Offshore Call Centers - The conflict between business & consumers.

Introduction

As the global businesses move ever closer to globalization and spreading their business wings in practically every corner of the globe, outsourcing or setting up off-shore facilities has indeed emerged as one of the fastest and perhaps most successful modes of aspects of a business value chain. Some of the primary reasons for the immense popularity of the outsourcing include increasing levels of productive through measures that are both cheap as well as efficient. Above, all where companies maintain their level of excellence in the services and businesses processes offered to their clients, the phenomenon of outsourcing has added tremendously to their pool of revenues.

One of the first aspects business seek in setting up an offshore facility is the requisite level of skilled manpower, which is today available in huge quantities in a number of third world countries. This skilled manpower's primary and basic requirements include individuals who can speak excellent English, are highly quality conscious, as well as computer literate. These criteria are found in ample quantify in countries such as India, which has attained the status of being the number one choice for companies the world over. Another important criteria which business organizations in the Western countries seek are the factor of cost, as also the largest and most important element in the entire outsourcing decision. A brief comparison of the wages of qualified personnel in the United Kingdom or for that matter in the United States of America with qualified personnel in India shows that there is a huge difference ranging from 70-80 percent. This huge difference automatically calculates into a net saving of 50-60 percent for the company based in United Kingdom or the United States of America. Then there is the aspect of customer service and delivery, which accounts for a major element in any business. This particular aspect has been more than emphasized by majority of the business organization with their headquarters and principle offices in the western countries. The maintenance of exceptional standards and quality in both the deliveries of services and business processes ensures that clients and customers alike remain content. It is these set of reasons that more than serve as potentials and viable options for setting up off-shore facilities for products and services for companies, in particular those with principle bases in the western countries. A brief survey of the Fortune 500 companies revealed that more than 200 companies from this elite list had already set up their off-shore facilities in a country where the availability of the above set of facilities had more than provided for their continued and progressive success over the years. (Youndon, 2004)

Implications of Off-shore Businesses

As reiterated in the above lines, the outsourcing phenomenon and setting up of offshore facilities in a more economical and professional environment is increasingly revolutionizing the entire mode of running and operating businesses. This is not only in the United Kingdom, the United States of America, but in a number of countries of the Europe as well. The majority of the focus is however limited to the countries where English is the first language spoken, and where the entire client/customer base is English speaking. It is precisely this criterion of the English language that both the United Kingdom and United States of America have found third world countries where English has reached the standard and status equal to or nearly equal to the standards found in the said western countries. The fact that India became a number one choice in approximately a decade's time is precisely the reason as Indian government and the public both have focused on making their populations excel in the English language, as well as the various basic forms of computer literacy.

Youdon, E., writing in his book "Introduction to Outsourcing" printed by Prentice Hall quotes studies carried out by an American survey group, "Cutter Consortium" notes that outsourcing has become a mainstream phenomenon in the period between 2000 and 2004. The same survey also revealed that, unlike the dot.com bubble of the 1980s, this phenomenon shown no signs of recession. On the contrary the high-tech boom initiated by the outsourcing phenomena will more than likely take on the shape of a permanent trend, one which will keep on increasing with the passage of time.  (Youndon, 2004)

The survey by 'Cutter Consortium' also showed that the rising trends of outsourcing has led to extremely high levels of unemployment in the computer industry of the United States of America, and in addition there has been a gradual shift of tens of thousands of IT related jobs to countries such as India, the Philippines, Russia, and China. Thus, one may note that though setting up of offshore businesses has led to a tremendous boom for companies and organizations in the UK and the United States of America from every practical perspective. The same trend has resulted in the rising levels of unemployment, particularly in the US, as also mentioned in the preceding paragraphs.

A brief into the not so recent history, say the decade of the 1990s would reveal that even the largest of multinational companies could never have imagined, and for some it was a radical thought to move entire departments from hub of US cities to for example the city of Banglore in India or to Moscow in Russia. However, the age-old concept of savings and down-right economics led the path to seeking lower-paying employees, yet this was truly difficult as the advances in telecommunication technology and requisite levels of computer literacy was still a far-off dream for countries such as India and Russia.

However, only a decade later, in 2002, there have been such tremendous developments and rising levels of computer literacy, as well as command over English language in the said countries. This has been combined with the simultaneous advances in technology, which duly raised the demand for offshore facilities. The same offshore facilities has now reached some 28 percent of the entire IT budget for Europe and the United States, a mark reached within two years from 2000 to 2002. As also confirmed by the findings of "Forester Research" in their 2002 survey, the allocation of major IT budgets for offshore facilities will likely increase by a significant percentage in the coming years. A similar survey carried out by 'Gartner Group' showed that by year 2004, some 8 out of every 10 CIOs in American organizations had received orders to set-up a part, if not entire technology service department to offshore facilities. The same studies also confirmed that 4 out 5 companies would already have taken the step by the end of year 2004.

To name only some of the famous American names who have already set up shop in the different cities of India, Russia, Eastern Europe and China include computer giants such as IBM, Microsoft, Oracle, Unisys6, and Dell. Also included in the list of companies who have established call centers in above said countries are a number of banks, firms based on the New York's Wall Street, insurance companies, as well as multinationals such as General Electric who serve their clients with a truly information-intensive network and IT departments. Credit-card companies, consumer appliances companies as well as a number of other industries have also established offshore call centers. (Robinson and Kalkota, 2004)

Call Centers: The Conflict between Business and Consumers
The Perspective of the Business Organizations

The offshore facilities of business organization, irrespective of their origin in the United Kingdom or the United States of America have attained the status of the principal phenomena, as also reiterated in the above paragraphs. Majority of these who have set up shop as offshore facilities are those involved in software development, maintenance, project management, and it is these particular segments of IT industries that are earmarked to witness tremendous growth in the coming decades. Unlike the dot-com bobble of the 1980s decade, there are no signs that these phenomena of outsourcing, including call centers will likely see a period of recession in the near future. However, there are questions put up by economic pundits, such as the likelihood of leveling off, say at 10 - 15 percent or at a higher level of 50 percent with the focus on overall employment within the same industries. The answers to such queries are the same, which is the continued growth and competition will remain and serve as the principle trigger for this spate of continued growth.

Knowledge Based Industries

Taking an insight view of the number of industries which have established call centers in far off and remote regions/countries, it would be evident that majority of them fall in the category of knowledge based industries. The phrase of 'knowledge based industries is coined precisely to make a distinction with other industries as call centers are providing just this. They are providing services with strong points in just two areas of expertise; first is their computer literacy and second is their command of English language. Thus, one may note that these two aspects are the core, and perhaps the pivotal reasons for the tremendous success of the call centers, aside from the cost factors for the parent companies based in the United Kingdom or the United States of America.

A brief on the US companies in search of setting up call centers as offshore facilities shows that they are deemed as innovators in this particular phenomenon of outsourcing. In doing so, these companies take into account three principle aspects, which also serve as potential conflicts with the consumers.

One of the first aspects which assists these businesses is the economics and high speeds offered in the telecommunication and Internet facilities for call centers, as compared to similar facilities say a decade ago. Examples to this effect include mortgage-approval department of a business which wishes to set up a call center facility, as the business would be least concerned whether it is a technological pioneer or not. Similarly such businesses need not worry about the high costs incurred in advanced telecommunications which may otherwise wipe out any savings achieved from strategy of employing low wage employees. (Youndon, 2004)

Awareness As a Conflict

Second aspect which serves as a conflict between the businesses setting up call centers through outsourcing and their consumers the widespread knowledge about the phenomena of call centers and outsourcing. Even if one were to compare the increasing awareness and knowledge about call centers with that of, for example a decade ago, it would be evident that little was known. For example call centers now include in their agenda conferences held amongst the various call centers through video-phone, or even video conferencing; the increase use and knowledge of consultants for call centers who assist in such processes as selection of vendors, negotiation of contracts, and management of administrative and financial details. In this context, the overwhelming wave of information at the disposal of these new breed of consultants in the call center business may not necessarily guarantee the success of the respective call centers. However, they do enjoy an edge in areas of advice and guidance as compared to their counterparts in the IT arena (for example data entry operators/pioneers), say a decade ago.

The third aspect which serves as the conflict between the businesses and their consumers over the call centers and outsourcing is the increasing pressure to investigate into the affairs of the outsource business, or the call center in our case study. A decade ago, the case was somewhat opposite, as there was little or no pressure to investigate the activities of the outsource businesses. One may note that the decade of the 1990s was indeed a boom time for a number of companies, and the general atmosphere was one of generous wages and a steady growth of employment. This trend was augmented by competition at the global level, which also witnessed a steady growth of outsourcing business the world over. Yet, the single most factors that perhaps served to halt this growth was outgrowth and rising global demands for goods and services, which outstripped supply. It would take a decade, when this rising demand of goods and services was be somewhat match supply, a phenomenon which we presently witness in entire outsourcing including call centers in the third world countries.

Thus, present conditions on the call center arena the world over show that supply is more than the demand for goods and services. It is precisely this reasoning, that majority of the companies wishing to set up a call center now have a greater choice to select workers and regions where workers are least expensive. This is more commonly observed in the knowledge-based industries, which also includes the call centers of India, Russia, Philippines, and China. As also a state of conflict between the companies and their consumers, the first (businesses) are now more pressurized to cut back on costs due to fierce global competition, hence the search for ever more cheaper knowledge based labor force with less demanding working conditions and low-paying employees respectively.

Conflicts between businesses and consumers; the Consumers' Legal Perspectives

The above section has briefly discussed the phenomenon and trends that have become a mainstream for call centers, as also some of the business perspectives from the point of those companies wishing to set up call centers for economic reasons, competition, and growth of their respective organizations.

However, the segment of consumers too is ever important and perhaps crucial element of a call center business. As it is the presence of consumers for whom the call centers emerge in the first instance. Since, majority of the consumers belong to countries where English language is the first language, the emergence of call centers with English language speaking employees is indeed a pre-requisite. The high wages prevalent as well as demanded by employees in the English speaking countries including Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America has forced large number of companies to outsource their businesses, in part if not in whole to regions and countries where is ample availability of less paying employees, yet having command of the English language and are computer literate. For this the probable choice falls on countries such India, the Philippine, the Russia and China. However, the standard and expertise of language or computer literacy are not the only factors, which make an outsourcing organization successful.

In this respect, the consumers as the principle beneficiaries of call centers have a rightful demand to obtain services and products that are of optimal quality; a set of factors that has been somewhat left out by the companies operating call centers in remote regions of the world. A prime example to this effect can be observed from a complaint from a group of consumers against call center operators and their employees, which duly resulted in a ruling from a court of public opinion with the following wordings;

"You have no right to bother us and leave us dangling. And if we do business with you, your word isn't good enough. You have to prove it."

Though the above ruling is only a hint at the prevalent unease on the part of consumers, yet this more than provides for call center operators and businesses to polish up their role in the provision of goods and services from offshore facilities, and through the use of employees with a little different accent, and perhaps little knowledge on the actual complaint or command when calling up potential clients.

US Regulations and Laws

The consumers at the end of call centers have also found strong footings from both the laws and regulations, which have more, than restricted the activities of operators of, call centers. This can be observed in the new set of US Federal regulations which place a limit on 'call abandonment rates, caller ID blocking, as well as demand inbound upsetting agents to ask consumers for their account IDs, and above all to record those calls. A similar act favouring Th consumers is the "Do-Not-Call or (DNC) registry which may become effective in the very near future. The DNC is said to have a very strong support from both the US Congress as well as the US public. Though the registry has yet to become fully effective and become a law, there are already more than 50 million US phone subscribers who have filed for the DNC registry. All these regulations and acts that are deemed to assist consumers from the operators and businesses of call centers are perhaps huge hurdles from the perspective of the businesses. As these regulations and laws, also termed as outbound rules will not only restrict call center operations, but also serve to cost huge job losses both within the countries where call centers are operating, as well as the offshore facilities which have been set to gain economic and other crucial business advantages.

A survey carried out by the American Teleservice Association (A.T.A.) revealed that the outbound rules could mean job losses to the tune of some 2 million individuals in the United States alone. As one of the first steps taken against the levy of such laws by the US government, legislators and public prosecutors, the A.T.A. has filed suits against the DNC regulations.

Another aspect to be noted vis-a-vis the consumers at the end of call centers is that the implementation of regulations and laws benefiting the US consumers will have a direct affect on the US employees of call centers, in turn forcing businesses to give importance and focus on outsourcing and offshore facilities for call center businesses. Thus, even if and when there is a likely shift in the call centers, the job losses for US employees will probably be effective even without such legislation’s. To satisfy the consumers, the call centers will thus have to comply with such regulations, even if these results in huge job losses as also mentioned in the preceding paragraph.

Yet another set of incentives and benefits for the consumers which also serve, as direct conflicts with the businesses are the marketing methods employed by respective businesses. For example, businesses when faced with such strict measures and legislation’s as stated above may turn to options such as direct mail, direct response, and inserts in publications to prompt inbound calls, emails, and chat sessions. In response to such changes in regulations and calls from public officials, the call centers at home will have to undergo and bring about changes. These may include modifications in 'predictive dialers' including their complete replacements, replacement of modern call recording equipment’s and bring about changes in the mode of selling for both inbound and outbound agents, in turn positively affectivity and raising the standard of phone calls to consumers. The call centers on the other hand In contrast, the call centers operating in remote and far-off locations with advantages in lower costs for both employees and infrastructure will be least affected from such measures at home grounds.

In this context there are two particular regulations which directly affect the call center operations and which also serve as potential conflicts with the businesses as well. The first is the Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR) which is administered by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The second is the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) which falls under the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

Under the workings of both the FTC and the FCC, businesses are allowed to place calls to consumers who have given prior consent, and who have enjoyed previous business relationships with the respective firms. There is also a time factor involved in such calls according to which there has to be a transaction within the last 18 months, and similarly a period of 90 days must have passed since the last inquiry was placed. On the other hand both these regulatory authorities and their regulations become ineffective if and when a consumer refuses to accept a call, even if there was a business relationship in the recent past, and it is the obligation of the respective businesses to honor such refusals.

The levy of and changes in the rules by both the TCPA and TSR have called for changes in the outbound calls for call center operations. An example to this respect include call abandonment rules, according to which marketers have to connect live agents to place calls to the concerned consumers, and this call has to have to duration of 4 rings or a time limit of 15 seconds, and compliance of neither may result in abandonment of said call/s.

A second rule of both the TCPA and TSR restricts the number of calls abandoned to just 3 percent, which are answered by live persons. However the TSR rules measure the same on a per day basis and a per campaign basis, while its sister authority, the TCPA measures the call over a month's period.

In compliance of such regulations and in response to the complaints of the consumers, the TCPA claims that no calls are abandoned if the response is in the form of voice messages within 2 seconds of receipt of a consumer's call. Similarly the calls are not abandoned if the consumer has previously consented to receive messages, including existing business relationships. (Read, 2004)

Trends in The Emergence of Call Centers

Though outsourcing is being largely concentrated in areas of software development, maintenance, manufacturing, logistics, and adding the latest area of knowledge based industries, one may note that outsourcing has perhaps been there for the last nearly 2 decades. However, the changes that have perhaps revolutionized the entire out- sourcing business, in particular the emergence of call centers includes such disciplines as customer, transaction processing, finance and accounting, human resources, desktop support and software development.

The core reason, and perhaps the strongest factor to force the emergence of such huge numbers of call centers in remote regions of the world such as India and China as prime examples are cost-cutting strategies by making earnings look all the more attractive. Included in the cost-cutting strategies was the wages and salaries of the employees, truly a major chunk of operating costs, which was duly replaced with employees hired at a fraction of what would otherwise be payable for example within the United States of America or United Kingdom. This was amply found in the offshore labor, who were both computer literate as well as well suited to serve the English speaking consumers on the North American continent, and the United Kingdom.

A brief comparison with other process-improvements innovations including but not limited to Total Quality Management, Re-engineering, and Six Sigma, the offshore outsourcing too is predicted to face somewhat similar consequences, and for arriving such a conclusion, it is only imperative that one studies the cycle of the above said innovations measures taken by business organizations.

Included in this management drive innovation cycle are 4 principle steps, through each business organization has to undergo.

Slope of Hype

The first is the slope of hype, and one may note that outsourcing, in particular the emergence of call centers are passing through what may termed as the 'honeymoon period', as also evident from the tremendous successes achieved by majority of the organizations setting up call centers. The duration of the hype period has witnessed a large number of organizations somewhat copying or initiating projects based on the present forms of innovation. This is done to gain experience from the current and ongoing process management techniques, without the need to invest in experimenting. Another feature of such a tactic is a mere pursuit of a competitor within the same industry. An example to this respect can be observed in the trends of e-commerce and e-business in the later part of the 1990s decade. Thus, it was observed that practically every business organization was in pursuit of an e-commerce strategy, often without a detailed insight or logical reasons for doing so. A wave of e-commerce companies thus emerged offering best of services, and searching for a place in the market as a 'trusted advisor' in their endeavours to compete win offshore contracts. Such companies were duly aided by venture capitalists that fueled the hype through a number of attractive financial instruments.

Slope of Despair

The second principle of process management is that of despair, or rather the slope of despair. As the business enters the slope of despair, it is evidence that the honeymoon era, as also described in the preceding paragraph has come to abrupt end. The offshore projects initiated in rather haste, including initiation or blindly following a competitor with the same industry will witness a failure as no consideration was given, nor any wieghtage given to the decision of setting up an offshore facility, or call center. The result of taking a decision in such haste is that promises to consumers remain unfulfilled, in turn triggering a possible 'backlash' from within the organization. Recent examples to this respect can be observed in the decisions to call back and close shop decision taken by famous names such as Dell and Lehman Brothers. It is also observed that during this slope of despair, a large number of organizations that are not serious in operating offshore facilities would opt for closing down their offshore facilities. Further, such companies would either go for a complete re-evaluation of their principle strategies, while those who are truly serious in pursuing and benefiting from their offshore plans, continue to excel and strive to maximize their earnings from the tremendous set of advantages hidden in the operation of offshore businesses, including call centers.

Consolidation and Assimilation

The third important aspect in the process management innovation measure is that of consolidation and assimilation. This step is immediately proceeded after that of despair where serious contenders stay on, and those who step in the market without serious considerations either ere-evaluate their strategies, or completely fall back and retreat to their home grounds. The business of e-commerce witnessed similar trends and behaviors. Having undergone the crucial step of consolidation, a business more often than not enters the slope of profit era. As also evidenced in majority of the businesses involved in e-commerce, most organization have today realized that e-commerce is not a mere necessity, rather a pre-requisite for their businesses. A similar spate of events awaits the offshore business, where call centers are predicted to reach levels of extra-ordinary profits for their parent organizations, a likelihood prediction for the end of the present decade.

The study of the above 4 principle aspects of process management innovations shows, as also evident from recent corporate history, that it is the home country's economy, which by and large dictates the success or failure of a corporate strategy. Thus, if economy is moving towards recovery, not only will other businesses suffer, but the offshore business including call centers will too face the same fate. Similarly, if the home economy is failure, and is continuously witnessing a fall, offshore outsourcing as well as all other businesses will bound to see an acceleration and growth with significant profit margins who can sustain the ups and falls of offshore businesses. However, there are more than likely chances for the IT sector, in particular the knowledge based industries which include the call centers will witness a similar migration as has happened with the manufacturing from the North American and European continents to move to the Pacific Rim countries. (Gore, 2003)

Offshore Call Center Conflicts between Businesses and Consumers – British Perspective

The above section of the dissertation has briefly discussed some of the aspects of offshore call centers including the businesses as well as the consumers and the conflicts between them. The above section has primarily focused on the US businesses as they enjoy the single largest segment of the global offshore call centers. The is followed by United Kingdom enjoying a second place, and which will constitute the following section of our dissertation. The following part will thus take into account a brief history of outsourcing, and move on to discuss businesses and consumers from the European perspective, with a particular attention on the implications on the British businesses, British consumers, and the British job markets with respect to call centers.

Literature Review on the British Call Center Businesses, Consumers and their Conflicts

Having briefly touched the US perspective of outsourcing businesses, the following section discusses the businesses, consumers and their conflicts from a British point of view.

A survey carried by M/s Outsourcing Insight Ltd., Harvard, M., showed that the year 2000 was a record period for Britain as it witnessed the emergence of some 35,000 call center related jobs, and establishment of some 88 call centers.

This tremendous growth pattern in the outsourcing business in the United Kingdom proved a number of points. For example, it showed that a record number of businesses had chosen to shift and expand towards outsourcing. It also proved that the consumers had a wider choice. It was also evident that each call center was offering a more diverse set of services, a more specialized version and an ever-competitive environment to offer for their customers. (Harvard, 2000)

A Brief On the Conflicts

However, with the tremendous growth pattern viewed in the expansion of call centers, British businesses also realized that there was a crucial need for an approach that would provide for needed end results and optimization of their outsourcing objectives. For example, the selection of an outsourcing partner was one such area, which required needed diligence and an equally cautious approach. It was largely observed that in their endeavours to increase their market share and compete in their respective industries, majority of the British businesses failed to recognize that competition and offering truly high standards of services and products called for an equally high standards of capabilities and services. This was only possible in the appropriate selection of an outsourcing partner who fulfilled the said objectives of the parent business. In addition, if aspects such as higher client expectations were added, and not provided for; it would henceforth result in failed expectations for both the businesses as well as the consumers, hence a grave set of conflicts.

A number of factors may be accounted for in the emergence of above said conflicts. These include for example the shortage of skilled labour, with particular focus on the middle management, which largely handles majority of businesses. Then there are the factors of unclear set of motives and timeframes, which may not necessarily match those of the parent businesses which had decided for the outsourcing in the first instance. However, one of the most commonly made mistakes is that of choosing a partner who has neither the experience, nor the skilled manpower which perhaps make up for the core reasons of a successful outsourcing business, particularly an offshore call center. From an organizational perspective too, such conflicts lead to poor performance, in turn leading to an unhealthy, and somewhat pressurized relationship between the parent business and its out source partner. (Harvard, 2000)

The Rising Demands of Consumers As A Conflict

With the rise in the growth of call centers across the United Kingdom, the single most important segment, that of consumers too emerged as a vital and crucial element in the call center industry. A brief on the consumers' perspective, their expectations and demands showed that their standards of expectations and services too witnessed a simultaneous rise with that of the call center businesses.

An increasing number of consumers now vie for services that suits their particular needs, such as obtaining a requisite set of information from a channel of their choice. Apparently, such request and desires on the part of consumers would appear to be trivial, yet the depth can be assessed in the complexity of fulfilling each consumer's particular request and demand.

An example to this respect is a segment of consumers receiving services from a particular range of business sector and duly finding that their desires should meet their levels of standards and excellence. However, if another business segment fails to offer services and products of a similar level, for example, this would in turn be somewhat disappointing for the respective consumer. Thus, consumers expect the same level of standard and excellence as received from a particular segment of business. One may therefore note that competitors alone are not a formidable enemy; consumers of a particular business are equally worthy opponents for a call center business. Hence their requirements and needs, must be met even if this implies that a call center has to adopt  wider channels of services, and an equal wider scope of services.

A related aspect of consumer conflicts is their rising demands or choice of channels of communication. This could include a telephone, e-mail, interactive television, or the traditional postal service. It is for the call center to recognize and duly fulfill the requisite needs of their consumers through the integration of requisite technology available for the different modes of communication in practice today. One need not emphasize that the failure to incorporate, or integrate on-going technology in providing for services and products may as well result in creating a severe conflict, not to mention a disgruntled consumer.

Though provision of services and products through the latest modes of communication may appear to be a somewhat simple task, yet it is easier said than done. This is because the entire call center industry can be witnessed to enter a period of polarization. This is all the more evident as such services are more client-led, rather than OSP (Outsourcing service provider) led. The OSP may have invested in technology to win over clients and consumers, yet as is with all areas of a given industry, the services area too has reached a stage of polarization, and it is not merely a set of demands which the call center can fulfill. One may as well witness that call centers are ever struggling to keep up with the advancements in communication technology as one example; thus making all the more difficult to fulfill all the requirements and needs of a segment of consumer (Harvard, 2000).

The Conflicts of the Consumers Further Highlighted

Though the polarization factor or the inability to match technology in the communications area may as well mean that consumers or clients using the services of call centers will continue to remain dissatisfied. Yet, there are other areas, which too are observed to hinder the services provided by the call centers. These include for example areas such as effective customer management.

The growth of service providers with equally varied set of backgrounds, different organizational objects, personnel with varying set of skills and expertise, technological capabilities, there is an ever demanding need for managing as well as developing a truly effective customer management portfolio. This is only possible with the necessary experience at the disposal of the parent businesses, as well as the understanding of several disciplines which serve to bolster rather hinder the provision of services.

Thus, an effective customer management portfolio may include modern processes of management, state of the art technology, skilled and trained personnel, and the ever important ability to address the emotional issues which is perhaps a new feather in the value chain of today's businesses.

The above brings us back to the issue of an appropriate selection of service provider, who must have all the above said requisites to make a call center function in a truly successful mode. As also briefly mentioned in the above paragraphs, the wrong selection of a service provide can turn into a disaster for the call center business, not to mention the headache which is surely to evolve from the unsatisfied list of clientele. Researches into this particular area of call center business and their consumers show that the percentage of dissatisfied customers, or the levels of dissatisfaction are as high as 73 percent, with majority of those researched ever willing to change over, and look for new call center suppliers.

Such high levels of dissatisfaction amongst the call center businesses has given rise to individuals who are experts in mediation and facilitation services, who serve to bring about improvements in both the call center business operators as well as the operational aspects of the business. (Harvard, 2000)

Outsourcing and Offshore Call Centers - Historical Perspective

Though the term of 'outsourcing' was first coined by Webster's 10th Dictionary in 1982, the phenomenon only commenced and began to be practiced in the middle of 1980s decade, aggressively picking up pace by the beginning of 1990. In this respect some of the famous businesses which pioneered this particular phenomenon included Kodak, American Standard, and Aventis (formerly Rhone-Poulenc). By the end of the 1980s decade, this phenomenon not only grew in recognition, but in controversy too as some the corporate sector termed the emergence of outsourcing as a set of mere fad, while others coined it fantastic. The latter term however held fast, as outsourcing rapidly grew in both pace and momentum, and soon became an integral part and parcel of value chain amongst majority of businesses. Statistics to this respect alone provide significant evidence as to the tremendous growth cycle witnessed by businesses engaged in outsourcing. A brief on the outsourcing spending when taken as a percentage of the average executive budget, showed that its figures nearly doubled from a 16 percent in 1983 to some 31 percent by the end of 2002. Europe's role in the outsourcing too witnessed tremendous growth as figures taken as of 2001 duly predicted that they would more than double by the end of 2003 that would be in a matter of just 2 years. In addition, similar statistics also predicted that Europe's share in the international outsourcing business would reach a healthy 23 percent share. These statistics were compiled by Corbett, M. F., and duly published in their article of March 2003. (Corbett, 2003)

An insight into the historical perspective of the development of the outsourcing phenomenon from the European and British perspective, in particular the setting up of call centers in far and remote regions, was narrowed down to 3 principle reasons.

One of the first reasons for the unique shift from the traditional and vertically integrated business firms into models of outsource organizations was the availability of truly world-class segments of service providers excelling in both the computer literacy as well as the medium of language, English. These were the initial triggers, which not only gave impetus, but also rather provided for fulfilling the demands of the customers. It is only logical that, once these organizations discovered that there was requisite potential in the form of a literate working force, there was no stopping, and the market forces carried out the rest of the spadework. The result was the emergence of a line of outsource firms and call center was just one example to this respect.

The second important element and reason for the tremendous growth of outsourcing businesses and call centers was the advancements in technology, which practically made this business 'placeless'. This implied that business could truly be carried out from anywhere and by anyone, provided the basic ingredients were met. Thus, activities such as processing of information, accounting and answering to customer queries was shifted to locations and countries which provided for the technology and the trained personnel. Thus, it could be said that once the physical barriers of organizations were broken, it was all too easy to expand the organizational barriers of businesses. The Europeans and particularly the British amply exploited these elements, hence their phenomenal growth.

The third element and perhaps the strongest reason was that of competition. Irrespective of the locale, whether at the local level or international, it is only natural that with the rise in compassion, each organization had to become all the more efficient, more effective and competitive, simply to survive. The notion that an organization, however large or small, can capture a given market, and maintain their stronghold is totally misleading. Thus, to keep pace with the market forces and simultaneously remain competitive, majority of the firms had to join the line.

Yet, the single largest set of factors which have perhaps made outsourcing a success the world over include an improvement in the respective organizations' emphasis on core activities, significant reduction in costs, as well as rapid improvements in both business and quality of their services or products (Corbett, 2003).

Europe And The United Kingdom In Perspective

A brief on the European horizon of businesses, and in particular in the United Kingdom shows a similar trend of outsourcing with that of witnessed on the North American continent. In fact, there seems to be newer levels of energy on the European front as the traditional 'physical' aspects of the businesses, including those of operations and manufacturing, were observed to undergo a gradual shift, and changing to the more specialized segments of the businesses, namely areas of information technology and process operations. The latter witnessed tremendous growths as industries that were being outsource by European and in particular British businesses included the pharmaceutical industries, computer and electronics, government and diversified financial services industries. A survey carried out by a British Process Outsourcing firm, M/s Nelson Hall, the British market segment of BPO witnessed a growth of more than 45 percent in 2003 alone. A similar survey carried out by another firm M/s Input revealed a 17 percent growth rate in the European government outsourcing sector from the period of 1988 to 2004, which was more than double that of witnessed in the United States of America in the same period.

In discussing the European and British outsourcing businesses, one may note that though China and India are today the single largest recipients of outsourcing business, attracting clients from majority of the English speaking countries of the world. Yet, the notion that China and India are the only countries where outsourcing is being done would be somewhat wrong, in particular from the European and British perspective. (Corbette, 2003)

A deeper study of Europe and in particular Britain reveals they are also outsourcing to their neighboring countries of Iceland, Ireland, Eastern Europe as well as Russia. As this group of countries too provides for skilled labour and technology, not to mention the incentive element provided to local governments of these countries. (Corbett, 2003).

Scotland's Case - A Direct Conflict With Offshore Call Center Businesses and Consumers

In studying offshore call center businesses and consumers, there is yet another development that has more than served as a direct conflict with the phenomena of both offshore call center businesses and services provided to the consumers; this is the growth and encouragement of Scotland's call center industry.

In this context a report prepared by the BBC's world Edition of January 2005 revealed Scotland's "Calling Scotland" campaign, where the local government of Scotland has initiated a campaign to attract workers for call centers in Glasgow as well as the west of Scotland. Developed by the "Scottish Enterprise Glasgow", the said campaign is assisted by local organizations and a number of local call center employees.

Included in the call for call enter employees for different regions of Scotland, are various tours of call centers, job fairs, as well as a number of advertising campaigns. A brief statistics on Scotland's call centers reveals that as of the date of preparation of this report by BBC, it was reported that some 300 contact centers were already working in various parts of Scotland employing some 56,000 employees. These statistics when compared with the nation's overall working populations showed that these figures were one employee per 43 employees.

The case of the Scottish call center industry also shows similar trends and reasons were observed for their success, as also discussed for European, Britain as well as Indian and Chinese call centers; one that focused on quality and skilled manpower.

Maclennan, G, an executive at the "Scottish Enterprise Glasgow' which carried out the detailed survey on Scotland's call center industry duly presenting his comments for the BBC News noted that that the city of Glasgow was already home to some 100 call centers, engaging some of the global names in business, with equally diverse range of businesses and operations. Thus, with the expansion in the call center industry as a whole across Europe and major parts of Britain, it was only found imperative that the Scotland's call center was duly encouraged. Hence the campaign for call center employees offering job opportunities for practically every segment of the population, ages and experience.

Scullion, H., A union officer at M/s Amicus, representing majority of the employed at the call centers in Scotland in his comments to the BBC News notes that though the efforts of the local government in Scotland, local businesses and employees working at the various call centers in Scotland are continuously striving to retain call center employees. Yet, this trend may not be sustainable for a longer period, and eventual pave the way for the disappearance of the workers to offshore locations. Providing some statistics to this effect, Scullion notes that in 2003 alone some 2000 workers have already left Scotland, which are part of a total 18,000 workers who have left Britain to work in offshore call centers in the same period.

The campaign of "calling Scotland" has also been assisted by a number of other organizations, such as the 'Call Center Association (CCA), Careers Scotland and 'Jobcenter Plus'. All these organizations are indeed vying to retain majority of the Scotland's call center employees, and their efforts to this respect are somewhat paying off. Yet, they face the threat of lucrative offers for businesses in regions such as India, China and the East European group of countries which offer a more diverse set of services, more economical and a higher level of skilled manpower at their disposal. In view of the above organizations, if the workers employed at the various call centers in different regions of Scotland are to be retained, it is crucially imperative that the increasing demands of the businesses as well as that of the consumers be met. and that is only possible in the availability of a vibrant workforce which must come at par in both excellence and expertise with those in the more common and economical countries such as noted above. (BBC News World Edition, 2005)

A looming threat and an equally related conflict for the businesses as well as the consumers across the United Kingdom is the large-scale shift or movement of call center employees to places such as India, as also briefly mentioned in the preceding paragraphs.

A prime example to this respect was found in the city of Liverpool, where IBM workers providing services for M/s Royal & Sun Alliance were told that they were being outsource to India, with a possibility of loosing their jobs. The number of IBM employees under risk of loosing jobs stands at somewhat 48, which also included employees working for M/s Manpower, another firm working in Liverpool. A similar threat appears in the offing for another set of IBM employees working at IBM's Norwich branch, which still remains to be decided.

The above developments at the British businesses of call centers is not only a conflict with the businesses and their consumers; in fact it is presumably a negative trend for British workers who face threats of loosing jobs. On the other hand, the firms responsible for such shifts, the IBM and other like it contend that by shifting jobs to cities in India such as Banglore, they would be saving huge amounts in wages, which according to one analyst stated could be anywhere around 10 million pounds sterling per year.

Though there were reassurances from IBM, and other businesses that alternative jobs would be provided for those loosing jobs due to the outsourcing. Yet conflicts continue to rise amongst businesses and consumers from such trends of moving entire businesses to offshore locations at the expense of local manpower, irrespective of the reasons and factors for such endeavours. (BBC News World Edition, 2005)

Rising Consumer Complaints As Conflicts Between Businesses and Offshore Call Centers
Though a number of conflicts have been discussed in the above sections of the dissertation between businesses and offshore call centers. Yet, the single most important conflict are those generated by dissatisfied and impatient consumers. Investigations to this respect carried out by a number of British survey firms on the British consumers alone reveal some startling information.

One of the surveys to this respect carried out by Citizen Advice Bureaux (CAB) found that some 27 percent of the people remained dissatisfied with call centers offering services on behalf of finance companies. Harker, D. CEO of Citizen Advice Bureaux duly notes that access to information, whether on finance companies or other segments of the business should not become a 'barrier' for the consumers. In reality, it is exactly the opposite, as leaving only a few, practically all the call centers are criticized with a major segment of their clients left dissatisfied.

Some of the common issues and problems left unresolved on the part of consumers include problems about money (cash statements, balance sheets, credit/debit limits), debt and benefits.

To test the efficacy of a call center, a Citizens Advice Bureaux in Surrey placed a call center on behalf of an elderly individual. The respective call center did not respond, and after a series of automated options were given to the caller, the line simply went dead.

Another example was that of a single mother from Kent, who could not get any information when she enquired about an overpayment of a tax credit advice amounting to 1900 pounds sterling.

Researches into the level of falling patience and unsatisfied consumers reveals there are a number of factors involved. For example, a rise in the number of calls by approximately 20 percent per annum is one of the causes for consumers to loose patience. These researches revealed that once a consumer listens to the welcome message, they simply hang up after an average of 65 seconds of listening to pre-recorded music.

Another reasons for the rise in consumer dissatisfaction, as surveyed by an IT firm M/s Diemont Data, was consumer demand or the idea that once they place a call to a call center for any information, it is their right to be responded immediately, and that the respondent must always be available.

Similar survey from the call center's perspective showed that there was a rise in customers abandoning calls, with statistics of 5 percent in 2003, to more than 13.3 percent during 2004. It was also found that one sixth of all callers abandoned the call rather than wait for a response from the call center. These figures did not take into account automated phone messaging systems which forced a caller through a number of options and messages, before a real life individual finally answered the call.

A possible factor for the lack of patience as cited by Diemont Data's Ms Diemont was that a number of callers placed their calls from mobile phones while they were moving about. Such calls placed while they were on the move, more than increased their chances of abandoning a call, as the respective individual may be engaged in a number of activities, such as driving, walking to the office, shopping, having a meal, and the list simply goes unchecked. Hence, the caller is immediately frustrated as he or she assumes that the call center respondent is at his or her entire disposal.

An important element in the rising number of complaints against call centers, and simultaneous rise in consumers not being attended or complied with their requisite information or queries is the lack of training of call center personnel.

A brief into the workings of the call center shows that when the call centers first commenced, their responsibilities were limited to providing information on mortgages as one example. With the immediate surge in call centers, the responsibilities of the call center respondents too has increased manifold, as they are equally required information about credit cards, insurance and current accounts. These activities may not have been part of the initial training of the respective call center employees, hence the lack of response rate.

A survey carried out by 'Dimension Data' showed that in 2003, the average induction time for a call center employee was approximately 36 days. This period has now been dropped to just 21 days, leaving the new entrants little choice to master and address all the needs of the customers. The result is a staff who is poorly trained and frustrated, in turn creating somewhat of a nuisance for the customers, not to mention a bad image for the respective business. This trend also means a high drop out rate amongst call center employees, with studies showing that approximately 25 percent of the callers leaving the field altogether. As a consequence, businesses have to face the additional costs of training new staff for call centers.

Related studies on resolution rates, rates at which a caller and client is mutually and fully satisfied are presently estimated at approximately 50 percent. This rate however rises to 70 percent as the call is passed on to a senior manager or a specialist of a particular discipline. The industry target for resolution rates is however much higher at 85 percent, thus showing prevalent resolutions to be less than requisite target.

Representatives at M/s Diemeont also opposed notions presented by a segment of call center industry that outsourcing call centers to developing countries such as India and China was one of the reasons for the falling respond rates, or lack of expertise in call center respondents. Ms. Diemont was of the view that there was no difference in waiting time nor for a call resolution when comparisons were made between performance levels of call centers in Europe and North America, or those located in India or China as few examples.

According to the Ms. Diemont, the performance of any call center largely depended on the respective management duly combined with the utilization of correct processes of management.

Business and Call Center Conflicts – A Brief On The International Perspective

M/s Diemont in collaboration with another survey organization conducted a survey of some 166 call centers in 24 countries of the world. The results of their findings provided significant evidence and support for not setting up an offshore call center, and instead focus and continue the operations of the call center within their home countries. Some of the salient findings of this survey are presented in the following lines.

The above survey carried out by M/s Diemont revealed and somewhat rejected the general notion that majority of the businesses opt for offshore call centers simply to cut back on costs and increase their revenues respectively. Though these are certainly strong set of triggers for moving businesses to offshore locations, however there are certainly some other considerations as well.

The said survey to this repeat revealed that only 42 percent of them showed interest in setting up businesses at offshore locations and closing domestic call center operations. Another 50 percent of those interviewed revealed that employees at offshore locations and countries such as India and China offered a much better set of services and skills in return for their foreign investments.

Yet another segment was somewhat against the establishment of offshore call centers citing a number of reasons for their decisions against offshore call centers. For example a survey of a segment of call centers showed that some two-thirds of all those researched totally disagreed against setting up an offshore facility such as the call center. Major reasons by this particular segment included the following.

One of the first reasons cited for not setting up an offshore call center was that their call center operations formed a 'core function' of their entire business, hence their choice against moving their core functional business facility outside their home country.

Second reason cited for not setting up an offshore call center abroad was security and the risks involved in moving a part of the principle business operations abroad.

An important reason for not moving the offshore call center operations to another country was the risks involved in damaging the brand of their services or products, which would evidently be case once the respective business is moved to an offshore location.

Conclusion
The above dissertation on the conflicts between offshore businesses and consumers or clients of call centers that obtain varied services and information from such call centers. The above dissertation thus provides comprehensive information from the US perspective, the European as well as the British point of view duly taking consideration the differing aspects, factors and reasons for such conflicts. The above dissertation also includes a particular study and addresses the British perspective from a number of avenues, including the business perspective as well as the consumers of British call centers.

The above dissertation thus leads us to conclude that though there would be a continuous rise in the offshore businesses, with particular growth in call centers. Yet, there will be a simultaneous rise in the differences and conflicts between consumers of call centers and offshore businesses. As also evident and discussed in the above sections of the dissertation, these conflicts, in particular complaints and issues of British consumers are already at a significantly high level. Though business, including those based in Britain will continue to focus on cost cutting and expansion measures and strive to establish offshore call centers.

However, consumer satisfaction and resolution factor continues to witness a downward slope, instead of rising. Some of the reasons for the continuous decline in consumer satisfaction, hence the rising conflict as deduced from the above dissertation include the following.

The inability of call center respondents to answer and address inquiries and issues, other than those listed in front of their check-list. This also implies significant wastage of time for consumers, not to mention the effort of not comprehending a caller's problem, thus creating a nuisance, and a somewhat dissatisfied caller.

Another frequently observed source of conflict for the caller is the time spent while holding on to the phone waiting for the right individual to attend the call. The automated options provided, such as instructions for pressing a selected number and routing the call, makes the consumer even more furious. One can imagine the frustration for the consumer, who even after getting to the right person, finally finds out that the requisite information of service is unavailable.

One of the more economical reasons found to be a principle factor in the rise of abandoned calls, and frustrated consumers was the shift from the toll-free number of 0800 to 0870 and 090, where the caller has to pay for each call. One can imagine the level of rising frustration and a truly source of nuisance, where first you have to pay for the call, and then fail to get the required information or assistance; not to mention the time wasted for holding on for the concerned respondent to reply.

An equally disturbing aspect is observed from the caller's point of view. A call center respondent has to listen to all sorts of conversation, which is all the more hurting if the same turns into scandalous. A simple observation would show that if such a conversation was carried out on the street, it would be pretty difficult not to hit the consumer. Worse still are cases when the call center respondent is right about the information, has presented correct calculations, and provided detailed and appropriate information to the consumer. Yet, in response he or she hears abuses such as 'idiot', or the likes of such abuses, truly turning a perfectly normal conversation into an unhealthy one, hence the emergence of a severe conflict.

Whether it is the fault of the call center respondents, inexperienced call center employees, disgruntled and impatient consumers waiting to blow the head of the call respondent; the most ethical and normal attitude for both the consumers as well as the call center employees would be to stay calm. A polite, calm, and requesting consumer with a thankful attitude can easily win over the attention of the call center employee. There are 9 out of 10 chances that in response, the call center employee would go out of the way to assist and help out the respective caller, consumer and duly raise the resolution factor for both the businesses as well as the consumers or clients of call centers. For the businesses too, they could well integrate automated communication facilities. Such state of the art set of communication duly note down a caller’s number and instead of the caller waiting for someone to attend the call,  the automatic responder could immediately call back. Such integration of modern technology would not only transfer the expenses of the call to the respective call center; it would also serve to win over the confidence of their consumers.

References

Youndon, E., Introduction to Outsourcing; Sample Chapter is provided courtesy of Prentice Hall PTR, 2004,

Robinson, M., and Kalakota, R., Offshore Outsourcing: Will Your Job Disappear in 2004, Article is provided courtesy of Addison Wesley,

Youndon, E., Outsourcing: Likely Trends for the Next Decade, Sample Chapter is provided courtesy of Prentice Hall PTR., 2004,

Read, B. B., Complying with Change :Call centers face new national and ongoing state regulations. Here's what to look for and tips on how to comply with them,

Gore, A., The Future of Outsourcing: September 11, 2011, 2003, and available at
By Alan Gore.

Harvard, M., Choosing and using your call center outsourcing supplier,
CEO, Outsourcing Insight Ltd., written for the
Online Journal Archive, 2000

Corbett, M. F., Firmbuilder.com issue of March 18 2003, and updated on
April 5, 2005,

BBC News World Edition, ‘Campaign rings call center perks’ issue of 25 January, 2005

BBC News World Edition, ‘Call center jobs moved to India’ issue of 10 January, 2005

Additional Readings
Glick, B., ‘Enormous savings are being made by UK firms who buy IT services overseas, and offshore suppliers are experiencing a sales boom. But what does it mean for UK IT?’, written for “Computing” issue of 13 February 2003,

Morgan, G., ‘UK cannot ignore offshore outsourcing; An economic necessity for three-quarters of enterprises by 2005, written for the vnunet.com issue of 17 April, 2003

Economist, ‘Offshoring Promises Huge Benefits to Consumers’ issue of December 11 2003,