KPO industry to hit $10 billion by 2012 - It's about professionals. And pay

By Harsha Pramod @ Tuesday, June 17, 2008 1:36 PM

Section - Outsourcing/Outsourcing

The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) report 'Future Course of KPO Industry’ has predicted that the Indian knowledge outsourcing (KPO) industry will grow to $10 billion by 2012.

According to the report, the KPO industry will develop at the rate of 25% to 27% supported by a base of qualified professionals, and bringing in biotechnology and nanotechnology experts.

At present, the KPO industry is dominated by the management, medical and engineering professionals and is projected to be at $4billion and has expanded around 15% in the last couple of years.

Assocham estimates that the KPO industry will need highly educated professionals in engineering, medicine, management, accountancy and law. The number of employees is estimated to be more than 100,000 by 2012.

According to Assocham, the KPO industry has an edge over the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry as it is more appealing to professionals and the pay packages are also 12% to 15% higher. The industry also offers attractive entry level salaries.

Assocham states that the Indian industry faces stiff competition from other countries. The industry needs to focus on providing quality services and form associations with major financial service organizations to enhance profitability.

The study highlighted the fact that overseas clients are hesitant about Indian companies handling sensitive data as they do not have necessary security frameworks for the purpose. It has also been observed that those companies that opt for such measures have lost their competitive edge due to increase in cost. X