The lowering of communication costs and forms of work organization related to globalization make possible the relocation of part of customer relationship services in the near countries where labor costs are lower. Tunisia , with its young francophone graduates, is an ideal place to set up a call center .

 

In a competitive and globalized economy, the development of enterprises depends on the quality of its relationship with its customers. The call centers , translation from English " Call centers " were developed from the 1990s to ensure rapid and almost constant contact with consumers seeking information (board TV ) , technical support ( Hotline ) or wish to place an order ( telesales ) . In this case , we speak of incoming calls since it is the customer who is at the origin of the approach. These services represent 70 % of the activity of the centers, the remaining 30% correspond to outgoing calls as in the case of telephone surveys or telemarketing.

In France , most companies choose to develop in-house customer relationship or in a subsidiary , while others prefer to outsource this activity by using a service provider. In the telecom sector for which the relationship with the customer is an essential aspect , the answers are varied. Orange employs 16,000 people in its internal services and 9,000 externally. However , SFR uses the services of 12,000 call center operators provided by " outsourcers " [1] .

In 2011, the total number of employees of call centers was 273 000, which is still quite modest compared to the million people who work in this sector in the UK . Yet it is a French company ( Teleperformance ) is the world leader in the management of hotlines , employs 120,000 call center in the world but only 4,000 in France. This case is exceptional because the French companies do not realize that 20% of their activity in "offshore" .

Teleperformance has become the largest private employer in Tunisia through a subsidiary , Société Tunisienne de Telemarketing, which counts among its customers or SFR La Redoute .

 

A teleoperator is paid about 250 € monthly . Tunisia is not the only country , North Africa as a whole has seen the number of call centers multiply. 7800 they were in 2005, the number has more than doubled five years later . Other countries are also solicited like Senegal perfect French with labor costs below or Romania which has excellent infrastructure and highly qualified staff. The cost of labor is not the only reason for the relocation of call centers even if the main . In Tunisia , there is a highly qualified staff , often graduates looking for a job , young and perfectly francophones. Offshoring also allows to meet the needs of customers by providing a service available 7 days 7 and 24, sometimes 24 hours .

OEMs put in competition with outsourcing companies who in turn put pressure on their suppliers abroad. This pressure has consequences on the working conditions of call center operators . They live a stress of long hours of work, constant noise and crowding of workstations in "open space" . These young graduates, subjected to forms of work organization that drive performance, have the feeling of being operated and decommissioned .

" outsourcer " is a neologism derived from the English term meaning relocation. It refers to companies that treat customer relationship outsourced by a company. The work can be done in France or abroad . In the latter case , said the call center is " Offshore ".

 

 media lighting

The evening edition of France 3 has a fairly comprehensive report on a call center "offshore" implanted in Tunisia to monitor French customers . For many viewers it is an opportunity to view and understand the working conditions of people with whom they communicate by telephone on the occasion of a request for information or technical assistance. The images were shot in the premises of the Tunis - SP2C company which is a subsidiary of the employers ' union " outsourcers " that brings together 17 French companies. The report does not provide a quantitative assessment of the importance of call center outsourcing. He suggests that they are " many " and " disturbing ."

 

'Offshore' centers represent only 30 % of total outsourcers , not to mention companies that do not outsource this activity. Most centers is still in France . Filmed offices suggest working conditions : overcrowding workstations , artificial light, permanent hubbub monitoring of a leader. Although it is not stated , we imagine that a portion of the salary is subject to performance. Latest features of these centers, tele-operators should be speaking to hide the location of the call. Finally , they have a diploma sometimes well above the qualification required to enter the job, where a sense of deskilling . The various interviews, through personal situations tend to show that only the wage level is taken into account , it is seen as income or cost employees by employers. This vision is a bit simplistic.