Processing .....please wait.. 
The article has been forwarded.... 
News >> Technology >>
Raman & Vivek back with KPO dream
By agencies
|
Thursday, 04 August 2005, 19:30 IST
NEW DELHI: Raman Roy and Vivek Paul, Wipro’s former executives, may team up to create a series of BPOs and KPOs. Of course, it remains to be seen whether Roy taps private equity and VCs in the initial stages, or he chooses the “bootstrapping” option of bringing the initial capital himself and diluting at a later stage.
When contacted, Roy confirmed that he wanted to create a series of BPOs, but refused to divulge specific plans.
“I would not like to comment on speculation on my next venture,” he said. Paul could not be contacted as he is on holiday and “not reachable”. It is also expected that some of the key members of Roy’s old team from erstwhile Spectramind, who joined Wipro after the acquisition, may be associated with him in various capacities.
“I have worked with Raman for nine years now. And he has discussed his future plans with me as well. I am evaluating options at this point of time, but it’s natural that I will gravitate towards him,” says Raj Dutta, ex-CFO, Wipro Spectramind.
Analysts say KPOs could be the next big thing in India. Globally, the KPO industry is expected to reach $17 billion by Â’10, of which, $12 billion could be outsourced to India. It is expected to provide employment to over 2,50,000 people in the country.
The domestic KPO sector currently employs 25,000 professionals. This will be RoyÂ’s first venture after he quit Wipro BPO Solutions as president and chief executive officer in June. The former GE and Amex executive had founded Spectramind eServices that was later acquired by Wipro in July Â’02 for Rs 407 crore. And Roy appears to be moving up the value chain with KPOs as well.