IT/ITeS CertificationIT/ITeS Certification

Presentation at World Bank SSLEVPresentation at World Bank SSLEVMumbai, 9Mumbai, 9thth February,2008 February,2008

India’s Largest Skills Assessment CompanyIndia’s Largest Skills Assessment CompanyInvestee Company of Manipal Education GroupInvestee Company of Manipal Education Group

About usAbout us

Over 3 Million candidates tested | Assessing 125,000 candidates/month

350+ Clients across IT, BPO, Engineering, Banking, Healthcare, etc.

Tests in over 300 areas | Item bank of 75,000+ questions

Web based Testing Engine – OnTrac

MeritTrac Assessment Zones : 16 cities, 1300 terminals

400+ Employees | 1000+ MeritTrac Certified Test Administrators

Exclusive Global Assessment Partners to NASSCOM for NAC-Tech & NAC-

BPO

Assessment Partner to Govt. of Gujarat for Gujarat Knowledge Society

Online Tests delivered in Brazil, China, Costa Rica, Mauritius & Philippines

Winner of the NASSCOM Innovation Award 2007 for Online Testing

Partial List of BPO Partial List of BPO CustomersCustomers

Alignment Acquisition Management

Creation

School/College Examinations Talent

Management

Employability Enhancements

Right-fit Recruitment

Sourcing Intelligence

Delivery & Administration

Talent Assessments

& Methodologies

Validated Suite of Tests

Talent Pool Analytics & Intelligence

TracSkills: Individual

Certifications

Recruitment Process

Management incl. Test Admin

Education Assessment

s

Integrated Talent Engagement Model

Talent Pool Reports

The Demand Side:The Demand Side:

Exponential growth across all sectors –

including IT & BPO

Future growth is tightly linked to

availability of quality manpower

The “War for Talent” – fight for the right

profile

Low conversion rates – due to lower input

quality and higher customer expectations

Increasing processing loads & pressure to

lower costs

The Supply Side:The Supply Side:

A large Graduate Population spread across Tier 1,2 & 3 cities

Low career orientation & lack of awareness of industry

Myths & misconceptions – esp. about the emerging industry

No structured feedback on skillsets to students to help bridge gaps

Diverging industry-academia requirements

Faculty!!

Shortfall in Manpower Supply…Shortfall in Manpower Supply…

1,120

140

520

460

885

525

360

Total supply (2009)

Supply expected based oncurrent trends

Current pool

Total demand (2009)

Products and Technologyservices

Domestic IT services

IT services exports

Shortfall:235

IT Manpower gap (2009)

Number (000s)

BPO Manpower gap (2009)

Number (000s)

Source: Institute of Applied Manpower Research. NSSO. NASSCOM. KPMG. 2003.

1,003

413

1,416

741

581

160

Total supply (2009)

Supply expected (net of attritionat current levels)

Current pool

Total demand (2009)

Industry productivityenhancement (product mix,

structural changes)

ITeS market demand (currentproductivity)

Shortfall:262

-

Conversion Funnel: Engg Skills

ABI

L

I

T

I

E

S

25(lower

threshold)

Interviews

D

O

M

A

I

N

18(Technology/Domain

Knowledge)

Offers

12100

candidates

Joining

10

Conversion Funnel: Comm. Skills

C

O

M

M

N

S

K

I

L

L

S

15(lower,

trainable scale)

Interviews

A

B

I

L

I

T

I

E

S

9(various abilities & skills

parameters)

Offers

6100

candidates

Joining

4

Some Number Some Number Crunching…Crunching…

Total number of additions in 2007BPO Industry: ~ 100,000 agents

IT Industry : ~ 125,000

Average Conversions Rates (from Eligible Applicant -> Offer)

BPO- Voice-based process : 4-8%

IT – Freshers/0-1 years : 10-15%

Number of Applicants Required/Annum:

BPO Industry : > 2.0 Million

IT Industry : > 1.25 Million

The State of the Talent Pool : BPO Voice

All India (% Conversions)

62%

70%

38%

30%

20%

15%

4%

2%

0% 20% 40% 60% 80%

2006

2007

Timeframe

%

Sco

res

4/3.5/3.5/3.5 & above

4/3/3/3 & above

4/2/2/3 & above

< 4/2/2/3Dec

Dec

Current ChallengesCurrent Challenges

• Selecting the “Right” people

• Optimized Assessment tool – proven validity & reliability

• Reaching out to the talent pool

• On-demand, multi-location presence

• Standardizing processes across locations

• Predictable quality of hires, reduce cost of bad hire

• Improving efficiencies in recruitment processes

• Focus on core, build the brand & SLA the rest!

• Reaching the next level in Talent Engagement

• Continuous Assessments to funnel people into areas of interest

The Challenge of Employability!The Challenge of Employability!

A Report by NASSCOM-KPMG estimates a short-fall of 500,000 “employable” graduates for the jobs that the IT & the BPO industry will create by 2009

Several Talent Pool reports, including those by MeritTrac & McKinsey indicates that only 10-25% of graduates in India are “employable”

Awareness of industry requirements, structured feedback on strengths & weaknesses and connecting employable talent to the Industry are some of the key aspects of enhancing employability

Scientific & Structured feedback aids in designing modular training programs

The need for a common definition of skills and create a standardized assessment & index to measure employability

Students Ability to identify their strengths and areas of improvement and self-

assess training needs A common assessment endorsed by multiple companies, which

obviates the need for candidates to appear for multiple tests for the same skill sets.

An opportunity to get certified at the national level and get noticed by all endorsing companies

Colleges/Universities Helps bridge the gap between academia and industry expectations Provides specific insights for creation of training programs to make

students “industry ready” Helps in reaching out to a larger set of companies, beyond the normal

placement network

The Industry Creation of a national standard for assessment & recruitment of

entry level talent Significant cost savings on sourcing & assessment costs Ease of benchmarking for individual processes with industry

standards Ability to create visibility and reach out to a larger audience

Benefits of Employability CertificationsBenefits of Employability Certifications

Partnership with Partnership with NASSCOMNASSCOM

NAC-TechNAC-TechExclusive Assessment Partner: Exclusive Assessment Partner:

MeritTracMeritTrac

NAC-Tech for Engineering Industry

• Launched in February 2008

• Conceived as an industry standard assessment and certification program – To ensure the transformation of a “trainable” workforce into

an “employable” workforce– To create a robust and continuous pipeline of talent for the IT&

Engineering Industry.

• Two forms of NAC-Tech:– NAC-Tech Diagnostic: aimed at II/III year Students, mainly for

feedback and gap identification. Unproctored, Online, Structured Feedback only on Part A

– NAC-Tech Certification: at III/Final Year Students for submission of scores to endorsing companies. Proctored, Online, Structured Feedback & Certification based on both Part A & Part B

• NAC-Tech will identify the level of talent which is available across India, especially in Tier II and Tier III cities & provide feedback on specific areas to enhance employability

NAC-Tech: Initiative by NAC-Tech: Initiative by NASSCOMNASSCOMNAC-Tech: Initiative by NAC-Tech: Initiative by NASSCOMNASSCOM

NAC-Tech Advisory Council

The NAC Tech Assessment Framework has been designed by NAC-Tech Advisory Council – with representatives from:

1. TCS

2. COGNIZANT

3. INFOSYS

4. SATYAM

5. HCL

6. PATNI

7. ACCENTURE

8. MINDTREE

9. WIPRO

10. IBM

NAC Tech Assessment Framework

Competency Tests

Grammar and Comprehension

Verbal Ability

Analytical Ability and Logical Reasoning

Analytical Ability

Eye for Detail Attention to Detail

Programming Ability

Programming Fundamentals

Learning Ability Learning Ability Test

Written English Written English Test

Part A- Mandatory Tests Part B – Choice of one of the

following Tests Tests

IT Concepts Test

Electrical Engineering

Electronics & Communication Engineering

Mechanical Engineering

Civil Engineering

Chemical Engineering

Textile Engineering

Bio Technology

Telecommunication Engineering

IT Services: AIG Systems, Convergys, Cognizant, Hexaware ,HSBC

Software, Impiger, Logica, Microland, Mphasis, Patni, Polaris, Sasken, Silverline Technologies, Sierra Atlantic, Sundaram Infotech, SunGard, UBS, Tanla Solutions, TESCO, Value Source Technologies

IT Products: Core Objects, Delphi, Tata Elxsi

Core Engineering: APC(Schneider Electric), Areva, Cable & Wireless,

Cambridge Solutions, CCI Valve, Harita TVS, Nokia Siemens Networks, Sundaram Fastners, Weir Minerals

Active Endorsers

ObjectiveProgram Snapshot

• 15,000+ candidates have received NAC-Tech certification since Feb 2008

• 159 colleges across 61 towns and cities locations covered

• Program Success Parameters:-1 student out of every 9, who has appeared for the test gets short-listed-1 student out of every 3 interviewed gets an offer (33% met-to-offer)

• Program has received interest from MHRD: Faculty Development Programs and Finishing school Programs are being linked to NAC-Tech

• TARGET: 1000 colleges and 1,00,000 engineering graduates by in 2009

Summary of Inferences

1.NAC-Tech scores are the most important factors distinguishing offered candidates– Academic scores by themselves are very feeble

differentiators of employable talent– NAC-Tech improves throughput by effectively capturing

parameters that influence hiring

Ac

ad

em

ic

Sc

ore

s

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

WrittenEnglish Test

AnalyticalAbility

Attention toDetail

ProgrammingFundamentals

Others

Difference in average score of Offered vs Non-Offered

candidates

Summary of Inferences

2. Written English Test & Analytical Ability are the best differentiators amongst NAC-Tech Scores

Correlation 10th 12th Grad.VerbalAbility

Anal.Ability

Attn.to Details

Prog.Learng Ability

Written English

Overall & Interviewed

25% 22% 21% 11% 44% 25% 18% 8% 17%

Overall &Offered

17% 14% 8% 8% 25% 16% 15% 5% 21%

Interviewed. & Offered

9% 3% -9% 4% 1% 6% 12% 1% 24%

NAC by NASSCOMNAC by NASSCOMAssessment Vendor: MeritTracAssessment Vendor: MeritTrac

The Model:

NAC for the BPO Aspirants

Our Advisory Board

Skills Note/Description

Speaking Parameters assessed will be Voice Clarity, Fluency, Accent Neutrality and Grammar.

Listening Conversation in neutral English will played online followed by questions which the candidates can answer online

Analytical and Quantitative Reasoning

Analytical and Logical Reasoning questions like puzzles, data sufficiency, inductive and deductive logic will have to be solved by the candidate. Numerical Reasoning

will include Percentages, Averages, Profit and Loss type of questions

Writing (multiple choice) Candidates will attempt questions on Grammar, Reading Comprehension, Vocabulary

Writing (essay) Test will assess candidate on Content, Relevance, Grammar, and Vocabulary.

Learning Ability Checks is a person has ability to learn new things

Keyboard Skills Checks if the candidate is comfortable in using the keyboard and also if the candidate can enter data into fields accurately.

NAC Assessment Framework

• NAC BPO was launched in mid-2006• Since its launch, over 25,000+ Graduates have

been assessed in various States

• MeritTrac has delivered NAC in the following states in India, for NASSCOM:– Rajasthan– 7 North-East States– West Bengal– Currently being rolled out in Gujarat & Orissa

• Total Tested Candidates: 19,000+

NAC & MeritTrac

Learnings

• Talent is wide-spread and not just restricted to only to Tier I Colleges and to Metros

• Exposure to industry (requirements, thinking) is very important

• Feedback mechanism is critical to get the focus on gaps

• Create Success Stories in Tier II colleges and smaller towns

• Colleges and Universities will need to allocate sufficient resources for post-assessment training to help students improve their employability

• Training on industry readiness needs to be customized/modularized at individual student/group level, rather than the current “one size fits all” approach

• Need to move away from a “Quality Control” mode into “Quality Assurance” mode

The Principles

Everyone is “employable”

Play to the strengths

Shortest-distance to

employability

PRE-TRAINING ASSESSMENTS

SKILLS TRAININGPOST

TRAINING ASSESSMENTS

Define Objective

& criterion measure

Define Content

Design methods

and training material

Training Program

Post-TrainingAssessment & Certification

Diagnostic Tests

Feedback of Performance

and curriculum framework

design

Employable Students

Trainable Students

The Model for Talent Pool Development

Endorsing Partners Mid-course

Assessments

Proposed Model

Phase I: Awareness & Benchmarking

Roll out a Nation-wide Assessments to measure skills – for benchmarking

Initiate a career awareness campaign across colleges in the Country

Identify customization requirements for the test framework and sample groups within existing ITO/BPO companies

Proposed Model

Phase II: Training Programs

Initiate specific training programs to bridge gaps and up-skill candidates

Post-Training Assessments to ensure quality of output from Training

Assess skills on a regular basis and classify people into “Recruit-able” & “Trainable” pools

Showcase the talent pool in the Country and provide this to Corporates to recruit

Proposed Model

Phase III : Curriculum & Certifications

Basic Skills Training programs at the College level

Focussed training programs to cater to each segment of the outsourcing services spectrum

Segment- specific certification programs to continuously funnel candidates into interest areas

Thank Youmadan@merittrac.com