Which Pune BPOs retain Agents?
By Andrew

Pune is one IT-ITES hub, which like its counter parts in Bangalore and Hyderabad, has only been growing from strength to strength.  Pune is a highly regarded education hub and so is well placed to feed the increasing demands of the booming BPO industry.  According to HR firm Teamlease, Pune, with a five point raise in recruitment, led all its competitors in the country.

After a slow down in hiring during the global recession, the Pune BPO’s have now launched strong recruitment drives.  Today, there is a shortage of Agents and employees in most BPO’s across Pune.  According to a senior HR manager who has just moved to Gurgaon, Pune based BPO’s like Wipro, Mphasis, Syntel KPO and Aegis have a constant shortage of employees.

On the flip side, Pune based BPO’s like WNS, IBM, 3 Global Services and Convergys have successful recruitment and retention programs.  Their attrition is low. Both Convergys and 3 Global have started using outdoor advertising via hoardings and other forms of mobile ads.  3 Global is even planning to set up HR Kiosks at youth hangout places.

One common thread among BPO’s like Wipro that have high attrition rates is that they pay less.

While companies like Wipro have been recruiting through campus interviews, many Pune based BPO’s have started pushing for direct hiring and employee referrals to make it most cost effective.  According to an insider, companies like Convergys, IBM and 3G have been paying consultants upto Rs. 30,000 for each employee.

So, what are the attrition rates of the major BPO’s based in Pune?  Techgoss understands that the 3 Global attrition is under 6% while IBM and WNS range between 11% - 13 %.

The attrition rate in Wipro has crossed 20% in the last 2 quarters and that's the reason why Wipro can no longer afford the services of independent HR consultants. Wipro has set up their own hiring and training outpost right in the city center of Pune. No transport costs are borne by the company as it is the dead center of the town. Wipro has the highest attrition rates during basic and On The Job training.

Aegis has attrition rates of around 16% which might seem understandable as the company has only recently started its expansion drive in Pune. But what is mind-boggling is that, unlike their local rivals, Aegis has no permanent tie ups with HR firms.  Aegis completely relies on walk in intreviews through their newspaper advertisements.