It all started in the early 1990s, when business process outsourcing in India was mainly associated with medical transcription. Those were certainly small beginnings, but still their contribution to the growth of the BPO industry cannot be denied. Growth in real terms however accelerated only after the Indian government liberalized the telecommunications sector in the late 1990s, allowing private participation in critical areas such as international long distance calls and Internet telephony. This provided the right impetus to the outsourcing industry and resulted in the creation of the customer service industry, known more popularly as the call center industry.

Since that time, the outsourcing industry in India has never looked back and has consistently endeavored to achieve newer milestones with each passing year. The industry has also expanded its operational base over the years and presently it offers wideranging services such as customer care & support, B2C & B2B telemarketing, data entry & data conversion, web promotion, content development, accounting and financial services, tax consultancy, medical records retrieval, market research, database creations, document scanning & sorting, infomercial sales services, and insurance claims.

The hard work and dedication of those who have worked and are working for the outsourcing industry certainly played a crucial role in achieving the objectives described above. However, there are other factors as well that have played an equally important part in determining the success of the outsourcing industry. Identifying these factors is necessary, especially if proper justice is to be done to the task of unraveling the inherent strengths of the BPO industry in India. It will make it easier for us to understand why India offers many more advantages over other countries as the most appropriate outsourcing destination.