Accenture, Dr Reddy?s Foundation (DRF) and the Nasscom Foundation (NF) are working together to provide comprehensive training and career opportunities in business process outsourcing (BPO) for underprivileged youth in India. The effort is part of Accenture?s corporate citizenship focus ? skills to succeed ? which educates people building skills that enable them to participate in and contribute to the economy.
As a first step, Accenture employees are updating Dr Reddy?s Foundation?s BPO curriculum, which will be distributed through DRF?s Livelihood Advancement Business Schools programme, free of cost to Nasscom?s knowledge network members and partner NGOs.
Additionally, Accenture and DRF will identify, recruit and train facilitators identified by Nasscom. Accenture will also select potential BPO academy sites, based on job availability in those markets. Upon completion of the course, Accenture will recruit from among the graduates for its own BPO operations and DRF will conduct follow-up workshops with NGOs.
?Bringing BPO training to disadvantaged youth is part of Accenture?s commitment to building skills that will help them sustain their families and their communities,? said Harsh Maglik, chairman and geography managing director, Accenture in India.
?This effort is aimed at making a significant, lasting impact on the economic well-being of individuals who might otherwise become marginalised.?
?This initiative provides the tools for rural youth to be trained in BPO skills suitably in order to be gainfully employed,? said Jitendra Kalra, CEO Dr Reddy?s Foundation. ?We believe that we will make a significant improvement to the lives of the disadvantaged youth, by sharing our training expertise in the Livelihood Advancement Business School processes. DRF will provide voluntary technical support, in terms of training, sharing of best practices and documentation of key learnings, which will boost this initiative,? he added.
According to Jithirth (Jerry) Rao, chairman, Nasscom, ?With about 74% of Indians residing in villages, domestic BPOs can bring a revolution in employment opportunities for the rural educated masses.?