What Stupidity

MUMBAI: BPOs are booming in India, but not every entrepreneur can jump into the fray due to high investments and long gestation periods. Not anymore, as you can run a call center from a nearby Reliance WebWorld. The company has launched a new scheme whereby entrepreneurs can start operating a small-time BPO from a WebWorld store from 10 p.m. to 8 a.m. [ http://www.ciol.com/content/news/2006/106040303.asp ]

There was a writeup about using a cyber cafe as call center at night. Many are excited at this idea. But i would say this is of nuisance value. Someone else will come up with an idea like Laptops on rent and some rooms of apt/house are rented for night. As people sleep at night, rooms are usually vacant why not use that as call center. Mannnn i cant stop laughing at this!!! Some say its a brilliant idea and a money earner. I quote from what has been said

The company charges Rs. 8000 per seat per month, “So a person can operate a 12 seater call center for less than a lakh of rupees per month,”

I have a better idea why not use empty roads to use them as mobile call centers? Anyways there are no traffic from 1 am till 5 am. Why not use a mobile call center, equipped with wireless connection, laptop and few seats. One can hire a van like 10 seater for Rs 100 a night and use that as a call center!!! Why not rent out some of your rooms in the house for call center use? All sleep at night so why not rent out other rooms? Why not use parks and community halls at night when they are of no use for call center purposes? Our own public transport rots in the shed at night and it has like 30 seats, why not use them for BPO work? Drive the bus to near a wireless hotspot like coffee day and use them for BPO? Oh i think i can sell this idea to coffee day and they will appreciate this idea!!!

The article is as ridiculous as what i mentioned above, so i would have seriously encouraged or even funded (who knows) if an automated system like voice synthesizers were used instead of humans. I would root for a system which is 90% machine oriented and 10% humans like....most of routine queries could be rooted to machines and that which couldnt be solved using these automated systems could be routed to humans. Use of AI intensive applications to get around use of high salaried humans would go a long way in reducing the cost of products. Again I know there will be no takers..but the question is will it stop me giving ideas? I guess not ;-)