IAOP Launches OperatorEvaluator Powered by BeyondCore
New Standardized Tool Measures the Aptitude of the Global Outsourcing Industry Workforce
/EIN News/ POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y., June 22, 2009 – The International Association of Outsourcing Professionals™ (IAOP™) today announced the launch of the first standardized Web-based aptitude test designed for the global outsourcing industry operational workforce.
The new solution – IAOP OperatorEvaluator powered by BeyondCore – will initially help buyers and providers of outsourcing services easily identify the most skilled outsourcing workers in key areas such as data entry operations. In addition, IAOP OperatorEvaluator will enable all regions of the world engaged in outsourcing to enhance and demonstrate their available pool of qualified workers.
IAOP OperatorEvaluator is a Web-based operator aptitude, productivity and quality test that will initially focus on data-entry oriented tasks. It checks an operator’s speed and accuracy based on a set of standardized test transactions that have been developed and approved by IAOP’s OperatorEvaluator Advisory Group (IOAG).
The scenarios tested are common to business processes such as claims data entry, claims adjudication, invoice processing, and human resources and medical records entry.
In late-2009, the tests will be expanded to include other Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) tasks involving contact/call center operations, among many other areas.
Said Kevin Parikh, CEO of the leading global outsourcing advisory firm Avasant, LLC , “As BPO spreads to more regions globally, ensuring the competency of operators will be critical and the IAOP OperatorEvaluator is uniquely positioned to improve the availability of competent certified workers worldwide.“
Tool Validates Expertise for Outsourcing Regions
IAOP OperatorEvaluator provides national outsourcing associations, other industry groups, government agencies and organizations engaged in outsourcing with a common standard to demonstrate the size and quality of their labor pool.
“Asia, including Southeast Asia, India and China, and other regions of the world such as Latin America, the Middle East and Africa, are fiercely competing to become the world’s back-office,” said IAOP Chairman Michael Corbett. “What our global outsourcing industry has lacked, until OperatorEvaluator, is a standardized approach to globally certifying the aptitude, productivity and quality of the backbone of the global outsourcing workforce. We look forward to working with regional associations and government agencies to rapidly certify large numbers of operators in leading outsourcing regions.”
“The IAOP OperatorEvaluator solution is a unique offering that can strategically help push the Chinese BPO industry to the next level,” said Dr. Hui Wang, Secretary General, ChinaSourcing Alliance, which is under the guidance of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), People’s Republic of China.
Ashutosh Vaidya, senior vice president and head of Wipro BPO, added, “Based on our evaluations, we are very confident that IAOP OperatorEvaluator will further enhance our ability to continue recruiting the very best employees to service our customers. As a global leader in bringing innovative ideas and practices to our delivery model, Wipro BPO is happy to be amongst the first to adopt IAOP OperatorEvaluator.”
Advanced Technology Powers Solution
IAOP OperatorEvaluator is powered by advanced technology and methodologies pioneered by BeyondCore, Inc. Some of these methodologies were developed as part of student research conducted at Stanford University and the Harvard Business School.
Dr. Warren McFarlan, Harvard Business School Professor and former Senior Associate Dean and Director of Asia Pacific (1999-2004) said, “I invested in BeyondCore because of its ability to fundamentally reduce the operating costs of services firms through the systematic rapid improvement of quality. The IAOP OperatorEvaluator solution takes this approach to the next level by improving the quality and efficiency of the global labor market.”
“The downstream consequences of human errors can be extremely expensive and a small increase in errors can negate significant labor cost benefits. In thousands of operator evaluations on four continents, we have discovered dramatic differences in operator quality and productivity. IAOP OperatorEvaluator delivers the very first means of objectively comparing the ‘total cost,’ not just the labor cost, of workers, whether they are in Bangalore, Beijing, Barcelona or Baltimore,” added BeyondCore CEO, Arijit Sengupta.
Marty Chuck, founder of advisory firm The CXOs LLC and a recent inductee into the Outsourcing Hall of Fame, said, “IAOP OperatorEvaluator provides companies with a tool to objectively measure, evaluate and compare the skills of job applicants, enabling them to recruit the best talent and providing them with a competitive advantage.”
As the global standard-setting organization for outsourcing, IAOP is offering OperatorEvaluator as another example of its ongoing commitment to raise the professional standards and quality of outsourcing. Through OperatorEvaluator, IAOP is broadening its role in the outsourcing industry to include activities that can directly improve the quality and productivity of the work performed under outsourcing agreements.
The evaluation tool builds on IAOP’s existing portfolio of outsourcing skills and professional development offerings, including its Certified Outsourcing Professional™ (COP) program, which has become the standard of excellence for outsourcing professionals.
For additional information about IAOP OperatorEvaluator and how to get involved in the IAOP OperatorEvaluator Advisory Group, visit the IAOP Web site or contact IAOP U.S. Ambassador Matt Shocklee at matt.shocklee@outsourcingprofessional.org.
About IAOP
The International Association of Outsourcing Professionals (IAOP) is the global, standard-setting organization and advocate for the outsourcing profession. With more than 100,000 members and affiliates worldwide, IAOP helps companies increase their outsourcing success rate, improve their outsourcing ROI, and expand the opportunities for outsourcing across their businesses. To learn more, visit www.outsourcingprofessional.org.
About BeyondCore
BeyondCore technology rapidly reduces the operating cost of manual back-office processes such as the processing of insurance claims, applications, invoices, HR records, etc. by improving the quality of these processes. By leveraging cutting edge technologies such as collective intelligence algorithms and a broad database of peer-group error patterns, BeyondCore has delivered 25% quality improvement and 10% operating cost reduction in weeks. BeyondCore has successfully served FORTUNE 500 clients and top 10 outsourcing vendors on four continents. To learn more, visit www.beyondcore.com.
Media Contact:
Michael Forbes
IAOP Communications Manager
+1. 845 452.0600, ext. 118
mike.forbes@outsourcingprofessional.org
