Aegis getting stronger with Ismart-Timex

Aegis Ltd., a leading global BPO provider and a subsidiary of Essar Group of India acquired 80% shares of Ismart-Timex (Pvt) Ltd., a leading BPO service provider in Sri Lanka, another Indian company.

The balance 20% shares continues to be with the selling shareholders Timex Garments Ltd.

The COO of Aegis, Sudhir Agarwal said that by the end of the year the company will double their operations in Sri Lanka. “Presently we have around 1,000 employees in Sri Lanka and we expect to double the number by next year”. The company only focuses on local market.

Now we provide service to telecom companies and expect to expand to banking, healthcare, travel and other industries. Most of the Sri Lankan companies in these industries are now looking forward to outsource many functions and focus on core functions. It is the most cost effective option they have, he said. The cost of the BPO industry is similar in Sri Lanka and India. The important factor is the skills and in the next few months we analyse the available skills in Sri Lanka.

The qualifications required for the job vary with the services and at present we hire A/L qualified people.

We give three weeks training and on the job training and the employees have career prospects in mind. Our salaries are above average, he added.

The acquisition adds a new geography in the Aegis spectrum of outsourcing solutions which now covers 35 locations across the world. The Managing Director of Ismart Timex, Arshad Sattar said “Sri Lanka has a rich talent pool for voice, back office and shared service business. We are happy to become a member of the Aegis family and to create a global BPO leader.

Our focus on full spectrum of Customer Lifecycle Management (CLM) services will continue and our value proposition is now stronger as we expand our industry and process expertise, service offering and global delivery platform”.

(GW)