Dated 15th Jan. 2003

An interview with Mr. Venkataraman, Head HR, Brigade Corporation India Pvt Ltd.

What do you look for in the people you seek to recruit?

We recruit graduates who are strong in written and spoken communication with the right attitude - committed and motivated.

Has the number of applicants gone up or down of late? On an average how long does an employee stay in his job?

The number of applicants has always been high but due to the IT downswing, there has been a considerable increase in applicants mostly from the software development side. We are a four-year-old company and the average tenure of an employee has been around two years.

How do you keep up staff morale and motivation at the call centre?

We have an informal, non-hierarchical work environment. Our motto is - work hard and play hard. We are a transparent company and our intra- communication system is very strong, cutting across the board. Our welfare initiatives are driven towards developing a bond not just between associates but also between his family and the organisation. We conduct several fun activities, such as - happy hours, birthday bashes, sports activities and other cultural events to ensure that the associates have sufficient fun at work.

Has your centre carried out any research on motivation levels at the workplace?

We regularly conduct `Climate/Satisfaction' surveys to understand the impact of various initiatives taken by the management. This acts as a feedback mechanism with respect to the morale and motivation of associates.

How do you enhance staff motivation in: recruitment/ training/ workplace environment etc?

In my opinion, work environment coupled with the right attitude amongst associates would help keep the motivation levels high. There is no doubt that the right salary with an equal mix of developmental programmes is important.

What is a typical working day like?

As on date, we have close to 400 associates working with the company. We work 24/7, 365 days. Each shift is for nine hours with a one-hour break for lunch/dinner and coffee/tea. Shifts start with a Beginning Of Shift [BOS] meeting wherein the highlights of the previous shift are discussed. We provide lunch and dinner. Snacks are also served during breakfast, teatime and at midnight. Soft drinks / hot beverages are made available round the clock.

Are employees required to answer a certain number of calls per hour? If so, how many?

Being an email call centre and working on a rapid response system, we have internal productivity norms, which vary from programme to programme. The productivity also depends on incoming volume.

How stressful is the call centre environment?

There is a possibility that the uninitiated would consider the work here monotonous and stressful. But in reality it is quite interesting. The pressure is high because the response time forces you to think quickly on your feet. In my opinion, this makes work more interesting ! Also, this is one field where one gets direct feedback from the users of a product/service, which is very valuable for organisations. It is a challenge to keep the environment relatively free of pressure by proper scheduling, having development programmes and job rotation, all the while having fun at work.