Vodafone Hutchison has announced that it will be offshoring 450 call center jobs from Australia to Tasmania and India. A spokesman for Vodafone Hutchison Australia said that company would transfer an unspecified number of positions to a call centre in Mumbai and about 100 jobs to Kingston, Tasmania.
Service Stream, the company that was running Vodafone contract confirmed the telecom operator's plans to end the contract employing 450 in customer service and support roles starting in October to February. Michael Doery, Managing Director of Service Stream says that the company would try to find new roles for the affected employees, but was unlikely to accommodate them. "We're trying to do the right thing for our staff but not give them false expectations. Call centre people are unlikely to suit the other sort of work we do, which is technically-based or based on outdoor civil activities. If a company we're providing services to makes a decision to in-source call centre jobs to Tasmania and India, that's not our decision," Doery said.
The decision to transfer call center jobs out of Australia comes three months after Vodafone Australia and Hutchison 3G Australia formed a 50:50 joint venture. Speaking on the current development Nigel Dews, Australia Chief of Vodafone Hutchison said, "The opportunity to use our combined scale to enhance our customer service capabilities is an important outcome for the Vodafone Hutchison Australia merger."
Agencies
Saturday, September 19, 2009
$2 tn in revenues for green businesses by 2020
Global revenues from climate-related businesses such as energy efficiency rose by 75% in 2008 to $530 billion and could exceed $2 trillion by 2020, HSBC Global Research estimated.
In the 2006 Stern Review on the economics of climate change, climate-related revenues were forecast to climb to $500 billion by 2050. “We can see that this seemingly huge figure has already been surpassed well ahead of time as more and more businesses adapt their business model,” said Joaquim de Lima, global head of quant research for equities at HSBC.
The climate sector has surpassed the size of the global aerospace or defence industry, with the United States, Japan, France, Germany and Spain accounting for 76% of global climate revenues, the report found. For revenues to rise to $2 trillion, the way energy is generated and used needs to change and continued government support is needed.
The four core investment pillars will be low-carbon energy production, energy efficiency, control of water, waste and pollution and climate finance, the report said. Energy efficiency recorded the highest investment returns in the year to date at 30%.
“This is a very significant trend given the substantial share of climate stimulus funds that have been directed at energy efficiency and energy management by governments across the globe,” HSBC analysts said.
Agencies
In the 2006 Stern Review on the economics of climate change, climate-related revenues were forecast to climb to $500 billion by 2050. “We can see that this seemingly huge figure has already been surpassed well ahead of time as more and more businesses adapt their business model,” said Joaquim de Lima, global head of quant research for equities at HSBC.
The climate sector has surpassed the size of the global aerospace or defence industry, with the United States, Japan, France, Germany and Spain accounting for 76% of global climate revenues, the report found. For revenues to rise to $2 trillion, the way energy is generated and used needs to change and continued government support is needed.
The four core investment pillars will be low-carbon energy production, energy efficiency, control of water, waste and pollution and climate finance, the report said. Energy efficiency recorded the highest investment returns in the year to date at 30%.
“This is a very significant trend given the substantial share of climate stimulus funds that have been directed at energy efficiency and energy management by governments across the globe,” HSBC analysts said.
Agencies
Friday, September 18, 2009
Co-founder of Netscape, Andreessen now joins HP board
Two years after selling his software company to Hewlett-Packard, Marc Andreessen has joined the PC giant's board of directors.
HP announced the appointment, effective immediately, on Thursday. In a statement, HP's chairman and CEO Mark Hurd described Andreessen as "a software pioneer whose leadership has helped shape the Internet...Marc's entrepreneurial background and industry expertise will be a welcome addition to the HP board of directors."
Andreessen and HP's relationship goes back several years, culminating with HP's purchase of Opsware for $1.6 billion in 2007. Since then, Andreessen, best known as the co-founder of Netscape, has helmed social network creation service Ning, and a new venture capital firm Andreessen-Horowitz. He also sits on the boards of eBay and Facebook.
Agencies
HP announced the appointment, effective immediately, on Thursday. In a statement, HP's chairman and CEO Mark Hurd described Andreessen as "a software pioneer whose leadership has helped shape the Internet...Marc's entrepreneurial background and industry expertise will be a welcome addition to the HP board of directors."
Andreessen and HP's relationship goes back several years, culminating with HP's purchase of Opsware for $1.6 billion in 2007. Since then, Andreessen, best known as the co-founder of Netscape, has helmed social network creation service Ning, and a new venture capital firm Andreessen-Horowitz. He also sits on the boards of eBay and Facebook.
Agencies
Rs 700 crore govt business is Wipro's target
Wipro is eyeing about Rs.700 crore from government projects in the current fiscal. It intends to nearly triple this in three years. The move comes at a time when the Centre is clearing the decks for a slew of projects under the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP), reports a media.
"The targets for this year represent a 100-per cent growth over the previous fiscal," said Ranbir Singh, Head, Government, Wipro. The export-oriented Indian IT industry has been facing headwinds in its traditional strongholds such as the US and Europe, and though things seem to be looking up, Nasscom's annual projections have pegged software exports growth at 4-7 percent for FY10.
In contrast, the domestic market is expected to grow at 15-18 percent during the year. Projects such as MCA-21, e-passport and eBiz - which were handed out in the past, have whet the appetite of IT firms that are now looking to leverage opportunities closer home. The Unique Identification (UID) project has created quite a stir among vendors and every IT player; Indian and MNC are hoping to participate in the ambitious effort; the other large projects waiting to take off include eDistrict, eCourt, eOffice, Income-Tax and Central Excise.
"While the opportunity is large, it is also important to remember that the lead and the closing timelines tend to be longer for Government contracts. But, clearly, this is a space that every company wants to play in," an industry observer pointed out. Naturally, no one wants to be left behind in the race. Wipro's Joint CEO, Suresh Vaswani, told Business Line recently that the company was 'revisiting' its strategy and game-plan on government business. The company has already clinched a Rs.1,200 crore multiple-year contract floated by the Employees' State Insurance Corporation (ESIC).
The project relates to computerisation of the ESIC and to provide smart cards to around 1.5 crore industrial workers across the country. The contract brought its own share of controversies when rival firm TCS wrote to the Labour Ministry against the procedures adopted in awarding the contract.
Agencies
"The targets for this year represent a 100-per cent growth over the previous fiscal," said Ranbir Singh, Head, Government, Wipro. The export-oriented Indian IT industry has been facing headwinds in its traditional strongholds such as the US and Europe, and though things seem to be looking up, Nasscom's annual projections have pegged software exports growth at 4-7 percent for FY10.
In contrast, the domestic market is expected to grow at 15-18 percent during the year. Projects such as MCA-21, e-passport and eBiz - which were handed out in the past, have whet the appetite of IT firms that are now looking to leverage opportunities closer home. The Unique Identification (UID) project has created quite a stir among vendors and every IT player; Indian and MNC are hoping to participate in the ambitious effort; the other large projects waiting to take off include eDistrict, eCourt, eOffice, Income-Tax and Central Excise.
"While the opportunity is large, it is also important to remember that the lead and the closing timelines tend to be longer for Government contracts. But, clearly, this is a space that every company wants to play in," an industry observer pointed out. Naturally, no one wants to be left behind in the race. Wipro's Joint CEO, Suresh Vaswani, told Business Line recently that the company was 'revisiting' its strategy and game-plan on government business. The company has already clinched a Rs.1,200 crore multiple-year contract floated by the Employees' State Insurance Corporation (ESIC).
The project relates to computerisation of the ESIC and to provide smart cards to around 1.5 crore industrial workers across the country. The contract brought its own share of controversies when rival firm TCS wrote to the Labour Ministry against the procedures adopted in awarding the contract.
Agencies
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Can indigenous systems address IISc's security?
To improve the internal security, the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore is set to tap indigenous technology and advanced surveillance systems. "We have about 15 proposals from people and organizations across the country," N. Balakrishnan, Associate Director, IISc, Bangalore told Mint.
Balakrishnan also said that the project would cover four broad areas: Materials detection, information security, video analytics and large-scale data mining. The Department of Science and Technology (DST) tasked the Indian Institute of Science to identify specific technologies and coordinating organizations for the security project. This security project would basically involve with collecting a wide range of data such as travel history, educational qualifications, biometrics from a large number of people and preparing risk profiles of them.
Although the Centre has earmarked Rs. 35 crore for the project, Balakrishnan emphasizes that funds will to be a problem. "This is a large project, where civil and defence agencies are closely going to work with each other. T. Ramasami (the incumbent DST Secretary) will even provide Rs. 3,500 crore if needed," he said.
According to Balakrishnan, this specific project would contribute to fundamental change in the next five years, in the way technology is harnessed to boost up the internal security. "After Mumbai, there's a much greater level of seriousness across the government that will pull this project a long distance," he said.
Mint
Balakrishnan also said that the project would cover four broad areas: Materials detection, information security, video analytics and large-scale data mining. The Department of Science and Technology (DST) tasked the Indian Institute of Science to identify specific technologies and coordinating organizations for the security project. This security project would basically involve with collecting a wide range of data such as travel history, educational qualifications, biometrics from a large number of people and preparing risk profiles of them.
Although the Centre has earmarked Rs. 35 crore for the project, Balakrishnan emphasizes that funds will to be a problem. "This is a large project, where civil and defence agencies are closely going to work with each other. T. Ramasami (the incumbent DST Secretary) will even provide Rs. 3,500 crore if needed," he said.
According to Balakrishnan, this specific project would contribute to fundamental change in the next five years, in the way technology is harnessed to boost up the internal security. "After Mumbai, there's a much greater level of seriousness across the government that will pull this project a long distance," he said.
Mint
New green computing centre from Microsoft
In an eco-friendly move, Microsoft has announced that its new center at its Redmond headquarters will cut the company's carbon footprint by 12,000 metric tons per year. The Redmond Ridge 1 centre will combine Microsoft's research laboratory servers from individual product groups with the corporate systems that process other data, reports BusinessGreen.com.
According to the software giant, the facility is due online in April 2010 and will provide major power efficiencies. "The opening of Redmond Ridge is a big milestone and represents a real transition point in the company's culture," said Rob Bernard, Chief Environmental Strategist at Microsoft.
The building has been designed to be as energy-efficient as possible, using air heat exchangers to keep the temperature down. Air conditioning starts only if the temperature rises above 75 degrees Fahrenheit. "This facility is a great example of how technology can help improve the energy efficiency of a company's operations," said Bernard.
The move is causing something of a cultural shift at Microsoft, however. Engineers developing new code are physically removed from the servers testing it for the first time. Microsoft has not said how much of its computing it intends to centralize, but is aiming to cut its carbon emissions by 30 percent by 2012.
Agencies
According to the software giant, the facility is due online in April 2010 and will provide major power efficiencies. "The opening of Redmond Ridge is a big milestone and represents a real transition point in the company's culture," said Rob Bernard, Chief Environmental Strategist at Microsoft.
The building has been designed to be as energy-efficient as possible, using air heat exchangers to keep the temperature down. Air conditioning starts only if the temperature rises above 75 degrees Fahrenheit. "This facility is a great example of how technology can help improve the energy efficiency of a company's operations," said Bernard.
The move is causing something of a cultural shift at Microsoft, however. Engineers developing new code are physically removed from the servers testing it for the first time. Microsoft has not said how much of its computing it intends to centralize, but is aiming to cut its carbon emissions by 30 percent by 2012.
Agencies
Will TCS reduce the salary of campus recruits?
IT services company TCS (Tata Consultancy Services) has announced that it would revise the compensation package of campus recruits. Under the changed structure, TCS trainees will no longer be paid the variable component of the compensation - which works out at Rs. 5,000 per month or 19-20 percent of the total annual pay packet of Rs. 3.1 lakh - offered to them during their in-campus recruitment.
Ajoy Mukherjee, Global Head, Human Resources, TCS said, "As part of a compensation restructuring exercise, freshers joining the company this quarter onwards will not be eligible for variable pay during the training period. Restructuring trainees' salaries is being done from the point of view of productivity so that they get accustomed to the fact that variable pay depends on performance."
Last year, the company had made campus offers to 24,885 students. Of this, the company is expecting around 19,000-20,000 students to join. Going by this number, the company is expected to save around Rs. 10 crore per month by altering the variable part of salary for trainees. For six months, the savings would be Rs. 60 crore. Mukherjee said, "The company would be able to take on board all campus recruits in the current fiscal itself."
However, other IT giants like Infosys and Wipro are not fiddling with the compensation package of trainees. Infosys decides on the variables based on a test conducted after 18 weeks of initial training. Mohandas Pai, HR head, Infosys said, "Those who score four out of five are entitled to variables." Wipro claims to pay the variable part to its employees from the beginning of the training period.
Now, it would be interesting to see, what steps these companies take for campus recruitment in next fiscal. TCS is yet to decide on how these campus offers would be made in the next fiscal.
Agencies
Ajoy Mukherjee, Global Head, Human Resources, TCS said, "As part of a compensation restructuring exercise, freshers joining the company this quarter onwards will not be eligible for variable pay during the training period. Restructuring trainees' salaries is being done from the point of view of productivity so that they get accustomed to the fact that variable pay depends on performance."
Last year, the company had made campus offers to 24,885 students. Of this, the company is expecting around 19,000-20,000 students to join. Going by this number, the company is expected to save around Rs. 10 crore per month by altering the variable part of salary for trainees. For six months, the savings would be Rs. 60 crore. Mukherjee said, "The company would be able to take on board all campus recruits in the current fiscal itself."
However, other IT giants like Infosys and Wipro are not fiddling with the compensation package of trainees. Infosys decides on the variables based on a test conducted after 18 weeks of initial training. Mohandas Pai, HR head, Infosys said, "Those who score four out of five are entitled to variables." Wipro claims to pay the variable part to its employees from the beginning of the training period.
Now, it would be interesting to see, what steps these companies take for campus recruitment in next fiscal. TCS is yet to decide on how these campus offers would be made in the next fiscal.
Agencies
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