Attrition in Indian Call Centres

HIGH LEVELS OF ATTRITION IN THE INDIAN INTERNATIONAL CALL CENTRE INDUSTRY- “Generating higher levels of employee commitment in call centres is a critical factor to their successful operation. A high level of employee commitment in an organization can have beneficial consequences, resulting in lower absenteeism, higher performance and lower employee turnover (Mathieu and Zajac, 1990). Research also identifies commitment as a consequence of personal variables, role clarity and supportive working environment. By understanding the antecedents of employee commitment and its importance to an organisation’s growth, managers can more effectively organize and supervise employees.” (David McGuire, Lauren McLaren, (2009) Apart from the above there are myriad other factors; internal and external that influence employees on continuing with their current job or make them want to quit and move onto take up jobs elsewhere but there is also the third category of employees who are unsure of what they want to do when it comes to choosing between leaving or remaining a part of the organization. Past research work by intellectuals in this field clearly states that when employees make up their minds about quitting their jobs, it is more likely than not that they will leave inspite of what course of action the management/supervisors/team leaders take to retain them. From this, it is evident that the strategic and tactical management in any organization, leave alone the call centre industry ought to be well informed about causes of employee turnover and be equipped to deal with the aftermath; or must device a well laid out plan to prevent such a scenario. Instead, with good training and development provided to team leaders and supervisors, including other staff in areas that require improvement; the organization could not only reduce levels of absenteeism, labour turnover, deviant and unethical behaviour but would also be successful in captivating the

References: Phil Taylor and Peter Bain (2008), “United by a Common Language? Trade Union Responses in the UK and India to Call Centre Offshoring” , Vol 40 Iss 1 pg. 131- 154 Sagar Chakraverty (2006), “Employee attrition in IT/BPO Sector: Cost and Consequences” Shilpa Surana, Anup K. Singh (2009), “The effect of emotional labour on job burnout among call-centre Customer Service Representatives in India” International Journal of Work Organisation and Emotion , Vol 3 Iss 1 pg. 18- 39 BIBLIOGRAPHY-