The owners of Call Centres, a new type of business emerging in Bangladesh, are taking necessary preparations to start their operations fully for catering to the needs of both domestic and international clients.
Currently two call centres have started their operations in the city and dozens of others are taking necessary preparations for starting the new business.
The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC), so far, issued 310 licenses to the aspirant entrepreneurs since March this year.
"We are still in the primary stages of preparation, we are equiping our offices and imparting training to the manpower for running the business," Ahmadul Hoq, president of Bangladesh Call Centre Forum (BCCF) told the FE.
"About a dozen of our members will definitely start operations by this year," said Mr Hoq.
As per the BTRC rules, license holders must start their business within six months of getting approval.
The call centres basically complements the utility companies, banking institutions, non-government organisations, shopping malls, telecom companies and others in providing information to clients besides answering to queries and responding to trouble-shooting.
The out-sourcing of these services through call centers enables the parent companies to engage less people, spend less time while ensuring efficiency.
The call centres perform all necessary works including insurance of motor vechiles, preparing invoice on behalf of a particular compnay and provide those to the customers which reduce time and money by the customers.
Entrepreneurs said the business has potential both for local and international market mainly because of comparatively low operating cost to run the business.
Call centre employees who will respond to the customers require educational qualification, good pronunciations, and listening capacity. The local people are capable of easily adopting the techniques, the entrepreneurs said.
"We are also hiring people with Madrasha education to serve our customers who resides in Arab countries," said Mr Hoq.
Dr Sikder M Zakir, managing director of Telemedicine Reference Centre Limited, a call centre, which is providing health and medicine related customers services to one leading mobile phone operator, told the FE that they were getting good response from the customers.
He also said his company is relentlessly searching for international clients for his company.
"My company is now providing medical call centres services to the country's premier mobile phone company, GrammeenPhone. We expect we will get a number of international clients by this year as we are in final stage of negotiations with them," Mr Zakir added.
One Call, another call centre located in the city's Banani area started its business just a month back.
Owner of One Call, Sabbir Rahman Tanim told the FE that his company started business for domestic clients only and expressed the hope that it might start providing services for the international clients within September next.
"My company is in drives for international clients, we are getting responses. We expect we will get international clients shortly," Mr Sabbir added.
The licence fee charged by BTRC for each call center is Tk 5,000.
The BTRC is issuing licences for three categories - call centers (CC), hosted call centre service provider (HCCSP), hosted call centre (HCP).
Of the 310 licences so far issued by BTRC, 194 licenses were for CC, 52 for HCCSP and 64 for the HCC.
"This is an open license system so any body can obtain it," said one official at the BTRC.
He said BTRC along with the local entrepreneurs are likely to join an international exhibition in Britain in September to promote the business.
Preparations afoot by call centres to start operations
Jasim Uddin Haroon | Published: August 02, 2008 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00
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