Ireland will be the next Calcutta or Mumbai. Not trying to be a back-office Customer Care contact center mecca of the Western world. Which is probably just as well.
What does not want to do is to build its position as Europe's leading provider of next working phase of contact centers - contact center plus, if you like - serious offers technical support and a range of services provides a simple way out solutions for direct customer inquiries. Some are managed by outside suppliers, but most of the Irish managed company they serve.
Here, the staff dealing with all internal communication system for large, multi-national operations. They have to handle not only traditional Helpdesk calls, but the provision of technical support staff and business-to-business, dealing with issues such as employment, HR and sick leave, payroll systems, the company bills as well as enterprise communications policy and strategy, staff and customer information and intranet functions.
is now in its sophisticated telecommunications sector, Ireland has 66 contact centers a number of companies are 3Com, American Airlines, AOL, Dell, eBay, GE Insurance, Google, Hewlett Packard, IBM, MBNA, Oracle, Starwood Hotels, Symantec and Xerox -. and this is just an arbitrary pattern
These centers - the Europeans call them shared services centers, but most Americans will be more familiar with the concept of Managed Services - Ireland, where they see their growth potential, although the Irish have no intention of turning its back on ordinary contact center serving the investment banking and trading customers , for example.
technology is changing the product. Just answer the phone is not enough these days. To be successful, the clubs must lead the world in a variety of functions.
Customer response can affect the growth of Ireland's efforts
A recent survey of 1,000 UK adult contact center analyst ContactBabel found that 142 switched supplier because they use existing offshore services, while three in four said they felt more negatively towards their suppliers, if used off-shore funds .
Steve Morrell, principal analyst at ContactBabel said in a report: ". If UK companies do not address the concerns of its customers, the level of customer defection will increase and their profits will decline further,"
That's the problem - and for Ireland, an opportunity. In India, highly skilled, has attracted a reputation as a contact center, you may earn ten times the average wage, but still cost their employers only a tenth of European and U.S. based operation.
Hypothetically, this means that a typical bank with 12 million customers and revenues of $ 400 per user per year will save more than $ 17 million, replacing their expensive 1000 call center with 1,000 staff in India. The downside is that the same hypothetical bank would have only one percent of their customers to defect to another bank in protest that they have lost all those savings immediately.
"Ireland is the only native English-speaking member of the eurozone," said Brendan Haplin, International Media Manager at IDA, the Irish government agency seeking inward investment from around the world. "Ireland offers world-class advanced telecommunications infrastructure, which includes the vital capacity and bandwidth hosting, and we back it all with a substantial IDA support, both financial and practical ."
appeal? Language and low taxes?
Landscape in Ireland - the corporate and cultural - has attracted far more than his fair share of not only Europe but the U.S. business as well. "Ireland has been radically changed from 10 or 20 years," says Haplin. "We now have between 60 and 70 shared service centers that are multi-lingual, pan-European and transatlantic ."
We are talking about large companies the size and scope of IBM or Dell. In general, these organizations are extremely pleased with the quality of staff, quality of life and delivery of services that are found in Ireland. They bring in selected technical experts from government, and then use the local selection of staff for development and expansion of basic skills.
These large operators are evidence of success, not only because they remain there, but because they can point to significant cost reductions, increased efficiency, better quality customer service and a real drive in the sale, which ultimately brings better returns to shareholders.
Ireland, adds Haplin, offering an attractive package, together with a low corporate tax of only 12.5% are working hard to reduce bureaucracy and instead engineer a low-risk, quick start-up, high-performance economy of knowledge. "We have well-developed environment for call center operations and shared services, because we have all the basic ingredients in place: the skills and knowledge, experience and availability of IT literate and multilingual staff and a global strategic fit, which provides facilities for companies 'follow the sun' at 24 - hour model ."
population growth bodes well for employers
While Ireland may deserve a place on the shortlist of potential offshore locations today, what tomorrow? Will the right talent - just - to be available? According to Dr. William Harris, Director General of Science Foundation Ireland, the answer is a big 'yes'. "A key element in the creation of knowledge intangibles, such as expertise, insight, talent, passion, imagination and persistence.
, "Investment in these capabilities, we believe, the best indicator of the success of Ireland could not," says Harris. "Ireland has a wealth of young talent ready to science and engineering the next great wave of Irish innovation ."
Ireland is one of the few European countries, shows the increase in population, some 260,000 people, 12.6% of the total workforce, are employed in business services. While the population of workers declines in other countries, boding real problems to the next, Ireland seems to be rising young talent pool at par with that of the United States.
[sidebar] Irish Landscape: ready to compete
Ireland has changed and changed dramatically. Gone are those sad views lovelorn girl waving her tears, to forgive the people who are set for life in the New Worlds of America or Australia? They make their fortune and return to build a castle and raise a family in Kilkenny.
In recent decades, the Celtic Tiger was thrusting its way through the jungles of the world economy. He is getting plumper, healthier and more voracious with each paw print on it.
hospitable environment
quality of life is an incredible balance of breathtaking scenery and great leisure options. Golf, fishing, biking, camping, hiking and finding a deserted cove along the rugged coastline are just a few options to think about.
for the real estate is cheap (except in central Dublin) and land plentiful. Petrol is about half the price as in the UK and tax by 12.5% sitting with a 39.5% U.S. or the UK 30% While VAT is at 21 percent, will not have much impact on companies whose earnings are based on exports outside the EU and the government has simplified the paperwork. If 85 percent of its products or services for export, then you will be free, so no need to fill in forms for VAT refund.
The Irish are known - and rightly so -. For a warm welcome, and that extends not only to a pint of Guinness with a passing stranger, but those who came to stay longer
Unlike some of its European neighbors, the Irish do not resent the arrival of migrant workers, but welcome them with open arms as a real and useful addition to the local skills base.
Place and policies provide a balance
Air travel is reasonable, but needs more razvoja.Glavne airport near Dublin, and has about 100 direct destinations worldwide. There is an international airport in the second and smaller Shannon mostly short buildings in Cork, Belfast and Londonderry. Most international flights from Dublin or Shannon.
in terms of movement of goods, services, ferries are strong, but the distance from continental Europe makes them slow down. Although the transition from Dublin to Holyhead on the Welsh coast is less than two hours, Normandy is 19 hours. From Belfast and Larne in the north, there is a faster transition in Scotland and England.
long history of controversy, agriculture meant Ireland was slow to move in the 20th, let alone the 21st the century. Outside of a few major cities, it remains wonderfully untouched, but under-developed rural society.
of Ireland came into the European Union with the Objective One, which means that its underdeveloped economic condition in which the right to a full suite of large infrastructure of support to help you move forward quickly. Its heavy rural culture saw the benefits of the Common Agricultural Policy, immediately provide farmers access to guaranteed markets and guaranteed prices for their products, even if a lot is done at the end threw the butter mountains and milk lakes. Almost half of the EU's entire budget of 44.5 billion euros spent on agricultural subsidies or the kind.
a maze of small country roads of Ireland to borrow much of its charm, but not much use for heavy trucks carrying large loads of products to markets around the world. The EU money has helped extend the main road and highway infrastructure that is essential to economic growth.
All this helped to encourage new investors from other countries to set up facilities in Irskoj.Vlada urged them with attractive package that has attracted the likes Dell, Xerox, Baxter International, Hertz and many others before they even got in contact centers.
But whatever help the Eurozone went sada.Val Celtic Tiger, the reality of economic growth, Ireland is forced to move from being subsidized by the European Union that subsidies of services with other emerging nations, including some of 10 new countries whose accession has taken the European Union of 25 total.