
CHAPTER 5
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
METHODOLOGY
Methodology is the process how the study is done. It is very necessary to design
proper methodology for the project which should be scientific, realistic and
economical to arrive at reliable inferences relevant to the subject in line with the
aim and objective of the project.

SOURCES OF DATA:
INFORMATION SOURCES:
The information collected for this study is categorized mainly into two
sources:
•

Primary Data Sources

•

Secondary Data Sources

PRIMARY DATA SOURCES
The data will be collected by discussing with some BPO and KPO
companies.
SECONDARY DATA SOURCES
The information regarding the company profiles and area of operation
will be taken from companies’ websites.
 www.managementparadise.com
 www.bpoindia.com
 www.google.com
43
 www.coolavenues.com

TOOLS FOR DATA COLLECTION TOOLS
The data collection tools includes interview with company officials to get
their views on the topic in details and the company website.

TYPE OF STUDY
The data required was compiled through surveying by using structured
questionnaire and through interviews (personal interactions). The data collection
tools have been explained.

SAMPLE SIZE
The target population of this study includes employees at BPO and KPO
companies. The sample will be distributed among 50 employees is to covered.
The samples will be picked through judgment and quota sampling so as to
ensure appropriate representation survey of a cross section of employees and
thus to have a holistic picture.

SAMPLE STUDY
A survey questionnaire is designed to cover different aspects that influences and
mould the motivational levels of individuals. Said questionnaire were hand
delivered to the participants; and sufficient time of about one week was given to
them so as to facilitate mature, rational and realistic responses from them. The
filled in questionnaire were collected in the subsequent week.
Besides the questionnaire, some information was also gathered through
personal interactions/ Informal interviews with some more employees.
44
ANALYSIS OF DATA
The method used for analysis is of simple averages
A. The composite score is calculated using arithmetic mean of the
Average score of each factor separately.

X = x/N
Where,

X = mean score in %
x = mean individual score
N = number of question under each factor

B. Taking out percentage scores for each individual factor is as
follows:
% x = x/N * 100
Where,

x = total score on that factor
N = number of individuals.

45
CHAPTER 6
ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF THE DATA
COMPENSATION PACKAGE
The combination of salary and fringe benefits an employer provides to an
employee. Taking a look on below chart we can see that majority i.e. about 32%
employees are satisfied with the compensation package they are given.

DESCRIPTION

RATING (%)

STRONGLY AGREE (SA)

32

AGREE (A)

12

NOT APPLICABLE/
NO COMMENTS (NA)

13

DISAGREE (D)

20

STRONGLY DISAGREE (SD)

23

46
D
23%

SA
32%
SA
A
N
SD
D

SD
20%

A
12%

N
13%

It is pertinent to note that a good compensation package plays an important role
like providing a good professional environment, taking proper care of the
hygienic parameters thereby motivating employees to perform better and thus
enhancing productivity of the organization and to control the level of attrition
through paying better compensation.

As seen from the above plot the responses on the compensation package given
KPO companies and BPO companies are very encouraging and are an
invaluable asset in the evident above table, that the employees feel satisfied of
being working here in this sector from last many years, majority of employees
feel that they work with full enthusiasm. The minor components of disagreement

47
in the responses on the subject may be taken as the qualitative feedback for
detailed analysis and corrective action if necessary.

CAREER GROWTH
"Career growth" or "Job advancement" usually means a change from an entry
level position to a job which has more duties and that receives more
compensation. About 40% employees feel that they are having their career
growth while working with the organization.

DESCRIPTION

RATING (%)

STRONGLY AGREE (SA)

36

AGREE (A)

6

NOT APPLICABLE/
NO COMMENTS (NA)

14

DISAGREE (D)

16

STRONGLY DISAGREE (SD)

28

48
D
16%
SA
36%

SA
A
N
SD

SD
28%

D
A
6%

N
14%

Every employee get an opportunities for growth in the organization and
are they are always uniform across the organization in various disciplines at all
levels, but due to heavy competition among the employees to climb up the
ladder first that why there, there is a mixed response in case of opinion about
cross disciplinary growth. Thus, representing the fact that the majority of
employees are satisfied with the available growth opportunities in their
organization pertaining to the career. Regular promotion, timely performance
appraisals always make them assured that they are having a bright future in the
organization.

NATURE OF ASSIGNMENT
It is very important to ensure assignment of right kind of job to the right person at
the right time for the active participation for the job in the management and also
for the effective accomplishment of the organization goals.
49
DESCRIPTION

RATING (%)

STRONGLY AGREE (SA)

40

AGREE (A)

16

NOT APPLICABLE/
NO COMMENTS (NA)

22

DISAGREE (D)

12

STRONGLY DISAGREE (SD)

10

D
12%
SD
10%

SA
40%

SA
A
N
SD
D

N
22%
A
16%

.
The Agree and Strongly Agree options put together constitute an overwhelming
percentage i.e.56% which shows that they are satisfied with their assignment.
As majority of disagreement is coming from the BPO sector as the type of job
being dine by the employees are repeated and in which quantity is come into the
picture rather than quality which finally become monotonous in nature that’s why
a person leave the jobs within months.

SKILLS

50
Timely refresher training are being provided to the employees so that they can
compete with the market demand in the area of skills and education, technology
etc,
DESCRIPTION

RATING (%)

STRONGLY AGREE (SA)

56

AGREE (A)

18

NOT APPLICABLE/
NO COMMENTS (NA)

16

DISAGREE (D)

4

STRONGLY DISAGREE (SD)

6

SD
6%

D
4%

N
16%

SA
A
N
SA
56%

A
18%

SD
D

As it is evident from the figure, the percentage score of the options Agree and
Strongly Agree put together is comparatively very high i.e.56%, thus indicating a
highly satisfies group of employees most of the employees feel that they are
being allowed to develop their skills are fulfilling the need of the current job to
help the organization and to meet the prevailing marketing challenges and also
the mechanisms, and training the person to improve their skills are in place.
The company also takes care that in long hours of continuous work they don’t
become monotonous. Company always try to give a responsible task to each
51
individual so that the company can check there style of workings and are they
competent enough to handle there work up to the companies standards.

GRIEVANCES
DESCRIPTION

RATING (%)

STRONGLY AGREE (SA)

28

AGREE (A)

10

NOT APPLICABLE/
NO COMMENTS (NA)

14

DISAGREE (D)

24

STRONGLY DISAGREE (SD)

24

D
24%

SA
28%
SA
A
N
SD
A
10%

SD
24%

D

N
14%

It is evident from the figure, the percentage score of the option Disagree and
Strongly Disagree put together is comparatively very high, thus indicating a
highly dissatisfied group of employees most of the employees feel that their
complaints and problem are not listened in the organization by this they faces
much problem.
52
Company do not always try to give a look on day to day issues which are faced
by the employees in the BPO sectors like working in night shift, are not suitable
now days, several cases are being coming on time to time basis but no action is
taken by any company regarding it.

PERSONAL POLICIES
Personal policies is the crucial part of the organization as every organization
takes care of it systematically during the time of policy making, it is also shows
the true picture of the organization. That’s why every employee always take care
of it.

DESCRIPTION

RATING (%)

STRONGLY AGREE (SA)

40

AGREE (A)

10

NOT APPLICABLE/
NO COMMENTS (NA)

18

DISAGREE (D)

14

STRONGLY DISAGREE (SD)

18

53
D
14%
SA
40%

SD
18%

SA
A
N
SD
D

N
18%

A
10%

Related to personal policies in which it is evident from the above figure, the
percentage score of the option Agree and Strongly Agree put together is
comparatively very high i.e. 50%, thus indicating a highly satisfied group of
employees majority of employees were agree with it and they think that policies
are flexible in nature. And company also wants that there should not be
absenteeism in the company.

SUGGESTIONS ACCEPTANCE
Acceptance of ideas and suggestions play an important role to motivate the
employees. Good performance should always be recognized and duly rewarded.
Reward system in the organization should be fair enough.

DESCRIPTION

RATING (%)

STRONGLY AGREE (SA)

33

AGREE (A)

6

NOT APPLICABLE/
NO COMMENTS (NA)

30

DISAGREE (D)

13

54
STRONGLY DISAGREE (SD)

D
13%

18

SA
33%

SD
18%

SA
A
N
SD
D

A
6%

N
30%

As in BPO companies mostly the projects are handled that’s why its not possible
that every suggestion is accepted, as well as there is high possibility of variation
of feedback. The figures in the graph are quiet balanced and shows that the
employees are equally proportioned with the prevailing reward system.
However, the component of disagreement on the subject in the responses may
be taken as qualitative feedback for detailed analysis and corrective measures
of necessary.

INTERPERSONAL RELATION
Interpersonal relation plays a vital reason for attrition among the employees.
Above 55% employees feel that they have good relations with their employers
and subordinates.
DESCRIPTION

RATING (%)

55
STRONGLY AGREE (SA)

36

AGREE (A)

20

NOT APPLICABLE/
NO COMMENTS (NA)

14

DISAGREE (D)

12

STRONGLY DISAGREE (SD)

18

D
12%
SA
36%

SD
18%

SA
A
N
SD
D

N
14%

A
20%

Most of the employees have expectations linked with the performance based
and with the performance based and to job targets. Again rewards can be
monetary and non monetary. Also having a good relationship with boss and
subordinates is must.
The chart shows that the employees are satisfied with the prevailing reward
system as there expectations are being fulfilled by the organization. Some
exception are reflecting the component of disagreement, on the subject in the
responses may be taken as qualitative feedback for detailed analysis and
corrective measures if necessary for retaining the employees.

CHAPTER 7
RECOMMENDATIONS AND SUGGESTIONS
56
 Regular one on one interaction should be undertaken with the employees
to understand their needs better.
 Clear identification of training needs i.e., requirements and existing skills
and knowledge have to be formulated.
 The growth, objectives and vision has to be communicated by the top
management on a regular basis to its employees.
 Internal training should be initiated in terms of soft skills, communication
and technology with internal class room trainings.
 The roles and responsibilities have to be clearly specified and
communicated.
 Career succession planning

to the employees has to be formulated,

identified and communicated
 Employee should feel free to provide their suggestions based on a format
regularly

formed

that

has

to

include

objectives/measures/targets/initiatives.
 The team leader should be involved in selecting their required candidates/
sub ordinates which can be done on a format/sheet/card.
 The compensation package has to be increased to the market level and
current trends.
 Work location facilities should be improved.

57
CHAPTER 8
CONCLUSION

Employee attrition is no longer only an HR concern. To tackle this
growing menace, both the business function as well as HR needs to work handin-hand. While business (line-staff) would need to take ownership of their
employees, the role of HR is to equip people managers to engage their teams
effectively. Attrition management has always been approached reactively. It is
time to be proactive. Lead indicators of attrition needs to be identified. One of
the most common lead indicators are is employee dissatisfaction. Role of people
managers and HR is to sense and identify possible dissatisfaction in employees
and provided solution/remedies before it takes any alarming form. Resolve the
satisfaction and arrest attrition is the mantra of the day. Treading along this path
organization can definitely make head way in the attrition maze.
So factors such as training, goal awareness, career succession planning
are important aspects to the employees and they prefer the organizational goals
to objectives should have their interest in their continuous growth. Regular feed
back and support also been involved in the attrition rate causes.

Attrition cannot be removed, but it can be reduced. If initiative is taken
towards this step, as per the recommendations of this research, then the attrition
rate can be lowered, so that the expenditures towards hiring and training an new
joiner which exceeds the cost of retaining an employee can be drastically
brought down.

58
The management has been continuously encouraging innovative practices in all
spheres as seen from the study. The employees are:

 Satisfied with their compensation package
 Satisfied with their working assignment
 But not able to give better dedicated services due to the security of job
 Not happy with the existing avenues to develop their creativity and
contributes to the organization to meet the market challenges
 Not much jubilant with the measures provided by the organization as they
think that lot more can be done for them
 As comparison to giant companies those who are working in still firms
growing are still in search for that big opportunity to join it. Due to this
factor in mind of every employee its affecting the whole organization.

59
LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

 Only a percentage of total employees could be interviewed but the
analysis is generalized.
 The findings and conclusion drawn out of the study will reflect only
existing trends in the organization.
 The accuracy and authenticity of the observation made and conclusions
drawn largely depend upon the corresponding accuracy and authenticity
of the information supplied by the concerned organization authorities and
employees.
 Due to their busy schedules some of the participants might not had
sufficient time to entertain the research questionnaire.

60
CHAPTER 9
ANNEXURES
QUESTIONNAIRE
SA
A
NA
Strongly Agree Not
Agree
applicabl
e
SR.
DESCRIPTION
S
NO.
A
1. The compensation packages of the employees in

D
Disagre
e

SD
Strongly
Disagree

A

N
A

D

S
D

A

N
A

D

S
D

the company are at par with the market.
2. I am satisfied with the remuneration package and
other benefits that I receive
3. The salary I receive commensurate with my
qualification, experience and performance.
4. Do you feel that there are the possibilities for
carrier growth for employees in your organization
5. I believe there are sufficient opportunities for
career growth for all in the organization
6. Do you feel very well supported in your
professional growth and learning
7. Training, skills and competencies are given due
weightage in career growth.
8. Assignments are given as per individual’s skills,
9.

competencies and attitudes.
I feel satisfied with the sense of accomplishment

after successful execution of my job.
10. Does Company provide opportunities for new
skills and technological Development
11. Efforts are made to tap the individuals skills and
potentials while giving job assignments.
SR.
NO.

S
A

DESCRIPTION
61
12. Are the grievance been solved for the employees
13. I feel comfortable while discussing important job
matters with my boss
14. The interpersonal relations with subordinates,
equals & Seniors in general are quite productive.
15. The personal policies are transparent.
16. The job is challenging and interesting for
employees.
17. The job is as per employees expectations
18. Employees are allowed to develop their creativity
to help the organization meet market challenges
19. .Are the suggestion openly accepted in the
department.
20. Employees at all levels feel their involvement in
their contribution to the organization.
21. Openness, Transparency and Value systems
are part of our work culture.
•

Monetary or financial incentives are necessary for retention? YES/NO

•

Would you like to suggest any measures which may be useful towards
reducing the attrition rate?

PERSONAL DETAILS: (Kindly Tick the appropriate one)
GENDER
AGE GROUP

MALE
BELOW
30

FEMALE
BETWEEN
30 - 40

BETWEEN
40-50

ABOVE
50

** This exercise is purely academic in nature. The data so collected from the individuals will be
solely used for academic work only.

DISTRIBUTION OF QUESTIONS ON DIFFERENT ASPECTS

62
SL.NOS. PARAMETERS

QUESTION NOS.

1

COMPENSATION PACKAGE

1,2,3

2

CAREER GROWTH

4,5,6,7

3

NATURE OF ASSIGNMENT

8,9

5

SKILLS

10,11

6

GRIEVANCES

12

7

INTERPERSONAL RELATIONS

13,14

8

PERSONAL POLICIES

15

9

CHALLENGES IN JOB

16,17,18

10

FEEDBACK MECHANISM

19,20,21

CHAPTER 10
BIBLIOGRAPHY
63
LIST OF BOOKS
1. K.Aswathappa
Human Resource Management
Published by Tata McGraw-Hill Publishing Co. Ltd.
Third Edition, 2003
2. S.V. Gankar & C.B. Mamoria
Personnel Management

LIST OF MAGAZINES, NEWSPAPERS AND JOURNALS
1.

HRM Review- A Monthly Digest of Human Capital-ICFAI
- Attrition, March 2008

WEBSITES
www.citehr.com
www.businessworlindia.com
www.icfai.com
www.google.com
www.bpoindia.com

64

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Managing attrition rate in BPO's and KPO's

  • 1. CHAPTER 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Employee Attrition is a global phenomenon that every business enterprise faces as it tries to capture the talent of human resources available in the market. HR professionals are breaking their heads to formulate Retention Strategies. This PROJECT seeks to ascertain the causes of attrition The objectives of the study include determining whether job content factors or job context factors affect attrition more and the factors. It also will seek to predict next years attrition analysis. A questionnaire was designed and survey was conducted with the target population. It was pre-coded, pre-tested and edited. A sample was taken using disproportionate random sampling. The data analysis helped determine the following factors of attrition. 1. Job Content Factors Factors pertaining to the tasks, duties and responsibilities of the job that gives motivation. The main factors in this category are a) Lack of Awareness of Job Responsibilities b) Vague career growth plan c) Mechanical mode of doing the job 2. Job Context Factors Factors pertaining to the environment of the job that help the employee is carrying out his tasks, duties and responsibilities. a) Poor Team characteristics b) Insufficient compensation package c) Stressful work environment
  • 2. CHAPTER 2 TITLE OF THE STUDY “MANAGING ATTRITION IN BPO AND KPO WORLD” OBECTIVE OF THE STUDY The main objective of this project study is to try and understand those various aspects/factors that really affects the attrition in BPO and KPO industry, and trying to figure out the several factors which forces an employee or employer to change the company. Especially the study is sought to describe the importance of the following nine attrition factors: 1. Compensation Package as the factor of attrition 2. Career Growth as the factor of attrition 3. Nature of Assignment as the factor of attrition 4. Skills as the factor of attrition 5. Grievances as the factor of attrition 6. Challenges in Job as the factor of attrition 7. Personal Policies as the factor of attrition 8. Employee Expectations as the factor of attrition 9. Feedback Mechanism as the factor of attrition 2
  • 3. SCOPE OF THE PROJECT STUDY The success of any study can be measured by the usefulness of its outcomes to the business concern or an organization and the society at large. Any organization would love to have an extremely motivated force since it is the key to a successful business. The study is an effort towards analyzing the different factor prevailing in the organization, which have for reaching effects on the overall performance of the organization. The survey being an exercise, the employees without revealing their identities can comfortably express their opinion. It acts as an indicator of the overall atmosphere in the organization useful for the management to implement any changes, if fells necessary. The scope of the study is indicative of the possible domains of population, wherefrom the data is supposed to be compiled and analyzed with reasonably good parameters of sampling so that conclusions thereof be applicable to the said population under study motivation being a broad based phenomenon for any organization among HR cutting across the hierarchical levels the general variable and dimensions of motivation need to be identifies in different working environment and different structural setups and different organizations. An attempt to be made to identify the attrition level parameters, and how much it is affecting the enhancement of productivity in day to day activities of an operational establishment. The survey is an amateur effort towards initiating, any change if at all required for the benefit of the organization, in providing a better work environment and work culture. 3
  • 4. CHAPTER 3 LITERATURE REVIEW In less than two decades, the study and practice of Employee attrition and Retention have spread apace. Recent reviews of the theoretical and empirical literatures invariably conclude that the bottle is, at once, half full and half empty Becker & Gerhart, 1996; & Dyer & Reeves, 1995 in the companion volume These researchers have determined the efficacy of horizontal and vertical alignment or fit -- that is, the virtue of bundling HR practices into synergistic systems that, in turn, interact with extant organizational contexts to produce desired results. They have tried to explain the importance of the organizational hierarchy in reducing attrition. They have come to the conclusion that it is either job content or job context factors that affected attrition. But have not been able to prove it. 4
  • 5. RESEARCH ALREADY CARRIED OUT FOR ATTRITION UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA Population - private sector firms Sample n = 297 Factor analysis Firm characteristics, work force characteristics, location, and employee benefits practices. Research Tool Hierarchical regression analysis Findings Benefit practices are associated with turnover, even when controlling for firm characteristics, firm setting, and work force characteristics, specifically, firms where benefits were a higher percentage of total labor costs and firms whose benefits packages were described to be of higher quality experienced less attrition. Implications of the findings for human resource management are discussed. 2. WIPRO TECHNOLOGIES White paper - Suvro Raychaudhuri Research Tool Markov Analysis Findings The CPP – Attrition Instrument is the best one to project or predict the attrition rates for the next calculation period in an industry. 5
  • 6. DEFINING ATTRITION: "A reduction in the number of employees through retirement, resignation or death." Normal and uncontrollable reduction of a work force because of retirement, death, sickness, and relocation. It is one method of reducing the size of a work force without management taking any overt actions. - Dictionary of Business Terms A gradual reduction in work force without firing of personnel, as when workers resign or retire and are not replaced. - Phill and Ralph Peters DEFINING ATTRITION RATE: "the rate of shrinkage in size or number" In the best of worlds, employees would love their jobs, like their coworkers, work hard for their employers, get paid well for their work, have ample chances for advancement, and flexible schedules so they could attend to personal or family needs when necessary. And never leave. But then there's the real world. And in the real world, employees, do leave, either because they want more money, hate the working conditions, hate their coworkers, want a change, or because their spouse gets a dream job in another state. 6
  • 7. BACKGROUND STORY The IT enabled services (BPO) industry is being looked upon as the next big employment generator It is however no easy task for an HR manager to bridge the ever increasing demand - supply gap of professionals. Unlike his software industry counterpart, the Telecommunication HR manager is not only required to fulfill this responsibility, but also find the right kind of people who can keep pace with the unique work patterns in this industry. Adding to this is the issue of maintaining consistency in performance and keeping the motivation levels high, despite the monotonous work. The toughest concern for an HR manager is however the high attrition rate. In India, the average attrition rate in this sector is approximately 30-35 percent. It is true that this is far less than the prevalent attrition rate in the US market (around 70 percent), but the challenge continues to be greater considering the recent growth of the industry in the country. The US Telecommunication sector is estimated to be somewhere around three decades old. Keeping low attrition levels is a major challenge as the demand outstrips the supply of good agents by a big margin. Further, the salary growth plan for each employee is not well defined. All this only encourages poaching by other companies who can offer a higher salary. The much hyped "work for fun" tag normally associated with the industry has in fact backfired, as many individuals (mostly fresh graduates), take it as a passtime job. Once they join the sector and understand its requirements, they are taken aback by the long working hours and later monotony of the job starts 7
  • 8. setting in. This is the reason for the high attrition rate as many individuals are not able to take the pressure of work. The toughness of the job and timings is not adequately conveyed. Besides the induction and project training, not much investment has been done to evolve a "continuous training program" for the agents. Motivational training is still to evolve in this industry. But, in all this, it is the HR manager who is expected to straighten things out and help individuals adjust to the real world. I believe that the new entrant needs to be made aware of the realistic situation from day-one itself, with the training session conducted in the nights, so that they get accustomed to things right at the beginning. If a person leaves after the training it costs the company about Rs 60,000. For a 300-seater company facing the normal 30 percent attrition, this translates into Rs 60 lakh per annum. Many experts are of believe that all these challenges can turn out to be a real dampener in the growth of this industry. This only raises the responsibility of "finding the right candidate" and building a "conducive work environment", which will be beneficial for the organization. The need is for those individuals who can make a career out of this. All this had induced the companies to take necessary steps, both internally and externally. Internally most HR managers are busy putting in efforts on the development of their employees, building innovative retention and motivational schemes and making the environment livelier. Outside, the focus is on creating awareness through seminars and going to campuses for recruitment. 8
  • 9. HIGH ATTRITION Another major problem is the high attrition and growth aspirations of the workforce. At least 60,000 of the 171,000 workforce change jobs every year. About 80% of them look for better leaders. Team leaders want to upgrade to supervisors, quality professionals or operations heads. The HR problem threatens to soon become grave. Good agents are becoming hard to find and with tardy infrastructure, big moves to the much talked about smaller towns will take longer. This means costs will rise making it difficult for small VC – funded companies to survive. Attrition Rates US 42% Australia 29% Europe 24% India 26.9% THE CHALLENGE OF EMPLOYEE ATTRITION National projections suggest that, during the decade of 2000-2010 about 1/2 of all employees in many major industries and settings nationally will need to be replaced. This is due to the maturity level of the "baby boomer" generation. While these national level data are alarming, most decision makers would rather know their own organization's attrition rate AND the actual cost of that attrition to 9
  • 10. the organization and its stake holders. Clearly, locally specific staff and cost data are better for motivating local action. If Calculating in monetary terms, it includes the following: COSTS DUE TO A PERSON LEAVING 1. Calculate the cost of the person(s) who fills in while the position is vacant. Calculate the cost of lost productivity at a minimum of 50% of the person's compensation and benefits cost for each week the position is vacant, even if there are people performing the work. Calculate the lost productivity at 100% if the position is completely vacant for any period of time. 2. Calculate the cost of conducting an exit interview to include the time of the person conducting the interview, the time of the person leaving, the administrative costs of stopping payroll, benefit deductions, benefit enrollments. 3. Calculate the cost of the manager who has to understand what work remains, and how to cover that work until a replacement is found. 4. Calculate the cost of training your company has invested in this employee who is leaving. 5. Calculate the impact on departmental productivity because the person is leaving. Who will pick up the work, whose work will suffer, what departmental deadlines will not be met or delivered late. 6. Calculate the cost of lost knowledge, skills and contacts that the person who is leaving is taking with them out of your door. 10
  • 11. 7. Subtract the cost of the person who is leaving for the amount of time the position is vacant. RECRUITMENT COSTS 1. The cost of advertisements; agency costs; employee referral costs; internet posting costs. 2. The cost of the internal recruiter's time to understand the position requirements, develop and implement a sourcing strategy, review candidates backgrounds, prepare for interviews, conduct interviews, prepare candidate assessments, conduct reference checks, make the employment offer and notify unsuccessful candidates. This can range from a minimum of 30 hours to over 100 hours per position. 3. Calculate the cost of the various candidate pre-employment tests to help assess candidates' skills, abilities, aptitude, attitude, values and behaviors. TRAINING COSTS 1. Calculate the cost of orientation in terms of the new person's salary and the cost of the person who conducts the orientation. Also include the cost of orientation materials. 2. Calculate the cost of departmental training as the actual development and delivery cost plus the cost of the salary of the new employee. Note that the cost will be significantly higher for some positions such as sales 11
  • 12. representatives and call center agents who require 4 - 6 weeks or more of classroom training. 3. Calculate the cost of the person(s) who conduct the training. LOST PRODUCTIVITY COSTS As the new employee is learning the new job, the company policies and practices, etc. they are not fully productive. Use the following guidelines to calculate the cost of this lost productivity: 1. Upon completion of whatever training is provided, the employee is contributing at a 25% productivity level for the first 2 - 4 weeks. The cost therefore is 75% of the new employee’s full salary during that time period. 2. During weeks 5 - 12, the employee is contributing at a 50% productivity level. The cost is therefore 50% of full salary during that time period. 3. During weeks 13 - 20, the employee is contributing at a 75% productivity level. The cost is therefore 25% of full salary during that time period. 4. Calculate the cost of mistakes the new employee makes during this elongated indoctrination period. NEW HIRE COSTS 1. Calculate the cost of bring the new person on board including the cost to put the person on the payroll, establish computer and security passwords 12
  • 13. and identification cards, telephone hookups, cost of establishing email accounts, or leasing other equipment such as cell phones, automobiles. 2. Calculate the cost of a manager's time spent developing trust and building confidence in the new employee's work. LOST SALES COSTS 1. Calculate the revenue per employee by dividing total company revenue by the average number of employees in a given year. Whether an employee contributes directly or indirectly to the generation of revenue, their purpose is to provide some defined set of responsibilities that are necessary to the generation of revenue. Calculate the lost revenue by multiplying the number of weeks the position is vacant by the average weekly revenue per employee. What does this mean? Well it means that if a company has 100 people doing a certain job paid 25,000 and that turnover or attrition is running at 10%, the cost of attrition is: (Total staff x attrition rate %) x (annual salary x 80%) • 100 staff at 10% attrition means 10 people leave and are replaced each year. • A replacement cost of 80% of a salary of 25,000 means the cost of each replacement is 20,000. • The cost of turnover is therefore 10 x 20,000 or 200,000 a year. 13
  • 14. The oncost to the overall salary bill is 8%. • (Saving 8% of salary costs would make the average HR manager a hero.) EMPLOYEE ATTRITION Employee attrition is a very big problem not only in India but outside India too. Attrition rate is increasing day by day and its especially the software industry which is affected the most. Why an Employee leaves a company is the question asked by most of the employers. Companies even hire Private HR professionals to study the company's work and find out why an employee is dissatisfied. HR department does the recruiting of new employees and then send them for training so that they can understand work and work culture and become better professionals. Each and every company faces employee turn over problem whether big or small. An employee leaves his present job for another job to get better pay package and good working conditions. Every Company calculates Employee attrition rate and takes measures to reduce it. The facts and figures are not made public as it may tarnish the image of the company in front of its own employees and its loyal customers. A survey has found out that there are various reasons for Employee Attrition 1. Higher Pay Package in another company 2. Good working Conditions 3. Opportunities for growth in new company 4. Change of Place problem 5. A better Boss in new company 6. Brand Image of the new company Employee attrition costs a lot to the company. There are various costs which are borne by the company at the start when the employee is under training period. Costs such as 14
  • 15. 1. Conveyance Cost 2. Cost of lodging of the new employee 3. Trainers cost 4. Cost of venue where training will be conducted 5. Materials to be supplied during training process FACTORS AFFECTING ATTRITION AMBITIONS OR CAREER ASPIRATIONS It is but natural in a growing society and growing economy that employees at all levels aspire to build their career. There are economic aspirations, professional aspirations, family aspirations and all kind of aspirations and ambitions that affect a persons desire to move. It is rare not to have such career aspirations. In the past, organization grew at a pace and stability and individuals mostly saw their career in the current organization and stuck to the same. Now a days either organizations don’t grow at the pace at which the individual career aspiration grow or other organizations grow at a pace that matches the individual causing individuals to move. It is better to appreciate the growth and mobility and movement of the mind and take attrition as a natural phenomenon than to be agitated about it and have sleepless nights. However, if the organization can do something to create new opportunities, that meet the growing aspirations of competent people, it should certainly be attempted. COMPARISONS AND EQUITY CONSIDERATIONS: Comparisons with peers or classmates from the same college, batch, age group, organization, first job, city, etc. there are numerous dimensions on which similarities can be picked up and compared. Individuals today are flooded with 15
  • 16. such comparisons. Business magazines, compensation surveys by consultants and MNC companies have only aggravated this situation and enhanced comparisons. Organizations in their zeal to compete with one another in the market places commission such compensation survey and further fuel the situation instead of controlling it. Unfortunately some of these organizations have to suffer the consequence of what they have created in their hay days. PARENTAL AND FAMILY MOBILITY Sometimes the desire to be with the closed ones also pushes the person to move. Although we have largely moved away from the joint family concept, there are still strong affiliations and affections. Need for being close with the family, spouse, children, parents, etc. at different stages of ones life to fulfill different types of affiliation needs prompt a few people to leave their jobs and move from one city to another. JOB RELATED FACTORS: The job related factors that cause the decision to leave are as following: • Inability to use ones’ competencies • Lack of challenge • Boss and his style • Lack of scope for growth in terms of position, salary, status and other factors • Role clarity • Job stress or role stress or role stagnation • Lack of independence or freedom and autonomy • Lack of learning opportunities 16
  • 17. • Lack of excitement and innovation, novelty etc. in the job These factors may be intrinsic and job related or extrinsic and job related or job chemistry related. Intrinsic factors are the factors related to the characteristic of the job. These are in plenty in BPOs where the work conditions (night work, work at odd hours, the nature of clients to deals with, etc) pose difficulties. EXTRINSIC FACTORS Are factors like role clarity, independence and autonomy, bad boss, wrong chemistry of the team, work conditions that can be changed easily, lack of respect shown to the individuals, etc. a large number of the extrinsic factors can be controlled. ECONOMIC FACTORS: This deal with the aspirations in relation to salary and perks, housing, quality of living, need for savings etc. IN ADDITION TO THESE THERE COULD BE MANY OTHER FACTORS THAT AFFECT DECISIONS: • Mobility of partner • Fatigue • Family reasons like having to look after old parents • Closeness to kith and kin ROI in education FACTORS AFFECTING INDIVIDUAL DECISION TO LEAVE: 17
  • 18. The factors can be classified as the following: • Individual related factors • Role or job related factors • Organization related factors • Professional factors • Societal factors including Peer pressure factors and socio-economic • Environment related factors CALCULATION OF ATTRITION RATE Attrition in an organization simply refers to resignations in a particular month, quarter or year. To simplify it further, it refers to the number of employees who leave an organization. And formula for calculation fo attrition % is Attrition%=(No. of Employees Quit) /(Avg. Employees during that time frame) %100 Inputs for computing Annualized Value is Monthly – Multiply the Value by 12 Quarterly – Multiply the Value by 4 Half Yearly – Multiply the value by 2 Annual – Do not multiply :-) Just to elaborate with example with respect to data shared below is: If in a month there are 65 no. of quit cases and average no. of emp strength till date was 3012 then: 18
  • 19. Attirition%YTD=65/3012*100=2.15% hence, monthly attrition %(YTD) for that month will be 2.15%*12=25.8% WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR ATTRITION? HR Heads are worried about employees leaving their organizations. Not only is it costly to lose trained employees but their replacements are not easy to come by. Hence the HR strives hard to keep attrition at the minimum. I came across a public poll that was conducted at Cite HR (a popular meeting point for HR professionals) to find the opinion of the HR community on the reasons for attrition. The poll was titled 'Who will held responsible for attrition?' and participants have to chose an option responsible for attrition. The options were: 1. Employee 2. Supervisor or Line Manager 3. Compensation and Job Profile 19
  • 20. The Poll Results: The HR community welcomed the poll and a large number of them participated. The results of the poll on a specific date were as follows (The poll still continues and numbers of voters have increased, however, the result remains more or less same). Reason for exit Employee Supervisor or line manager Compensation & Job Profile % of respondents 08.03% 38.15% 53.82% 20
  • 21. Attrition Rates in India During 2007 Different Sectors The attrition rates in different sectors for the year ended 2007 are shown in the following table: - 21
  • 22. From the above table, we can deduce that for the year ended 2007, the attrition rate in some sectors is grim. It is 50% in Retail Sector and Voice-based BPOs. On an average, the attrition rate in Indian economy is around 20% where as global average is around 24%. BPO INDUSTRY AN OVERVIEW Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) is the delegation of one or more ITintensive business processes to an external provider that in turn owns administers and manages the selected process based on defined and measurable performance criteria. Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) is one of 22
  • 23. the fastest growing segments of the Information Technology Enabled Services (ITES) industry. The Indian business process outsourcing industry, roughly around 4-5 years old, is growing at a phenomenal pace. The number of BPO companies in Indian cities has mushroomed from a handful a few years ago to about 500 in 2009. The size of the Indian BPO market is likely to be around $9-12 billion by 2012 and will employee around 400,000 people (ICRA, Indian BPO industry report). For a fresh college graduate, a call centre job pays about 2.5 times as much as other job openings. And the boom shows all signs of continuing considering that the cost per transaction in India is estimated to be the lowest at 29 cents compared to 52 cents in China. Even after displaying impressive statistics about the growth and future, the BPO industry in India is bleeding with heavy attrition. According to several recruitment firms in the country, attrition in the ITES (IT enabled services)-BPO industry is close to 35-40 %. The worse news is that, this is only the reported figures and the actual figures are much higher and can be as high as 80% annually. Nasscom in a report said the outsourcing industry was expected to face a shortage of 262,000 professionals by 2015. This impediment is likely to affect the industry severely in the long run by creating a man power shortage as well as bringing up the cost arbitrage on which the Indian industry is playing at the moment. Attrition cannot be blindly classified with a negative connotation. A healthy attrition rate in any industry is necessary for new ideas and innovation to flow in as well as to facilitate the overall growth of the industry in terms of knowledge sharing. But after a particular level the same boon becomes a bane. 23
  • 24. Recruiters explain that the high attrition rates significantly increase the investments that are made on the employees. The problem of losing funds in employee acquisition is more prominent in the high-end BPO segment. Companies invest a lot of time and money in training a candidate for the first four months. But these investments do not always get converted into actual profits. In case of the BPO industry, each agent level recruitment roughly costs the company Rs. 10000/-. This is the amount which a company needs to pay the job recruitment agency. Other than the direct cost, an associated cost of training and administrative service is also involved. Each agent works is non-productive or partly productive in the organization for nearly the first 2-3 months. Hence an employee leaving the organization within the first 6 months is a bad investment for the company. Also, as stated earlier the cost of attrition in the industry is 1.5 times the annual salary. However, there is another perspective for attrition which is specific to the BPO industry in India. India at the moment is working on low end Business Processes which do not require quite a lot of amount of high skills. The reason for India's success has been primarily the low cost, high quality labor which India provides. Compared to other competitors such as Philippines, South Africa, Ireland; India is the only country where we have a balance between the cost involved and the quality provided till now For Indian companies to remain successful in future they would have to keep the cost low. Since the tasks performed by an agent are pretty standard and does not require added skills, there is no benefit in retaining a highly experienced employee. At the floor level operation, a non-experienced candidate could work with the same efficiency of a 2-3 year experienced employee after minimal training. Hence the industry players consider the present attrition as a positive attrition which is serving the industry by keeping the cost low. Few of the motivation factors as to why BPO is gaining ground are: • Factor Cost Advantage • Economy of Scale 24
  • 25. • Business Risk Mitigation • Superior Competency • Utilization Improvement DIFFERENT TYPES OF SERVICES BEING OFFERED BY BPO’S Customer Support Services 25
  • 26. Our customer service offerings create a virtual customer service center to manage customer concerns and queries through multiple channels including voice, e-mail and chat on a 24/7 and 365 days basis. Technical Support Services Our technical support offerings include round-the-clock technical support and problem resolution for OEM customers and computer hardware, software, peripherals and Internet infrastructure manufacturing companies. These include installation and product support, up & running support, troubleshooting and Usage support. Telemarketing Services Our telesales and telemarketing outsourcing services target interaction with potential customers for ‘prospecting’ like either for generating interest in products and services, or to up-sell / promote and cross sell to an existing customer base or to complete the sales process online. Employee IT Help-desk Services Our employee IT help-desk services provide technical problem resolution and support for corporate employees. BRAND EQUITY: People still consider BPO to be “low brow”, thus making it difficult to attract the best talent. CAUSES OF ATTRITION IN BPO INDUSTRY 26
  • 27. Attrition in the BPO industry is two fold. One part of the attrition is where the employee leaves the industry entirely. The other section of attrition is where the employee joins another firm in the industry. Both the sections have separate reasons which need to be identified. The primary reason for people leaving the industry is due to the cause that the industry is viewed as a gap filler occupation. There seems to be a flaw in the way the industry is structured. The industry has been mainly dependent on youngsters who are taking out time to work, making money in the process also while thinking of career alternatives. Hence for this group BPO is never a long term career but only as a part time job. The easy availability of BPO jobs is only a source of easy money till the time there is no other source of funding. Also the unfriendly working conditions, late night work shifts, high tension jobs acts as a deterrent for people to stick to this industry for long time. In addition, the BPO jobs are not being taken with a positive spirit by the society on a large. Research says that nearly 50 per cent of those who quit leave the industry. Regarding the attrition between firms, the chief cause is the unavailability of resources in the job market causing a great demand compared to the supply available. Presently there is no certified institute providing BPO specific training and education. The scarce resource in the market leads to wide scale poaching and head hunting amongst the competitors for the common pool. Due to the immaturity prevalent in the industry, the industry also has not witnessed mature HR processes such as Work force planning being implemented by the firms. Usually new projects in the BPO industry, requires a transition stage to be implemented within a short time. The lack of preplanned recruitment leaves the firms with no option but to fulfill their immediate requirement by poaching resources working on similar projects in other firms. ROLE OF HR DEPARTMENT 27
  • 28. Attrition Rate is good for the organization as long as the rate is at normal level. This will help the organization to get new blood into the organization and for the organization to develop. But it becomes a problem when the attrition rate is abnormal. Therefore, HR Department has the most crucial role to play in any organization. At the time of conducting interviews, the HR personnel try to bring right candidate to the right job. Similar is true even when the attrition rate is abnormal, so they have a very crucial role to play. Following are some of the tips to reduce attrition rate: - Hiring individuals who are truly fit to succeed in the position for hire will dramatically increase the chances of that employee being satisfied with his or her work, and remaining with the company for an extended period of time. Employees should not only be selected on the basis of communication skills and educational qualifications. Communication of employee's roles, job description and the responsibilities within the organization, new policies will help to retain employees. Participative Decision Making - It is incredibly important to include employees in the decision making process, especially when decisions are related to employees. This can help to generate new ideas and perspectives that top management might never have thought of. Multi-Tasking - One of the ways to retain the employees in the organization is try to get people with different qualities like smart, adaptable, and capable of multi-tasking. 28
  • 29. Sharing of Knowledge with Others - Allow the members to share their knowledge with others. This helps in retention of information. This also lets a team member know that he is a valuable member of the organization. Similarly, facilitating knowledge sharing through an employee mentoring program can be equally beneficial. Shorten the Feedback Loop - This helps the employees to know the feedback to their work within a short period. This also helps to keep performance levels high and reinforce positive behavior among employees. Pay Package - Any employee wants to be appropriately paid and fairly for the work he or she does. For this, conduct a research to find out the pay package in other similar type of organizations at regional as well as at national levels. Balance Work & Personal Life - No doubt family is exceptionally important to employees. When work begins to put pressure on one family, no pay package will keep an employee in the organization. Therefore, there should be a balance between work and personal life. Organizational Culture - Try to select the candidates who believe in the organization culture and adopt with ease to organization culture. Exit Interview with the employees who are leaving the organization will help the organization to find out the reasons why the employees are leaving the organization. This will also help to find out any drawbacks in the organization. Motivational Training - It is sure that motivational training helps to retain the employees. One of the crucial aspects to motivate employees is to ensure that they have ample growth opportunities which can be provided through training. 29
  • 30. TACKLING ATTRITION HEAD-ON Industry experts feel, as the industry was still in its nascent strategy there was lot of strategies available to reverse this trend and make it an attractive employer. NASSCOM ITES-BPO forum has identified HR as one of the key challenges of the ITES-BPO industry and has formed a special task force to address shortterm challenges such as Attrition and also long-term challenges such as ensuring availability of a skilled talent pool. To arrest this trend, companies can look into various options like good rewards, bonding programme, flexible working hours and stronger career path. With attrition rates ranging between 30-60 percent in the BPO industry, HR specialists feel that a scientific and analytical approach should be implemented. The tremendous turnover rate is undeniably one of the main problems faced by the BPO industry globally. HR specialists at the Nasscom 2004 summit brainstormed on various approaches to handle this bugbear- either declare war on attrition and tackle it head on, or adopt a more scientific analytical approach. Pay cheques alone are not enough to retain employees. Management also needs to consider other aspects like secure career, benefits, perks and communication. The attrition battle could be won by focusing on retention, making work a fun place, having education and ongoing learning for the workforce and treating applicants and employees in the same way as one treats customers. 30
  • 31. Companies need to go in for a diverse workforce, which does not only mean race, gender diversity, but also include age, experience and perspectives. Diversity in turn results in innovation and success. The 80:20 rule also applies to recruitment, she quipped, since studies showed that 80 percent of the company's profit comes from the efforts of 20 percent of the employees. So BPOs need to focus on roles, which have the most important impact. According to experts, the cost of attrition is 1.5 times the annual salary. Age should not be a barrier for training employees and could in fact bring in more stability to the company. Update In November 2008 With the global financial meltdown it appears employees prefer to stick to their current jobs as much as possible. In November 2013 BPO attrition is 50-60% The attrition rate in few leading companies are, • Infosys BPO 17.3% • Wipro BPO 13.7% • TCS BPO 10.9% • Tesco HSC has seen a 6% drop in attrition In 2013 the attrition rate was about 50-55%. Created in September 2013, last updated Nov 2013. 31
  • 32. BENEFITS OF ATTRITION Attrition is not bad always if it happens in a controlled manner. Some attrition is always desirable and necessary for organizational growth and development. The only concern is how organizations differentiate “good attrition” from “bad attrition”. The term “healthy attrition” or “good attrition” signifies the importance of less productive employees voluntarily leaving the organization. This means if the ones who have left fall in the category of low performers, the attrition in considered being healthy. Attrition rates are considered to be beneficial in some ways: • If all employees stay in the same organization for a very long time, most of them will be at the top of their pay scale which will result in excessive manpower costs. • When certain employees leave, whose continuation of service would have negatively impacted productivity and profitability of the company, the company is benefited. • New employees bring new ideas, approaches, abilities & attitudes which can keep the organization from becoming stagnant. • There are also some people in the organization who have a negative and demoralizing influence on the work culture and team spirit. This, in the long-term, is detrimental to organizational health. • Desirable attrition also includes termination of employees with whom the organization does not want to continue a relationship. It benefits the organization in the following ways: o It removes bottleneck in the progress of the company o It creates space for the entry of new talents o It assists in evolving high performance teams 32
  • 33. Attrition rate in BPO Companies is 7.8% points higher than Other Industries Attrition rates in India’s lucrative BPO industry are about 7.8 percentage points higher than in other industries, according to a report released today by Hay Group, a global management consultancy firm. The finding comes from a new report, BPO Special Sector Survey 2008, based on Hay Group’s global online compensation and benefits database, PayNet. It showed that in general, staff turnover in India is 15.7%, but at BPO companies, attrition is the country’s highest at 23.5%, followed by Communications and Retail. The report explained that one of the factors is that the remuneration structure design is not as attractive when compared to other industries in India: - Short-term incentives account for only 4% of total remuneration, compared to 10% - Benefits are limited to those that can be enjoyed only post-retirement, like pension fund and gratuity, and not during the employment period. - While pay is generally designed to give employees more take-home cash, a higher portion is allocated to allowances like housing/rent and not base salary. 33
  • 34. KNOWLEDGE PROCESS OUTSOURCING (KPO) India is soon going to see the rise of KPO’s, a glimpse of which has already been shown by the BPO sector. The BPO sector and the KPO sector are closely related to each other in terms of outsourcing of the processes. Quite different from Business Process Outsourcing (BPO), KPO signifies high end value added tasks in which execution depends on skill, expertise, domain knowledge and experience of the experts handling the tasks. KPO usually includes a segment of Business Process Outsourcing (BPO), Research Process Outsourcing (RPO) and Analysis Proves Outsourcing (APO). It deals with highly knowledge intensive tasks and activities and focus is on depth of knowledge, experience and judgment. On the other hand, a BPO deals with improving process efficiency and is focused on single processes, size volume and efficiency. It can be said that the growth and maturity of the BPO industry led to the significant rise of the KPO industry. The success and substantial results achieved by many organizations in outsourcing operational tasks have led them to outsource high end knowledge and skill intensive tasks. Cost and time feasibility, sound infrastructure, skilled and knowledgeable workforce, and improved quality are some the factors that have worked to the advantage of KPO organizations the world over. KPOs in India benefit from the easy availability of skilled and trained specialists, technologically advanced infrastructure and advanced communications tools that the country wields. Knowledge process outsourcing calls for the application of skill, knowledge and expertise pertinent to a high level area of specialization. These prerequisites are being discovered and tapped by leading businesses across the globe resulting in the outsourcing of high-end processes to low-wage destinations. Hence Knowledge Process Outsourcing involves offshoring of knowledge intensive business processes that require specialized domain expertise. 34
  • 35. India emerging as a leader in KPO market because of the following reasons: • Well established IT services and BPO sector • Excellent project management skills • Highly qualified professionals • Proficiency in English • Supporting government policies Some challenges which KPO industry is facing are as following: • Expected dearth of domain expert professionals • High attrition rates • Talent retention • Data security and confidentiality Growth drivers of KPO sector: • Shortage of knowledge professionals in countries like USA, UK, etc. • Low wages labour • BPOs moving up the value chain • Single vendor services • Talented workforce Areas with significant KPO indluence include: • Pharmaceuticals • Integration and management services • Financial services • Research and analytics • Computer aided design (CAD) • Engineering design and professional services 35
  • 36. RECENT TRENDS IN THE KPO INDUSTRY According to a report by GlobalSourcingNow, the Global Knowledge Process Outsourcing industry is expected to reach USD 17 billion by 2010. A report by Evalueserve predicts that India will capture more than 70 percent of the Knowledge Process Outsourcing sector by 2010. Apart from India, countries such as Russia, China, the Czech Republic, Ireland, and Israel are also expected to join the Knowledge Process Outsourcing industry. The future of KPOs is not restricted to the ITES sector alone. The major segments in a KPO include legal services, financial services, engineering, R&D, market research, analytics, education, training, content development, healthcare services, pharmacy, and biotechnology, etc. BPO JOBS VS KPO JOBS BPO jobs are great for beginners with limited experience, while KPO jobs require in-depth domain expertise. Although, BPO jobs might pay more initially, but considering the direction of career growth and salaries of senior employees in KPO, it is definitely a better choice for those looking for a more fulfilling and long-term career. Qualified individuals who perform well can get handsome salary packages in this sector – much higher than BPOs. KPO jobs require a higher commitment level and a positive attitude towards work. BENEFITS OF KPO The primary benefit of KPOs remains the same i.e cost savings, but it does not end there. KPOs allow the added advantage of leveraging the expertise and experience of seasoned professionals, experts and specialists in their specific areas. Outsourcing your knowledge intensive projects or parts of your projects allow you the time, flexibility and resources to take on more and more challenging projects. Hence knowledge process outsourcing provides you more than traditional cost feasibility. 36
  • 37. BPO TO KPO: PROFITABLE TRANSITION As the KPO market is expected to rise and touch $17 billion by 2010, the transition of leading Business Process outsourcing (BPO) companies to knowledge process outsourcing is but obvious. NASSCOM predicts a 45 % per annum growth in the KPO industry till 2010 and lucrative areas include engineering, design, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, basic data search and integration and management. The global economy is increasingly driving towards knowledge intensive processes and hence, the creation, protection and monetization of knowledge is becoming increasingly important. BPO services are process intensive while KPO services are more domain knowledge intensive. It has been established within most leading Indian BPO companies that BPO services alone can keep the profits flowing. Though BPO services remains the support business of many KPO services offer a 15-20 % higher profit margin than pure and plain BPO work such as data entry, mortgage processing and customer support. Global markets are becoming more flexible and products more complex, creating a demand for higher level of analysis of trends based on technical data. Hence, growth is more or less parallel to delivery of high-end competency on demand. Niche KPOs in areas such as decisions support services and financial data services are built on domain capabilities and will thus remain unaffected by any future advance in BPO services. It can be safely said that a business model based solely on the execution of outsourced non core tasks cannot sus sustain a company anymore as it is in BPO outsourcing. The money spinners are the knowledge based, domain expertise intensive processes. Which is why niche KPO companies are battling higher competition and attrition of clients to newbie KPOs. 37
  • 38. CHAPTER 4 COMPANY PROFILE Syntel Syntel, Inc. (NASDAQ: SYNT) is a global provider of Information Technology (IT) and Knowledge Process Outsourcing (KPO) solutions, with global development centers in India, and US. Syntel was founded in Troy, Michigan in 1980 by Indian Bharat Desai, a graduate of University of Michigan’s Stephen M. Ross School of Business and Neerja Sethi with an initial investment of $2,000. Originally named “Systems International,” the company began providing software staffing services to local corporations, earning $30,000 in its first year. As of December 2008, Syntel has over 12,300 employees and annual revenues in excess of $410 million On February 24, 2009, Syntel announced the promotion of Keshav Murugesh, formerly the company's Chief Operating Officer, to the position of President and CEO. Founder and former CEO Bharat Desai will continue to serve as Chairman of the Board, and is the majority shareholder. 38
  • 39. Company History 1980: Syntel founded as a staff augmentation firm, an offering later known as TeamSourcing. 1988: Syntel begins providing full lifecycle maintenance, development, and migration services, which later evolve into the IntelliSourcing service offering. 1992: Syntel opens its first two Global Development Centers in Mumbai and Chennai India, making it one of the first U.S.-based IT service companies to employ a global delivery model. 1994: Syntel’s revenues top $50 million and employs over 1,000 staff. 1994: Syntel opens a third Global Development Center in Cary, North Carolina, which serves as US hub for Syntel's global voice and data network. 1997: Syntel becomes a public company in August, as the stock begins trading on NASDAQ as SYNT; 3.45 million shares floated in its Initial Public Offering (IPO); Syntel opens offices in London and Singapore; revenues pass the $100 million mark. 1998: Syntel's Mumbai and Chennai Global Development Centers earn ISO 9001 certification; Syntel ranked #2 in Forbes’ “200 Best Small Companies in America” 2000: Syntel begins exploring BPO service offerings by migrating its own HR, Finance and Helpdesk operations from the US to India. 2001: Syntel’s Global Development Centers assessed at SEI CMM Level 5, making Syntel one of only 15 U.S. companies to achieve this standard; Syntel opens healthcare-focused Global Development Nashville, TN and a regional office in Munich, Germany. 39 Center in
  • 40. 2002: Syntel opens Global Development Centers in Phoenix, AZ and Pune, India. 2003: Syntel’s Global Development Centers in Mumbai and Chennai achieve ISO 9001:2000 certification. 2004: Syntel opens dedicated BPO center in Mumbai; Syntel’s Global Development Centers achieve BS 7799 security certification. 2005: Syntel's Global Development Centers achieve SEI CMMi Level 5; Syntel opens the first phase of its Pune Technology Campus. Syntel acquires a 27-acre (110,000 m2) parcel of land in Chennai for a second technology campus. 2008: Syntel breaks ground on its Chennai technology campus and records more that $400 million in revenues for the first time. 2009: Syntel promotes Keshav Murugesh to the post of President & CEO. Bharat Desai remains as Chairman of the Board. 40
  • 41. FACT SHEET 525 E. Big Beaver, Suite 300 Contact information Troy, Michigan 48083 Tel: 248-619-2800 Fax: 248-619-2888 Ab Initio, Actuate, AMEX, BEA Systems, Borland, Business Objects, Citrix, Cognos, First Data, IBM, Identify Software, Informatica Notable Partners Corporation, Mercury Interactive, Microsoft, MicroStrategy, Oracle Corporation, Serden Technologies, Sun Microsystems, TIBCO, Vianeta Communications Energy Financial Services Insurance Health Care Industries Served Manufacturing/Automotive Retail Telecommunications Logistics Quality Certifications SEI CMMi Level 5, ISO 9001:2000, ISO 27001, Project 41
  • 42. Management Institute (PMI) Applications Outsourcing: Custom Application Development, Maintenance, Platform Migrations/Enhancements. (67% of revenues) KPO: Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Administration, Billing, Bookkeeping, Call Center, Claims Processing, Contract Management, Customer Service, Distribution Services, Due Diligence, Financial Services, Helpdesk, Logistics, Payment and Services Collection Services, Payroll, Sales and Marketing, Staffing, Strategy and Analysis, Telemarketing and Transaction Processing. (20% of revenues) e-Business: Web Architecture/Integration, Data Warehousing, Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Enterprise Application Integration (EAI), Business Exchanges/Marketplaces. (10% of revenues) TeamSourcing: IT staff augmentation (3% of revenues) Corporate Plus member of the National Minority Supplier Minority Certifications Development Council (NMSDC); Member of Michigan Minority Business Development Council; and certified as a Minority Business Enterprise by several other organizations 42
  • 43. CHAPTER 5 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY METHODOLOGY Methodology is the process how the study is done. It is very necessary to design proper methodology for the project which should be scientific, realistic and economical to arrive at reliable inferences relevant to the subject in line with the aim and objective of the project. SOURCES OF DATA: INFORMATION SOURCES: The information collected for this study is categorized mainly into two sources: • Primary Data Sources • Secondary Data Sources PRIMARY DATA SOURCES The data will be collected by discussing with some BPO and KPO companies. SECONDARY DATA SOURCES The information regarding the company profiles and area of operation will be taken from companies’ websites.  www.managementparadise.com  www.bpoindia.com  www.google.com 43
  • 44.  www.coolavenues.com TOOLS FOR DATA COLLECTION TOOLS The data collection tools includes interview with company officials to get their views on the topic in details and the company website. TYPE OF STUDY The data required was compiled through surveying by using structured questionnaire and through interviews (personal interactions). The data collection tools have been explained. SAMPLE SIZE The target population of this study includes employees at BPO and KPO companies. The sample will be distributed among 50 employees is to covered. The samples will be picked through judgment and quota sampling so as to ensure appropriate representation survey of a cross section of employees and thus to have a holistic picture. SAMPLE STUDY A survey questionnaire is designed to cover different aspects that influences and mould the motivational levels of individuals. Said questionnaire were hand delivered to the participants; and sufficient time of about one week was given to them so as to facilitate mature, rational and realistic responses from them. The filled in questionnaire were collected in the subsequent week. Besides the questionnaire, some information was also gathered through personal interactions/ Informal interviews with some more employees. 44
  • 45. ANALYSIS OF DATA The method used for analysis is of simple averages A. The composite score is calculated using arithmetic mean of the Average score of each factor separately. X = x/N Where, X = mean score in % x = mean individual score N = number of question under each factor B. Taking out percentage scores for each individual factor is as follows: % x = x/N * 100 Where, x = total score on that factor N = number of individuals. 45
  • 46. CHAPTER 6 ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF THE DATA COMPENSATION PACKAGE The combination of salary and fringe benefits an employer provides to an employee. Taking a look on below chart we can see that majority i.e. about 32% employees are satisfied with the compensation package they are given. DESCRIPTION RATING (%) STRONGLY AGREE (SA) 32 AGREE (A) 12 NOT APPLICABLE/ NO COMMENTS (NA) 13 DISAGREE (D) 20 STRONGLY DISAGREE (SD) 23 46
  • 47. D 23% SA 32% SA A N SD D SD 20% A 12% N 13% It is pertinent to note that a good compensation package plays an important role like providing a good professional environment, taking proper care of the hygienic parameters thereby motivating employees to perform better and thus enhancing productivity of the organization and to control the level of attrition through paying better compensation. As seen from the above plot the responses on the compensation package given KPO companies and BPO companies are very encouraging and are an invaluable asset in the evident above table, that the employees feel satisfied of being working here in this sector from last many years, majority of employees feel that they work with full enthusiasm. The minor components of disagreement 47
  • 48. in the responses on the subject may be taken as the qualitative feedback for detailed analysis and corrective action if necessary. CAREER GROWTH "Career growth" or "Job advancement" usually means a change from an entry level position to a job which has more duties and that receives more compensation. About 40% employees feel that they are having their career growth while working with the organization. DESCRIPTION RATING (%) STRONGLY AGREE (SA) 36 AGREE (A) 6 NOT APPLICABLE/ NO COMMENTS (NA) 14 DISAGREE (D) 16 STRONGLY DISAGREE (SD) 28 48
  • 49. D 16% SA 36% SA A N SD SD 28% D A 6% N 14% Every employee get an opportunities for growth in the organization and are they are always uniform across the organization in various disciplines at all levels, but due to heavy competition among the employees to climb up the ladder first that why there, there is a mixed response in case of opinion about cross disciplinary growth. Thus, representing the fact that the majority of employees are satisfied with the available growth opportunities in their organization pertaining to the career. Regular promotion, timely performance appraisals always make them assured that they are having a bright future in the organization. NATURE OF ASSIGNMENT It is very important to ensure assignment of right kind of job to the right person at the right time for the active participation for the job in the management and also for the effective accomplishment of the organization goals. 49
  • 50. DESCRIPTION RATING (%) STRONGLY AGREE (SA) 40 AGREE (A) 16 NOT APPLICABLE/ NO COMMENTS (NA) 22 DISAGREE (D) 12 STRONGLY DISAGREE (SD) 10 D 12% SD 10% SA 40% SA A N SD D N 22% A 16% . The Agree and Strongly Agree options put together constitute an overwhelming percentage i.e.56% which shows that they are satisfied with their assignment. As majority of disagreement is coming from the BPO sector as the type of job being dine by the employees are repeated and in which quantity is come into the picture rather than quality which finally become monotonous in nature that’s why a person leave the jobs within months. SKILLS 50
  • 51. Timely refresher training are being provided to the employees so that they can compete with the market demand in the area of skills and education, technology etc, DESCRIPTION RATING (%) STRONGLY AGREE (SA) 56 AGREE (A) 18 NOT APPLICABLE/ NO COMMENTS (NA) 16 DISAGREE (D) 4 STRONGLY DISAGREE (SD) 6 SD 6% D 4% N 16% SA A N SA 56% A 18% SD D As it is evident from the figure, the percentage score of the options Agree and Strongly Agree put together is comparatively very high i.e.56%, thus indicating a highly satisfies group of employees most of the employees feel that they are being allowed to develop their skills are fulfilling the need of the current job to help the organization and to meet the prevailing marketing challenges and also the mechanisms, and training the person to improve their skills are in place. The company also takes care that in long hours of continuous work they don’t become monotonous. Company always try to give a responsible task to each 51
  • 52. individual so that the company can check there style of workings and are they competent enough to handle there work up to the companies standards. GRIEVANCES DESCRIPTION RATING (%) STRONGLY AGREE (SA) 28 AGREE (A) 10 NOT APPLICABLE/ NO COMMENTS (NA) 14 DISAGREE (D) 24 STRONGLY DISAGREE (SD) 24 D 24% SA 28% SA A N SD A 10% SD 24% D N 14% It is evident from the figure, the percentage score of the option Disagree and Strongly Disagree put together is comparatively very high, thus indicating a highly dissatisfied group of employees most of the employees feel that their complaints and problem are not listened in the organization by this they faces much problem. 52
  • 53. Company do not always try to give a look on day to day issues which are faced by the employees in the BPO sectors like working in night shift, are not suitable now days, several cases are being coming on time to time basis but no action is taken by any company regarding it. PERSONAL POLICIES Personal policies is the crucial part of the organization as every organization takes care of it systematically during the time of policy making, it is also shows the true picture of the organization. That’s why every employee always take care of it. DESCRIPTION RATING (%) STRONGLY AGREE (SA) 40 AGREE (A) 10 NOT APPLICABLE/ NO COMMENTS (NA) 18 DISAGREE (D) 14 STRONGLY DISAGREE (SD) 18 53
  • 54. D 14% SA 40% SD 18% SA A N SD D N 18% A 10% Related to personal policies in which it is evident from the above figure, the percentage score of the option Agree and Strongly Agree put together is comparatively very high i.e. 50%, thus indicating a highly satisfied group of employees majority of employees were agree with it and they think that policies are flexible in nature. And company also wants that there should not be absenteeism in the company. SUGGESTIONS ACCEPTANCE Acceptance of ideas and suggestions play an important role to motivate the employees. Good performance should always be recognized and duly rewarded. Reward system in the organization should be fair enough. DESCRIPTION RATING (%) STRONGLY AGREE (SA) 33 AGREE (A) 6 NOT APPLICABLE/ NO COMMENTS (NA) 30 DISAGREE (D) 13 54
  • 55. STRONGLY DISAGREE (SD) D 13% 18 SA 33% SD 18% SA A N SD D A 6% N 30% As in BPO companies mostly the projects are handled that’s why its not possible that every suggestion is accepted, as well as there is high possibility of variation of feedback. The figures in the graph are quiet balanced and shows that the employees are equally proportioned with the prevailing reward system. However, the component of disagreement on the subject in the responses may be taken as qualitative feedback for detailed analysis and corrective measures of necessary. INTERPERSONAL RELATION Interpersonal relation plays a vital reason for attrition among the employees. Above 55% employees feel that they have good relations with their employers and subordinates. DESCRIPTION RATING (%) 55
  • 56. STRONGLY AGREE (SA) 36 AGREE (A) 20 NOT APPLICABLE/ NO COMMENTS (NA) 14 DISAGREE (D) 12 STRONGLY DISAGREE (SD) 18 D 12% SA 36% SD 18% SA A N SD D N 14% A 20% Most of the employees have expectations linked with the performance based and with the performance based and to job targets. Again rewards can be monetary and non monetary. Also having a good relationship with boss and subordinates is must. The chart shows that the employees are satisfied with the prevailing reward system as there expectations are being fulfilled by the organization. Some exception are reflecting the component of disagreement, on the subject in the responses may be taken as qualitative feedback for detailed analysis and corrective measures if necessary for retaining the employees. CHAPTER 7 RECOMMENDATIONS AND SUGGESTIONS 56
  • 57.  Regular one on one interaction should be undertaken with the employees to understand their needs better.  Clear identification of training needs i.e., requirements and existing skills and knowledge have to be formulated.  The growth, objectives and vision has to be communicated by the top management on a regular basis to its employees.  Internal training should be initiated in terms of soft skills, communication and technology with internal class room trainings.  The roles and responsibilities have to be clearly specified and communicated.  Career succession planning to the employees has to be formulated, identified and communicated  Employee should feel free to provide their suggestions based on a format regularly formed that has to include objectives/measures/targets/initiatives.  The team leader should be involved in selecting their required candidates/ sub ordinates which can be done on a format/sheet/card.  The compensation package has to be increased to the market level and current trends.  Work location facilities should be improved. 57
  • 58. CHAPTER 8 CONCLUSION Employee attrition is no longer only an HR concern. To tackle this growing menace, both the business function as well as HR needs to work handin-hand. While business (line-staff) would need to take ownership of their employees, the role of HR is to equip people managers to engage their teams effectively. Attrition management has always been approached reactively. It is time to be proactive. Lead indicators of attrition needs to be identified. One of the most common lead indicators are is employee dissatisfaction. Role of people managers and HR is to sense and identify possible dissatisfaction in employees and provided solution/remedies before it takes any alarming form. Resolve the satisfaction and arrest attrition is the mantra of the day. Treading along this path organization can definitely make head way in the attrition maze. So factors such as training, goal awareness, career succession planning are important aspects to the employees and they prefer the organizational goals to objectives should have their interest in their continuous growth. Regular feed back and support also been involved in the attrition rate causes. Attrition cannot be removed, but it can be reduced. If initiative is taken towards this step, as per the recommendations of this research, then the attrition rate can be lowered, so that the expenditures towards hiring and training an new joiner which exceeds the cost of retaining an employee can be drastically brought down. 58
  • 59. The management has been continuously encouraging innovative practices in all spheres as seen from the study. The employees are:  Satisfied with their compensation package  Satisfied with their working assignment  But not able to give better dedicated services due to the security of job  Not happy with the existing avenues to develop their creativity and contributes to the organization to meet the market challenges  Not much jubilant with the measures provided by the organization as they think that lot more can be done for them  As comparison to giant companies those who are working in still firms growing are still in search for that big opportunity to join it. Due to this factor in mind of every employee its affecting the whole organization. 59
  • 60. LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY  Only a percentage of total employees could be interviewed but the analysis is generalized.  The findings and conclusion drawn out of the study will reflect only existing trends in the organization.  The accuracy and authenticity of the observation made and conclusions drawn largely depend upon the corresponding accuracy and authenticity of the information supplied by the concerned organization authorities and employees.  Due to their busy schedules some of the participants might not had sufficient time to entertain the research questionnaire. 60
  • 61. CHAPTER 9 ANNEXURES QUESTIONNAIRE SA A NA Strongly Agree Not Agree applicabl e SR. DESCRIPTION S NO. A 1. The compensation packages of the employees in D Disagre e SD Strongly Disagree A N A D S D A N A D S D the company are at par with the market. 2. I am satisfied with the remuneration package and other benefits that I receive 3. The salary I receive commensurate with my qualification, experience and performance. 4. Do you feel that there are the possibilities for carrier growth for employees in your organization 5. I believe there are sufficient opportunities for career growth for all in the organization 6. Do you feel very well supported in your professional growth and learning 7. Training, skills and competencies are given due weightage in career growth. 8. Assignments are given as per individual’s skills, 9. competencies and attitudes. I feel satisfied with the sense of accomplishment after successful execution of my job. 10. Does Company provide opportunities for new skills and technological Development 11. Efforts are made to tap the individuals skills and potentials while giving job assignments. SR. NO. S A DESCRIPTION 61
  • 62. 12. Are the grievance been solved for the employees 13. I feel comfortable while discussing important job matters with my boss 14. The interpersonal relations with subordinates, equals & Seniors in general are quite productive. 15. The personal policies are transparent. 16. The job is challenging and interesting for employees. 17. The job is as per employees expectations 18. Employees are allowed to develop their creativity to help the organization meet market challenges 19. .Are the suggestion openly accepted in the department. 20. Employees at all levels feel their involvement in their contribution to the organization. 21. Openness, Transparency and Value systems are part of our work culture. • Monetary or financial incentives are necessary for retention? YES/NO • Would you like to suggest any measures which may be useful towards reducing the attrition rate? PERSONAL DETAILS: (Kindly Tick the appropriate one) GENDER AGE GROUP MALE BELOW 30 FEMALE BETWEEN 30 - 40 BETWEEN 40-50 ABOVE 50 ** This exercise is purely academic in nature. The data so collected from the individuals will be solely used for academic work only. DISTRIBUTION OF QUESTIONS ON DIFFERENT ASPECTS 62
  • 63. SL.NOS. PARAMETERS QUESTION NOS. 1 COMPENSATION PACKAGE 1,2,3 2 CAREER GROWTH 4,5,6,7 3 NATURE OF ASSIGNMENT 8,9 5 SKILLS 10,11 6 GRIEVANCES 12 7 INTERPERSONAL RELATIONS 13,14 8 PERSONAL POLICIES 15 9 CHALLENGES IN JOB 16,17,18 10 FEEDBACK MECHANISM 19,20,21 CHAPTER 10 BIBLIOGRAPHY 63
  • 64. LIST OF BOOKS 1. K.Aswathappa Human Resource Management Published by Tata McGraw-Hill Publishing Co. Ltd. Third Edition, 2003 2. S.V. Gankar & C.B. Mamoria Personnel Management LIST OF MAGAZINES, NEWSPAPERS AND JOURNALS 1. HRM Review- A Monthly Digest of Human Capital-ICFAI - Attrition, March 2008 WEBSITES www.citehr.com www.businessworlindia.com www.icfai.com www.google.com www.bpoindia.com 64