Daily BPO news alert 11/05/2006
BPO Business Intelligence
NEW CONTRACTS NEWS FLASH
IBM Japan Awarded SANYO BTO
Contract
IBM Japan has won a business transformation outsourcing (BTO)
contract with SANYO Electric, a Japan-headquartered consumer products
manufacturer, for the transformation and management of its HR and payroll
functions. The duration and financial terms of the contract have not been
disclosed. Under the terms of the contract, IBM will standardize and centralize
SANYO Electric's HR and payroll operations, including staff and benefits
administration. IBM will execute the contract through its delivery centers in
Japan and China. As part of the contract, about 60 payroll and HR employees of
SANYO Electric and SANYO Associate Group will be transferred to IBM.
COMPANY NEWS FLASH
ACS Establishes a New Center in
Malaysia
ACS, the US-headquartered IT and BPO services provider, has
announced establishment of a new facility in CyberJaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
The new 13,500 square feet facility currently houses 400 employees and intends
to increase the employee base of the facility to 700 by 2007. The facility
provides network and desktop engineering solutions, application management
systems, mainframe support, and system engineering, customer care, and HR
services.
Sapient 1Q ’06 Service Revenues Reach
$88.4Mn, Up 15%
Sapient, a US-headquartered IT services provider, has
reported a 15 percent increase in its 1Q 2006 service revenues over 1Q 2005 to
reach USD 88.4 million. The company however reported a 1Q 2006 operating loss of
USD 2.566 million. The company’s net loss for the quarter was USD 0.897 million.
The revenues from the US operations grew 31 percent year-on-year.
NEW INDUSTRY NEWS FLASH
Procurement and FAO Strategies
Beginning to Converge – Study
According to FAO Research, the
proportion of procurement outsourcing element in the finance and accounting
outsourcing (FAO) contracts is increasing. The report observed a 33 percent rise
in the number of companies considering including procurement services as a part
of FAO contracts. The function of procurement is usually handled internally in
most of the companies by a dedicated team of sourcing experts. However, the
report highlights that with increasing participation of chief financial officers
in procurement and sourcing strategies, outsourcing is gaining ground. The main
drivers propelling the trend are improved financial performance, better process
efficiency, and access to specialized expertise. There has been a potential 100
percent increase in the number of FAO contracts involving procurement services
in this year compared with those signed in 2004 and 2005 combined. The report
finds that IBM has won most of the full-scale procurement outsourcing contracts,
with Accenture closely succeeding. ACS, Capgemini, EDS and HP are other main
players in this field.
Retain IT SEZ area at 10 hectares:
EGoM
The commerce ministry has had its way on SEZ guidelines with the
empowered group of ministers (EGoM) agreeing to its proposal to retain the
minimum area for IT and biotech zones at 10 hectares. This clears the way for
commencement of work on nearly 70 SEZs which were caught in a policy dispute
between the commerce and finance ministries. North Block had opposed the move to
fix the minimum floor area at 10 hectares saying that it would encourage a
scramble by normal units to pass themselves off as SEZs to avail of tax
benefits. It had instead suggested that the floor area be fixed at 25 hectares.
Emerging from the meeting, commerce minister Kamal Nath didn’t try to sound
triumphant and refused to confirm that the GoM had agreed to the commerce
ministry’s stipulation of what should be the minimum size of IT and biotech SEZ.
“By and large all issues have been satisfactorily resolved... SEZs are a vehicle
for investment and increased employment opportunities. On minimum size issue,
the planning commission has given some views and the ministry of commerce will
issue clarifications in a couple of days,” he said.
After SEZs, govt plans to set up
SER
The government is planning to develop Special Economic Regions, which
could include Special Economic Zones or industrial parks, in a bid to attract
investments into the country, a top government official said. The main
difference between SERs and SEZs would be that the state and central government
would develop the necessary infrastructure in the regions where private
companies can then set up units, Ajay Dua, Secretary in the Department of
Industrial Policy and Promotion, said here after releasing a study on SEZs by
industry chamber Assocham. The proposal was at a conceptual stage but the plan
is to set up five-six such regions in the country, he said, adding the
government was looking at whether it would require a separate law or a policy
resolution would suffice. The logic of setting up such regions was that the
government alone cannot attract the huge investment required in various sectors
to sustain a high economic growth, he said.
OTHER INDUSTRY NEWS FLASH
Malaysia's Navis to buy Nirula's for
Rs 90 cr
Start getting nostalgic about Nirula’s. After being in the market
for a year or so, the country’s original western-style fast food chain, Nirula’s
is finally tying up with Malaysia-based Navis Capital Partners to sell its
operations. According to sources, the deal is said to be in the range of Rs
85-90 crore. Sources say that the home-grown fast food chain was struggling to
find a buyer for some time, primarily due to the high asking price. The asking
price was said to be much in excess of Rs 100 crore. For Nirula’s the deal comes
after negotiations with Ravi Jaipuria and Phillipines-based Jollibee failed to
take off. At one point it was also considering the possibility of an IPO. When
contacted by ET, the Nirula's spokesperson refused to comment. Navis is not new
to the foods business. It is the largest shareholder in the Hong Kong-based KFC
franchisee company — Birdland’s. Besides, it also has recently invested in
Dunkin’ Donuts. It made its first investment in India in ‘04 by accquiring one
of the largest airline catering companies.
Regards
Anish
Agarwal
Mob: 09811801202