[kictanet] Day 1 of 10 :-BPO discussions, Policy Framework

Tue Jun 2 12:11:57 EAT 2009

Thanks Tim for the context, it is now feasible to participate   

Walu you may want to revisit your structure of the discussions to ensure
that your structure maps to the objectives of the study.  A very interesting
topic - BPO marketing strategy is not in your discussion structure and is
key to success of BPO. This   is one of the study objectives 

On the questions raised by the moderator and especially Q2 - a more detailed
document published by  ministry of planning - Kenya Vision 2030, A Globally
Competitive and Prosperous Kenya published 2007  is very detailed on bpo. It
gives a detailed background on bpo, the opportunities and a strategy to
exploit  the opportunities. The Document further develop an approach , the
target markets  and the strategy with timelines that can be  monitored. One
would expect that operational details would be worked out by the KICTB
which I believe was the intent of  v2030 

On the broader aspect of the question, it is necessary for the country to
have a specific   policy on BPO. A desk study we did last year for
International trade centre of UNCTAD  - BPO/ITO activity in Sub Sahara
Africa:Lessons from BPO/ITOs activity   in selected (13) English speaking
countries in Africa  -    noted  the advantage  of a policy that is BPO
specific . The need for a policy is in cognisance that a  wide array of
multisectoral resources need to be deployed to ensure success of the sector.
That policy helps to bring together and coordinate those resources and
create synergy.    Nigeria for example developed and promulgated a BPO
specific policy. The policy explicitly recognizes the opportunity presented
by the   sector but also notes the challenge the sector faces to exploit
the opportunity, defines the role of the stakeholders and the contribution ,
incentives to realize the benefits. It also sets out the time frame but most
importantly the market strategy.

In the policy development,  the strategy to exploit  is critical. It is
inadequate to stress the huge size of the market and  focus of that
market(off-shoring)   without addressing our capacity to exploit the market
considering the  global competition. We can learn from some of the
successful competitors like South Africa who built offshoring bpo on the
back  of inshoring . likewise, Nigeria policy strategy is based on local
outsourcing first. Clearly, It is much cheaper to build local outsourcing
capacity and then use this capacity  and skill base to exploit offshoring 

In developing such a policy we should not lose sight of the fact  that bpo
is not an end in itself but a means to fully exploit the immense benefits of
ICTs 

Cheers 
MM   

-----Original Message-----
From: Prof Waema [mailto:waema at uonbi.ac.ke] 
Sent: 02 June 2009 10:56
To: mureithi at summitstrategies.co.ke
Cc: 'KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions'
Subject: RE: [kictanet] Day 1 of 10 :-BPO discussions, Policy Framework

Hi Muriuki,

Thank you for the comments. There is no complete report at the moment but it
is under preparation. The idea is to share the results so far and discuss
salient issues before we have a stakeholders workshop later on this month.
However, find below some background info:

The overall aim of the project was “to undertake comprehensive research in
the business process outsourcing (BPO) sub-sector in pioneer, emerging and
mature markets to provide evidence and a deeper understanding of the
imperatives for success in this industry to better inform Kenya’s policy
decisions and investment choices”. The specific objectives were:
	To provide empirical evidence and recommendations to inform the
development of BPO legislation, policy and strategy
	To identify the critical success factors that underlie the BPO
industry in developing countries (in pioneer, emerging and mature markets)
	To examine and provide comprehensive case studies of eight countries
representing pioneer, emerging and mature BPO markets 
	To analyse the business environment/culture in Kenya in order to
identify a unique BPO marketing strategy.
	To provide a deeper understanding of youth employment and gender
issues within the BPO sector in pioneer, emerging and mature markets 
	To increase the level of awareness and input among key stakeholders
through interactive dialogue on key BPO issues within the Kenyan context 
	To contribute to knowledge in this emerging sector through
publication and dissemination.

The project was carried out using the case study method and involved desk
research on the Internet and in libraries, review of existing documents, key
informant interviews and structured questionnaires. The case study involved
BPO firms and relevant national institutions in six countries classified as
follows:
	BPO clients: U.S.A. and U.K.
	Pioneer BPO services: Kenya
	Emerging BPO services: South Africa
	Mature BPO Services: India and Mauritius 

The project is funded by IDRC and the University of Nairobi. It was carried
out by the University of Nairobi in collaboration with the Ministry of
Information and Communications, the Kenya BPO and Contact Centre Society,
the Kenya ICT Board and KICTANET.  

I am sure you can commend on the policy framework without a full report.

Regards

Tim Waema

-----Original Message-----
From: kictanet-bounces+waema=uonbi.ac.ke at lists.kictanet.or.ke
[mailto:kictanet-bounces+waema=uonbi.ac.ke at lists.kictanet.or.ke] On Behalf
Of muriuki mureithi
Sent: 02 June 2009 08:47 AM
To: waema at uonbi.ac.ke
Cc: 'KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions'
Subject: Re: [kictanet] Day 1 of 10 :-BPO discussions, Policy Framework

Hi Walu 
Thanks for madaraka day gift - a bpo.

To provide a context of the discussion, could we access the  full report.
This will help us to understand some aspects for example the  TOR/objective
for the study, how the three economies were selected and the time frame of
the study among other issues. 
There are some other economies that have promulgated some BPO specific
policies and innovative approach to BPO development. A deeper insight on the
context will help us  to see how to introduce such thoughts in the
discussions 

Cheers 
muriuki mureithi 

-----Original Message-----
From: kictanet-bounces+mureithi=summitstrategies.co.ke at lists.kictanet.or.ke
[mailto:kictanet-bounces+mureithi=summitstrategies.co.ke at lists.kictanet.or.k
e] On Behalf Of Walubengo J
Sent: 02 June 2009 08:14
To: mureithi at summitstrategies.co.ke
Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions
Subject: [kictanet] Day 1 of 10 :-BPO discussions, Policy Framework

Morning all,

I trust you have had a well-deserved, long weekend. Today we kick-off the
BPO discussion by focusing on the BPO Policy environment.  Indeed Policy
informs both the Legal, Regulatory and Insititutional frameworks such that
if we get things wrong at the Policy level, then naturally, the rest of the
frameworks will not fly.  

The BPO Research (synthesis attached) established very comprehensive Policy
frameworks in the selected countries of study - S.Africa, Mauritius and
India.  When compared to the Kenyan situation, the Researchers found that at
a National level, BPO is simply listed as one of the six KEY sectors of the
Economic Pillar within Vision2030.  They also found that the National ICT
Policy (2006) does not explicitly mention BPO - even though some of the
objectives may implicitly relate to BPO. 

Which brings us to the specific questions for discussion:
Q1: Should we at a National level be placing emphasise on an "ICT Sector" or
on a "BPO Sector"? which of the two should be a subset of the  other? 
Q2: Beyond the BPO policy statements in our V2030 document, dont we need to
do more by creating clear and monitorable plans/targets for the BPO sector -
BPO Strategic Framework? How should this be done? 

We have only today for your views on this since tmrw we move into the Legal
and Regulatory frameworks.

walu.
Encl: BPO Research Synthesis1:-Policy, Legal, Regulatory Frameworks

----e-Discussion Program outline-----
1.The policy, legal and institutional frameworks for BPO sector (2days, Walu
moderating)
2.Subsidies accorded to BPO sector (2days, Walu moderating)
3.Human capacity issues (2days, Walu moderating)
4.Youth and gender issues (2days, Dr. C. Adeya moderating)
5.Strengths and challenges for Kenya as a BPO destination (2days, Dr. C.
Adeya moderating

-----------------------------------------
This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by
MailScanner,
and is believed to be clean.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 UNIVERSITY OF NAIROBI IS ISO CERTIFIED

The University of Nairobi is committed to providing quality services to all
its clients. The University will monitor and review its quality performance
from time to time through an effective implementation of the Quality
Management System based on ISO 9001:2000 standard.

University of Nairobi Website: http://www.uonbi.ac.ke/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

-----------------------------------------
This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by
MailScanner,
and is believed to be clean.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 UNIVERSITY OF NAIROBI IS ISO CERTIFIED

The University of Nairobi is committed to providing quality services to all
its clients. The University will monitor and review its quality performance
from time to time through an effective implementation of the Quality
Management System based on ISO 9001:2000 standard.

University of Nairobi Website: http://www.uonbi.ac.ke/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: winmail.dat
Type: application/ms-tnef
Size: 5890 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/pipermail/kictanet/attachments/20090602/75de1071/attachment.bin>