The Hippie Trail Leads to Telemarketing

This week's Economist (sub. req.) highlights an unexpected source of call center workers in India: Europeans happy to work for Indian wages. Here's a snippet:

Having cut costs in the British business, Prashant Sahni, Tecnovate's boss, wanted to expand across the Channel. But India lacked the language skills. When people had the language skills, they were unwilling or unqualified to do the work. "The key was to hire foreigners," says Mr Sahni.

So the company flies in gap year students and others who are willing to work for low wages just for the chance to live in Delhi. They require a year-long contract, but if the trend catches on in a more flexible form, it will probably turn into an attractive option for the countless backpackers traveling through India and Nepal who stop and work for three months every time they run out of cash. The plan seems to be working for now:

Tecnovate says its turnover rates are half the industry average of 35-40% a year. Mr Sahni says this is due in part to the foreigners, three-quarters of them young women, who make the place seem "cool."