KPOs - offering great career opportunities for knowledgeable professionals

KPO or Knowledge Process Outsourcing is a value added form of a BPO. While BPO is a highly process-based sector requiring lower level of expertise, KPO requires extensive knowledge in the domain being outsourced. India and China are emerging at the leaders in KPO due to the cost advantages and availability of talented resources. The segments of KPO in India The major segments that you can work in a KPO include legal services, financial services, engineering, R&D, market research, analytics, education, training, content development, healthcare services, pharmacy, and biotechnology, etc. If you have the required qualifications and some bit of experience in any of the fields mentioned above, you are the right candidate for a KPO job. Growing career opportunities in KPO sector Based on the rate at which KPO is growing, it is estimated that KPO sector would employ over 250,000 people by 2010. With new areas of specialization, opportunities are also increasing. Although the salaries of beginners in this sector might not be as high as BPOs, but as the performance level increases, the salaries also start increasing substantially. Eligibility for jobs in KPO Engineers, doctors, lawyers, CAs, MBAs, research analysts, scientific researchers and PhDs, who have extensive domain knowledge, can get great jobs in KPO. Right qualifications will easily lend you a job in a KPO company, but your growth will depend on how you perform. Although it is not a must to have a formal degree if you have a great deal of experience to boast about, but candidates with qualifications like MBA, B.E., B.Tech., M.Tech., MBBS, CA, LLB, B.Ed., Architecture, Journalism, etc., are preferred. Skills required for KPO jobs Knowledge Process Outsourcing companies look for highly-qualified and knowledgeable candidates with great analytical and research skills. For all the jobs good communication skills and command over English is absolutely necessary, as constant interaction with foreign clients is required. Proficiency in using all major computer applications like MS Office and online research skills are also very important for a KPO job. The other job-specific skills include appropriate writing capabilities, raw data analysis, report creation, client servicing, etc. KPO jobs vs. BPO jobs BPO jobs are great for beginners with limited experience, while KPO jobs require in-depth domain expertise. Although, BPO jobs might pay more initially, but considering the direction of career growth and salaries of senior employees in KPO, it is definitely a better choice for those looking for a more fulfilling and long-term career. Qualified individuals who perform well can get handsome salary packages in this sector - much higher than BPOs. KPO jobs require a higher commitment level and a positive attitude towards work.

Salaries in KPO jobs Qualified beginners may get anywhere between Rs. 7,000 to Rs. 9,000 per month in a KPO firm. If the candidate has the right experience, the salaries can be much higher. A person with 4 to 5 years of experience can get anywhere between rupees three to seven lacks per annum. The future of KPO in India is promising, so it is the best time to get into this sector and grow along with it.

by James Smith

Top 10 Business Colleges

We have made a list of the Top 10 Business colleges for you or your kids. With this list we want to make sure everyone gets the best business college education there is available.

Top 10 Business Colleges :


DePaul University, Chicago

At DePaul's Ryan Center for Creativity, entrepreneurship students, local business leaders, and alums learn better ways to brainstorm new business concepts in sessions led by experts on creative thinking. Florida International University, Miami Claiming the largest minority enrollment of any institution in the U.S., FIU has brought diversity to the world of student startups. Courses on international trade emphasize starting ventures that aim to trade with South and Central America and the Caribbean.

Harvard University, Cambridge, Mass.

Harvard has 17 endowed chairs in entrepreneurship. All 900 MBA students are required to take an entrepreneurship course in their first semester. To teach new-venture development, Harvard uses its classic case-study format -- with a twist: CEOs of the companies under discussion are invited to participate. Recent visitors: David Neeleman, CEO of JetBlue, and fashion designer Kate Spade.

Howard University, Washington, D.C.

All incoming students must participate in Entrepreneur's Boot Camp during orientation. In the eight-hour course they study, among other things, financial self-discipline and the history of black enterprise in the U.S. A $3.5 million grant helped establish a new minor in entrepreneurship this year.

Simmons College, Boston

The only women's business school in the U.S., Simmons last year instituted a six-month entrepreneurship program tailored specifically to women. Candidates must have an MBA; most have a decade of work experience.

Sitting Bull College, Fort Yates, N.D.

One of the first tribal colleges in the U.S. when it was founded in 1973, Sitting Bull has launched a pioneering program to teach entrepreneurship to Native Americans. A key goal: to create jobs on the Standing Rock Reservation (pop. 12,000), where unemployment is at 76 percent. Educators seek to emulate the economically and culturally independent Amish.

University of Arizona, Tucson

Started in 1984, the university's entrepreneurship program is one of the oldest and most competitive in the U.S. Only 100 graduate and undergraduate students are accepted each year. To sharpen the focus on high-growth sectors such as biotech, the program has recruited new faculty.

University of Colorado, Boulder

A leader in "green" entrepreneurship, this program specializes in helping students create companies that are eco-friendly and socially progressive. Leaders of Boulder's organic and natural-products industry offer support.

University of Texas, Austin

To speed the creation of new startups, UT offers students office space, technology, and access to advisors at its business incubator. Of the 62 companies that have been launched to date, four are listed on Nasdaq. In 1999, Motorola paid approximately $98 million to acquire one of them, Metrowerks, a creator of hardware and software. The university also hosts Moot Corp., a prestigious international business-plan competition offering the largest prize -- $183,500 -- of any such contest.

University of Rochester, Rochester, N.Y.

The university has embedded entrepreneurship courses in virtually every department on campus -- including computer science, engineering, religion, and music. Engineering students are working with those in anthropology to design a nonpolluting bus for the city of Rochester.

Hereby we conclude our list of top 10 business colleges.

We hope you find what you were looking for and good luck!

by Pengo