The SSON Daily News: November 29, 2013

November 29, 2013 More on the UBS procurement outsourcing decision The announcement that financial services giant UBS are to outsource their procurement operations to a new venture, chain IQ, caused some interest last week. Moving on form the issues it threw up around the lead investor in the new business, it was also interesting in the sense that UBS chose to go with a start up when they could have chosen from what is now a pretty strong range of existing firms. You can start with an immediate short list of IBM, Accenture / Procurian, Xchanging, Cap Gemini and Proxima and take it from there really. TCS bags outsourcing contract from Npower Energy provider Npower, a subsidiary of German giant RWE, announced plans to cut about 1,460 jobs in Britain and outsource customer service operations to India. November 28, 2013 BPO talents urged to develop ‘higher value chain’ skill sets Talents in the country's business process outsourcing industry were urged to move up to the higher value chain to meet abrupt changes in the sector. 2014 Trends to Watch: Front-Office BPO report With the dynamic nature of the technology and services markets, Ovum expects contact center outsourcing vendors and their clients to diversify their services, for the use of home-based agents to increase in the US, for healthcare to become the prime vertical opportunity, and for a new offshore dynamic to emerge in 2014. KPMG: UK firms say they outsource to improve customer service, not just save money UK companies are using outsourcing to improve customer service, not just save money, according to analysis of £10 billion-worth of 490 UK outsourcing contracts by consulting firm KPMG. Stream Global Services in Dublin Receives Prestigious 'Team of the Year' Award Stream Global Services today announced that its Dublin-based service centers were among the winners and finalists during this month's CCMA Irish Contact Centre and Shared Services Awards. Stream-Dublin took top honors in the ‘Team of the Year' category, recognizing one of the company's teams that supports a leading brand name in computer hardware and peripherals. Stream was also a finalist in three other award categories. November 27, 2013 McCurrach FS: Increased demand for outsourcing anticipated The majority of financial product providers anticipate there will be an increase in the outsourcing of sales and business development within the next five years. Report suggests biopharma wise to outsource cybersecurity The rise of cybersecurity threats gives biopharma and other industries a new and unfamiliar problem that they are ill-equipped to handle alone. In response, an increasing number of biopharma companies are outsourcing cybersecurity activities, a strategy that has been vindicated by a new report. After IBM Daksh, Concentrix scouting for more acquisitions Concentrix, which graduated overnight to one of the largest business process outsourcing employers in India with its acquisition of IBM Daksh, finds the margins that IBM scorned very attractive and is scouting for more acquisitions. Tesco consolidates global datacentres into UK shared service Tesco is six months away from completing a three-year programme to deliver a single datacentre operation to support UK and international operations. Sundaram Finance BPO arms bags new orders Sundaram Business Services today said that it has bagged two Multi Year BPO deals in Australia. The value of the deals was not disclosed by the company. As per the agreement it will provide back office Pension Fund Administration services for two large decades old Melbourne based Accounting Firms. November 26, 2013 35,000 new jobs expected in ParaÃ²aque The ParaÃ²aque government sees brighter employment prospects in the city in the following year, with a casino resort and business process outsourcing (BPO) companies expected to open in the next 12 months. HP Closes the Book on 2013, but 2014 Doesn’t Look Much Better Hewlett-Packard, the computing and IT giant that is heading into its third year of a multiyear turnaround effort will post quarterly earnings after the markets close on Tuesday. It will be the first quarter reported since the company held its annual meeting with financial analysts about six week ago. As such, there shouldn’t be many surprises. But this is HP, and its last few years have been marked by a long-ish string of mostly negative surprises. Ibex Davao to serve 6 more international clients IBEX Global Solutions, the newest player in Davao City's booming Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry, will be servicing six more international accounts starting next month. Xerox focus for FY14 will continue to be SMBs India is a growth market for all these three businesses. Though the traditional printing business is flat globally but in India it is growing steadily. Outsourcing To India Pays Off, For Some Outsourcing IT and BPO work to the Indian Subcontinent has been a lucrative cost-cutting strategy for many Western multinational companies since the 90s. But, with emerging, competing markets in this space, and a backlash against outsourcing on the home front, is India still worth the time and effort? Analyst: UK leads Europe in public sector outsourcing Global public sector outsourcing outpaced the private sector by 46 per cent in Q3 this year, with the UK playing a major role, according to figures from Information Services Group (ISG). Most wealth managers are contemplating outsourcing Most wealth managers are looking to outsource some parts of their businesses in the next five years, according to business outsourcing and research giant Equiniti. November 25, 2013 Silah key speaker at Dubai forum Bahrain-based Silah Gulf, a multi-award winning contact centre and business process outsourcing (BPO) company, is taking part as a key speaker at the Shared Services and Outsourcing Week Middle East. Outsourcing boom: Cloudstaff raises $500,000 from investors Cloudstaff, an Australian outsourcing start-up based in Manila, has raised $500,000 from three local investors Robert Whyte, Trevor Kennedy and serial entrepreneur, Bevan Slattery. November 22, 2013 PEs drive consolidation in BPOs, IT services Private Equity investors are playing a key role in consolidation in IT Services and BPO sector. In 2013 so far, there have been five deals worth $1,132.87 million against one deal each in 2012 and 2011 worth little over $1,122 million. The space could see few more big ticket deals in the coming years as the BPO sector expects to touch $50 billion revenue by 2020. Sri Lanka to give tax concessions for new BPO firms Sri Lanka is planning to give A 5-year half tax holiday to promote the establishments of new BPO firms either in partnerships or similar forms to cater to the international market. Business outsourcing incentives ‘to expand’ Incentives for foreign companies setting up call centres and other business processing operations in South Africa have been so successful that they will be extended and increased, says Yusuf Timol, economic minister in the South African High Commission in London. Danish outsourcing firm ISS aims for March 2014 listing-sources Danish outsourcing firm ISS is aiming to make its third attempt to join the stock market as early as next March, three sources familiar with the matter said. November 21, 2013 Infosys and BT win outsourcing award The National Outsourcing Association has presented Infosys and BT with the 2013 award for excellence in telecommunication, utilities and hi-tech outsourcing. LÃ´dz office market still offers competitive rental conditions Colliers International has published another report of a series concerning office market in Polish regional cities, this time about LÃ´dz. Cisco to Launch Shared Services Center in Mexico City Cisco has set about building a shared services center in Mexico City to bolster its capacity to service customers in the Spanish-speaking countries of Latin America. The center, slated to be launched sometime in 2014, may generate hundreds of jobs over the coming years. November 20, 2013 Genpact bags 5-yr deal with US IT ops of CA-CIB BPO major Genpact today said it has bagged a five-year, multi-million dollar services deal to manage the US IT operations for Credit Agricole CIB (CA-CIB). BPO units of IT firms growing twice as fast as standalone ones For the first time in many years, the business process outsourcing (BPO) units of top Indian software companies such as Tata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS) have grown revenue twice as fast as companies such as Genpact Ltd and WNS (Holdings) Ltd that only provide back-office services, an indication that clients want bundled technology services that only the larger firms can provide. Cloud Based IT Outsourcing Surpasses the In-House IT Infrastructures By 2015 Cloud computing and cloud hosting is progressing very aggressively during the last few years; the adoption of cloud based services, resources and infrastructure is more than 35% at present – but it is anticipated to cross the 50% mark by the next couple of years. At present many corporations are maintaining their own in-house IT infrastructures but they are moving very aggressively to transform their in-house infrastructure to cloud based resources. This is suggested by a recent research study conducted by SAVVIS – a CenturyLink company. Suncorp to outsource IT jobs in efficiency drive Suncorp Group is looking at outsourcing more than 40 technology jobs, including its networks, telephony and facilities functions, as the insurance giant ramps up its use of third-party providers across the business. November 19, 2013 Malaysian Employers Turn to Outsourcing over Talent Shortage More than six in 10 (66 per cent) of Malaysian employers will consider outsourcing all or part of their organisation's recruitment and talent strategy in the next five years to gain access to niche and hard-to-find talent. TCS vs Genpact: BPO rankings may change with narrowing revenue gap The pecking order of the country’s top two business process outsourcing (BPO) companies is likely to witness a change shortly. With the quarterly revenue gap between the current leader Genpact and second in rank Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) narrowing to just about $4 million during the recently concluded September quarter, the race between the two companies has acquired a new spirit. Significantly, a year ago, the gap in BPO revenue between the two was around $17 million. Bristol outsourcing company Mitie increases profits Mitie saw its profits after tax and other deductions rise to £31.8 million, from £27.5 million for the same period the year before. Infosys North America Utilities head Stephen Pratt quits In another senior-level exit at Infosys, head of utilities and resources for North America Stephen R Pratt has quit the firm. He will be replaced by Infosys Americas regional head (energy and services) Alexandre Elvis Rodrigues. AGC Networks appoints CFO AGC Networks, a subsidiary of Essar Group’s BPO arm Aegis, has appointed V. Srinivasa Raghavan as Chief Financial Officer. Cyber City rents soar, BPO major moves out Outsourcing giant Convergys has left its iconic ship-shaped building in Cyber City and moved to a new office on Sohna Road after rents in the IT hub appreciated sharply in anticipation of Rapid Metro's launch. November 18, 2013 Canada outsourcing row may hit Indian IT Tata Consultancy Services Ltd , Infosys Ltd and iGate Corp. , which are facing a political backlash in Canada on concerns that jobs are being shipped overseas, may have to wait till at least the middle of 2014 before top banks and financial services firms in the north American nation decide on farming out work to Indian software services providers, experts say. East Africa's vast outsourcing potential East Africa is on the worldwide business radar thanks to the region's dominant tourism industry and wealth of natural resources. Outsourcing is proving itself to be an industry that offers East African countries the chance to export the services of their people to the world in a way that tourism and natural resources don't. Companies outsourcing mobile device management spend less per mobile device The 8th Annual Runzheimer International Total Employee Mobility (TEM) Benchmarking Report shows that companies using outsourced mobile device services spend 47 percent less than companies who manage their programs internally. The report also reveals that 67 percent of companies do not outsource their mobile device management program. Capita chief Pindar to step down after 26 years Capita (CPI.L) Chief Executive Paul Pindar is to step down in early 2014 after 26 years at the firm, leaving Britain's largest outsourcing company at a key time as the sector comes under increasing scrutiny. PHL, South Korea open techno, co-op center THERE is a huge demand for business-process outsourcing (BPO) in the country that the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) is willing to train prospective students in animation, health information, call center, medical transcription, games development, among others. Silah Appoints Rami Sweis As New Chief Commercial Officer Manama, Bahrain: Bahrain-headquartered Silah Gulf (Silah), a multi-award winning contact centre and BPO company, has recently announced the appointment of Rami Sweis as its new Chief Commercial Officer. With over 15 years' industry experience Rami will be responsible for the commercial activities at Silah, including sales, marketing and business development across the Middle East region. By managing strategic sales channels, Rami will be focusing on expanding the Silah portfolio of services to clients within the GCC region and other international markets. Rami has had extensive experience in the GCC specifically working in Saudi Arabia, Oman and the UAE across verticals including financial services, telecoms and BPOs. November 15, 2013 BPOs consider Davao for backup Erriberto P. Barriga, Jr., executive vice-president of the Information and Communications Technology Association-Davao, said the city has been identified as a good backup site for companies that need redundant infrastructure facilities. Data Dimensions to open new data center in Iowa Janesville-based Data Dimensions will move its Clinton, Iowa, plant to a new state-of-the-art data center. The new, high-security building in Clinton is home to business process outsourcing (BPO) facility. At 29, 412 square feet, it is nearly twice the size of the company’s previous Clinton facility, with room to accommodate up to 450 employees. NAO: Outsourcing contracts "lack transparency" Outsourced public contracts face insufficient public scrutiny and competition, and may not offer value for money, the National Audit Office has warned. November 14, 2013 Nigeria: 'Nigeria Can Create Five Million Jobs From Outsourcing in Five Years' The Nigeria Association of Information Technology Enabled Outsourcing Companies (NAITEOC) said Nigeria could create five million direct and indirect jobs from outsourcing in five years. London police to consider outsourcing 500 million pounds of services London's Metropolitan Police said on Wednesday it will consider outsourcing services from custody healthcare to catering worth 500 million pounds a year to help save money. ProCons-4it, BIG Holding in ERP solution shared services agreement ProCons-4it, a leading business consulting and IT services organization providing value added IT solutions, has signed an agreement with Beyout Investment Group (BIG) Holding - a diversified group with interests across different business lines and sectors, to implement a new Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)] solution for its Shared Services Model. November 13, 2013 Arrow and Infosys BPO to Jointly Market IT Asset Lifecycle Management Services Arrow Electronics Inc., a global provider of electronic components and enterprise computing solutions, and Infosys BPO today announced an agreement to jointly market comprehensive services for information technology asset lifecycle management to their US clients. Arrow and Infosys will provide end-to-end IT asset management services, including procurement, deployment and configuration, support, and decommissioning and disposition of assets. Gap Inc. leaving Downtown ABQ to North 1-25 corridor Gap Inc.’s Corporate Shared Services Center is leaving Downtown Albuquerque after 12 years for the Journal Center. Shared services will help UT do more work more efficiently For more than two decades, state funding at the University of Texas at Austin has been in decline, shrinking from 47 percent of the University’s budget in 1984-1985 to only 13 percent today. Although tuition has risen, our undergraduate resident tuition remains low, ranking second lowest in 2012-13 out of a 12-institution national comparison group. ACT-IAC Releases the Smart Lean Government Practical Guide The American Council for Technology and Industry Advisory Council (ACT-IAC) Planning & Architecture (P&A) Shared Interest Group (SIG) published the Smart Lean Government (SLG) Practical Guide. This three-volume guide proposes a novel approach to design and deliver government shared services that supports the President’s call for a smarter, more efficient government. Peter Wilson, Chair of the P&A SIG stated, "We are very excited to share the ideas in the SLG Practical Guide. It describes how agencies can collaborate, cut costs and really focus on meeting the needs of citizens. November 12, 2013 Infosys BPO Expands Global Presence with New Center in the Netherlands Infosys BPO, the business process outsourcing subsidiary of Infosys, today announced the opening of a new delivery center in Eindhoven, the Netherlands. The 120-seat center strengthens Infosys BPO’s global footprint and reinforces its position in Europe. Infosys board member V Balakrishnan sells 100000 shares for Rs 33 crore Infosys board member V Balakrishnan sold 1 lakh equity shares in the company on Thursday via the open market for Rs 33 crore. Public sector paid big four outsourcing firms £4bn last year, NAO reveals More than £4bn of taxpayer funds was paid out last year to four of Britain's largest outsourcing contractors – Serco, Capita, Atos and G4S – prompting concerns that controversial firms have become too big to fail, according to the National Audit Office. In the cloud: Mitel, Aastra form outsourcing giant Betting that businesses are more interested in renting than buying software and online storage space, two of Canada’s biggest cloud computing companies are joining forces to create a home-grown competitor to companies such as Oracle and Google. Europe Now Leads Global Outsourcing Market Share: Everest Group Market Vista Report Europe now comprises the largest share of the global outsourcing market, with a 43 percent share, based on Q3 data. The U.S. holds 35 percent of the market. Additionally, the region scored the two largest megadeals (those valued at US$1 billion and up) signed in the third quarter of this year. November 11, 2013 Many foreign firms seen expanding PH operations Multinational firms operating in the Philippines are poised to expand their operations and increase investments, following the successful trade and investment mission of the Department of Trade and Industry over the past months. Aegis to recruit 3,000 for India biz Aegis, the BPO arm of the $39-billion Essar Group, will recruit 3,000 new employees for its India-focused business by the end of the current fiscal. Push for contracts in Indian rupee add to pressure on $18-billion BPO industry) The health of India’s $18-billion business process outsourcing (BPO) industry, which is battling margin pressure and diminishing cost arbitrage, is set to take a further hit as clients are now pushing for contracts in Indian rupee rather than the US dollar. The trend, if it gains traction, is likely to skew the topline of BPO firms which have been enjoying the benefits of earning in dollars while most of the expenses were in rupee. November 8, 2013 Brandix collaborates with Accenture on BPO services Accenture has signed an agreement with Brandix, the largest exporter of apparel in Sri Lanka, to provide Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) services for human resources, finance and accounting and procurement. Unisys Positioned in "Leaders" Quadrant in 2013 End-User Outsourcing Services, North America Magic Quadrant Report Unisys Corporation today announced that it has been positioned in the "Leaders" quadrant in the Gartner, Inc. 2013 Magic Quadrant for End-User Outsourcing Services, North America. SLK Global BPO Awarded Top ITES Performer from Bangalore, India SLK Global BPO, a leading business process management company, received a prestigious award from STPI (Software Technology Parks of India) under the category of "Highest Growth in Exports – IT / ITES" for the financial year 2012-13. Scotiabank Strikes Oil in Trinidad The twin island republic of Trinidad & Tobago has until recently not been on the radar of many BPO or SSC operations, but this may be changing. After previous false starts, the government has now sustained a serious long-term effort to diversify the economy beyond its traditional pillar of petroleum exports. To further that effort, the government has established the Trinidad & Tobago International Financial Centre with the goal of making "Trinidad & Tobago the premier location in the Western Hemisphere for financial services." November 7, 2013 New outsourcing center to develop cost-saving schemes for Russian ministries A top business institute in Moscow is hoping to mimic the success of a pioneer outsourcing experiment in Perm by launching a national outsourcing research center to study best practices and develop recommendations to government agencies for future projects. University of Michigan to cut HR and financial services staff in consolidation The University of Michigan is cutting staff and centralizing its human resources and financial services in an effort to reduce costs. The idea is to streamline certain functions by offering them in one place —a Shared Services Center. Stream Global Services Announces Financial Results for Third Quarter Ended September 30, 2013 Stream Global Services, Inc., a leading global business process outsource (BPO) service provider specializing in customer relationship management, including technical support, customer care and sales programs for Fortune 1000 companies, today announced consolidated financial results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2013. Accenture partners with NSDC to train Jammu & Kashmir youth for BPO industry IT firm Accenture on Wednesday said it has partnered with National Skills Development Corporation (NSDC) for an integrated, multi-year skills development programme to train 3,300 youth from Jammu and Kashmir in the next 5 years. November 6, 2013 Astellas Signs Agreement with Accenture to Deliver Business Process Outsourcing to Multiple Business Areas Accenture has signed an agreement with Astellas Pharma Inc. to provide business process outsourcing services for multiple business functions. BPO sector set to grow as Adec enters market Kenya’s efforts to become a business process outsourcing and sustainability centre received a major boost yesterday after an international provider of customised onshore and offshore outsourcing solutions opened office in Nairobi. Cognizant beats estimates as Obamacare boosts revenue IT services firm Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp reported a better-than-expected 22 percent rise in revenue, helped by contracts from insurers setting up online exchanges as part of President Barack Obama's healthcare reforms. Aegis signs 5-year deal with Bank of India Aegis has entered into a 5 year partnership with Bank of India for Customer Relationship Management. Aegis launched a new 250 seat delivery center in Mumbai purely focused around Banking and Financial Services clients. Feds outline aggressive Shared Services transformation timeline Attendees at the recent GTEC conference in Ottawa got an inside look at the federal government’s aggressive timelines for government-wide move to shared services and overhaul of its technology platforms, from e-mail to security and networking. November 5, 2013 BPO companies turning to Cebu – property consultant CBRE Business process outsourcing (BPO) companies are slowly shifting toward Cebu City, given the lower cost of doing business in the Central Philippine area, property consultancy CBRE Philippines said. Itec Group launches Itec Shared Services With the office automation, software, PBX and telecommunications industry rapidly evolving, companies in this market must continuously innovate and change with shifting client requirements to stay competitive. In light of this, Itec has launched Itec Shared Services – an amalgamation of key service delivery divisions of Itec Holdings and Itec Connect. China Still Best Choice for Global Outsourcing China is still the best choice for global manufacture outsourcing, U.S. experts at the 14th U.S.-China Chamber of Commerce's Trade Conference in Chicago on Monday. November 4, 2013 13 agencies, 30,000 users poised for desktop-as-a-service in New Zealand New Zealand’s all-of-government approach to ICT procurement is starting to deliver, with five agencies poised to shift their internal desktops onto new shared services. TA explores prospect of outsourcing ATE Tourism Australia is exploring the possibility of outsourcing Australian Tourism Exchange (ATE) following a widespread review of its activities.

The SSON Daily News: November 29, 2013

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