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Agrobusiness |
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Consumer goods |
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Automotive, aeronautical, subcontracting, mechanics |
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Public works, construction, water and environment |
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Information technology, electronics, telecoms |
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Pharmacy, health, chemistry, biotechnologies |
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Textile, garments |
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| SECTOR PERSPECTIVES
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SERVICES |
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Call centres |
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A call centre is a service which enables a dialogue to take place, at a distance, between a company and its customers and prospects at any time of the day, often 24 hours a day, 7 days per week. This service is possible thanks to the development of telecommunications, allied to information technology. If the great majority of this type of communication is carried out by telephone, other methods are on the increase: internet, interactive voice servers, etc.. |
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News of the sector |
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Investment Opportunities |
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Documents |
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Call center
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Call centres: a local service… at a distance |
A call centre is a service which enables a dialogue to take place, at a distance, between a company and its customers and prospects at any time of the day, often 24 hours a day, 7 days per week. This service is possible thanks to the development of telecommunications, allied to information technology. If the great majority of this type of communication is carried out by telephone, other methods are on the increase: internet, interactive voice servers, etc.. For a number of years, they have been developing in domains as varied as the banking sector, insurance, distribution, the services, after sales maintenance, « hot-lines ».
The market still has its hesitations in the Mediterranean countries, except Morocco and Tunisia. The « call-centres », which are developing very rapidly, are particularly appreciated by French and European businessman. The potential is still far from being completely exploited. Among their main advantages, a qualified and inexpensive labour force, a flexible regulatory framework with the special advantage of adaptable working hours and the good knowledge of French and other European languages among the young people. Without forgetting the high quality of the communications infrastructures.
Externalising a call centre to Mediterranean countries, especially to the Maghreb, according to certain experts, means making economies while providing a quality service – even if certain company managers complain of the still high costs of telephone communications. The sector is a large creator of jobs. Young people, the main employees of these call centres, are often recruited two years out of High School. Furthermore, the staff turnover is lower than in Europe. Little by little, training is being developed. The aim being to make the operators loyal, to obtain customer confidence, to reduce the length of calls while increasing their efficacy and thus improving profitability. |
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Focus on two countries |
At the beginning of 2003, Morocco housed a dozen call centres. They employed 4,000 people and had a turnover of around 50 million Euros. The Europeans are the main clients of these companies.
The low cost and the qualifications of the personnel, their mastery of French and Spanish explains their success. The net monthly salary of a tele-operator is between 250 and 400 Euros. The market is still only in its infancy, but the government has high hopes for it, one of the main objectives being to create 50,000 jobs in five years. While the gamble may seem ambitious, it is nevertheless feasible. The conviviality and the good human contact of young Moroccans adapts itself to the distant customer environment. Another advantage, is the geographical and cultural proximity with Europe and especially with France and Spain. Finally, customs duties on the totality of the imported computer equipment are reduced (2,5 %). If the market above all addresses foreign investors, some national companies are starting to join in, so as to provide a better service to the customer. The only downside, the lack of training. L’OFPPT (Office of Professional Training and Labour Promotion) would like to put this right by introducing training for future tele-operators.
The call centre market is developing very rapidly in Tunisia (9 openings in the first six months of 2003). A company such as Téléperformance went from 100 employees in 2001 to 1,400 in 2003. Currently, more than call 20 centres are operational throughout the territory. They cover various segments of activity, including market research, telesales, confirmation of orders and technical support. The development of telecommunications, modern infrastructures, the low cost of labour and the place of French are favourable advantages for the installation of call centres. The ambition of Tunisia is to become both a regional and international customer service centre. The domestic market is limited by the small number of subscribers to the fixed phone network (10 to 15 % of the population). Numbers of young qualified people have the competencies which correspond to the needs of call centres. They are motivated, which means low absenteeism and a lower staff turnover (around 5 %, much lower than in Europe). Moreover, their flexibility is greater. The authorities would like to attract more investors by creating private tele-operator training centres. The network of telecommunications is modern, with a high growth rate. Furthermore, the costs of communications is dropping. Another advantage, the country has a Communications Technology City, situated in the close suburb of Tunis, which should very shortly have buildings dedicated to call centres.
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