Project Genesis --- A drive to reinforce the pool of talent (Tuesday, June 24, 2008 1:16:31 PM)

Why do the small town graduates struggle to make it to the BPO jobs? Infosys BPO's project Genesis has both the answer and the solution. Tuesday, June 24, 2008:
With progress comes the responsibility; abiding by this rule Infosys BPO launched project Genesis. It is an initiative through which Infosys BPO assures to shoulder the responsibility of enhancing the communication skills of small town students. Towards this endeavour, Infosys BPO has partnered with the academia in small cities to impart training to graduate students. Project Genesis was launched with the vision to increase employability in tier II and III towns. It was noticed that there were not many employees in the BPO sector from these towns, while unemployment was very high. When a survey was conducted, it came to light that the only hurdle faced by the graduates to secure a job was communication skills. This was the seed that germinated into Project Genesis. "The investment for Project Genesis comes from special grants, which are allocated by the senior management. On an average, we spend about Rs 15-18 lakhs per state where we conduct this programme," says the spokesperson for Infosys BPO. The mission Project Genesis is aimed at aligning the teaching and course curriculum at graduate schools to the industry requirements so the students have an edge as far as employability is concerned. The education for these graduate students is more than theoretical knowledge and makes them industry-ready by the time they graduate. Project Genesis not only addresses the manpower need of the BPO industry by penetrating into the B and C towns, but also provides the youth of these areas an equal footing that makes them competent enough to join the ITeS industry. The project also focusses on creating awareness and educating the teaching fraternity in B and C towns of various states in India on BPO and skill sets required to succeed in a BPO career. This project will equip teachers and lecturers To help the students acquire the necessary skill sets through training programmes To handle queries and apprehensions of students about a BPO career with facts and therefore dispelling any myth

The decisive factor A skills assessment of the graduate pool in select colleges across the different states was conducted to understand the competency baseline that existed and also to identify the gaps. Students were selected from urban, semi-urban and rural colleges, and the same tests were conducted for all of them.

Based on the results of the above tests and after multiple discussions with lecturers across colleges, the 'must have' skills for a BPO career were identified and were packaged as global skills enhancement curriculum. It contains modules on communication and analytical skills, corporate etiquette, basic computer skills and building self-confidence. The teaching methodology is also extremely different from the usual classroom training as it is more learner-centric and experiential. It involves a number of activities, which are aimed at personality development. The procedure Infosys BPO has collaborated with basic graduation stream colleges, that is, arts, science and commerce and also with some management colleges. Project Genesis is rolled out in four phases. Under Phase-I, a two-week 'Train the trainer' programme is conducted. Lecturers and professors from various colleges are given an overview of the 'Global skills enhancement curriculum'. This curriculum has been developed under two categories that is language enhancement and analytical skills. The focus of this phase is to orient the lecturers and professors to the requirements of the BPO industry. Phase-II consists of organising a principals conclave to plan the implementation of the curriculum. This would go a long way in ensuring that the maximum number of students benefit from this initiative. As part of Phase III, the global skills enhancement programme is conducted in the participative colleges. Regular reviews and assessments are conducted. As part of ongoing support, representatives from Infosys BPO visit these colleges to help them implement this programme successfully. Under Phase IV, job fairs are conducted at various nodal centres. Infosys BPO conducts campus recruitment drives. Any other interested company, BPO or otherwise, is also allowed to conduct campus recruitment.

The criteria for selection Infosys BPO has left the selection criteria to the discretion of the college. Some colleges do conduct an entrance test to determine who gets into the course, while others open it to everybody. Infosys BPO does not charge anything for the course. In fact, the entire expenses of the two-week residential training programme is borne by Infosys. However, some colleges charge a nominal fee to cover the basic expenses like photocopying etc. In fact, many lecturers work after their regular working hours to implement the curriculum without receiving any kind of remuneration only because the programme shapes the future and the fate of the students. The outcome The response to the programme has been very encouraging as per the spokesperson. Colleges are becoming aware of the need to make students employable and have been implementing the programme with enthusiasm. The project has already been launched in Karnataka, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra. Infosys BPO reports to have trained over 1,579 lecturers and about 33,519 students from 538 colleges across the states where this initiative has been launched.

Infosys BPO conducts recruitment drives at all Genesis locations. Apart from that, it also tries to place as many students as possible through job fairs. "In fact, since the implementation of the programme, more and more companies are going to these colleges to recruit and number of students getting placed immediately after graduation has increased significantly," confirms the spokesperson. The impact Projects like these not only help Infosys BPO but also the ITeS industry at large. This programme has increased the talent pool available for recruitment, thus aiding the industry, which has been facing a severe shortage of talent. It has kept recruitment costs in control. This initiative creates a continuous pipeline of talent that has been suitably trained in the skills required for a career in BPO. This influx of fresh trained talent brings down the ongoing fight for trained resources, and it also helps in stabilising skyrocketing salary packages. For the students, this is an excellent opportunity to get a peek into the corporate world and to be prepared for it. They enhance their skill sets and increase their employability factor and so are more attractive to the companies. "In fact, we have had instances where our students came from the lower socio-economic background. Due to project Genesis, a certain son or a daughter from a village is working in Infosys BPO and is leading the family towards prosperity," states the spokesperson. Project Genesis has been the one initiative that has reached out to the hitherto untapped pool of talent-resource. It has been a catalyst for a change in the social fabric that exists in our smaller towns. With increasing number of students from these towns gaining employment in the industry, it has lit a spark of hope in the minds and hearts of students from these towns. They now look forward to the completion of their studies not with trepidation but with the hope that they would have good employment opportunities. "The vision of project Genesis is to make it a self-sustaining model, which will add value to the students and help them gain employment. Ideally, it should be a part of the academics and we are working towards the same," reveals the spokesperson