Contact centre technology vendor Genesys has spoken out against offshoring to India and the Philippines, warning that levels of quality assurance and security are not yet up to scratch.
Addressing delegates at the G-force conference in Melbourne this week, Genesys senor vice president Asia Pacific James Brooks warned offhsoring contact centre functions to India and the Philippines still present substantial challenges for many users.
Brook's comments follow revelations on the ABC's Four Corners program, which confirmed a black market is thriving in India in highly sensitive, personal and financial details of Australians sourced from offshored call centres.
"I saw the Four Corners program on Monday night, and it was very good," Brooks said. "I think security is a big issue in places like India, and it should be a concern for all Australians.
"Today there are a lot of challenges in India and the Philippines, and I don't think at the moment they are delivering the quality that Australian and Asian-Pacific customers expect, but give them three years and they will get there."
Despite Brooks comments, he believes more and more Australian organizations will consider offshoroing contact centres.
"My position on offshoring is that in time [many] organizations will offshore their contact centres. It's like manufacturing; even though a car may seem to be made in Australia, certain parts may be manufactured overseas for a cheaper cost," Brooks said.
"Generally, Australian companies are still scared of the negative reaction many have had to offshoring, so they're nervous about looking into it, but trust me, they are still thinking about it."
One delegate, in the health sector, at the conference who wished to be anonymous, claimed that the Four Corners program simply confirmed doubts he had about Australian organizations offshoring to India.
"Everyone seemed to rush over there because it was cheap, without sitting back and seeing if it was safe, and now look what's being revealed," the delegate said.
Siobhan McBride attended the conference as a guest of Genesys