A look at rapidly rising overseas providers helping to reshape the FAO market.

by Denise Doig

Offshoring BPO services is nothing new. In 2006, you would be hard pressed to find a successful outsourcing engagement without an offshore component. Although this segment of the market is expanding out of Asia into Latin America and Eastern Europe, the biggest players are still based in India.

With many boasting an IT heritage, this class of providers is making a strong push into the U.S. This past quarter saw WNS Global Services step up its FAO profile with an initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange—a move that has thrust the provider into the ranks with Infosys and Genpact, which itself is expected to launch an IPO in the near future.

This list features the 20 most prominent offshore providers that you will most likely come across as the FAO market develops. In some cases, you won’t even realize the company is based overseas. Others still have yet to enter the brand-building stage. In all cases, the provider either has a significant portion of its infrastructure or headquarters located overseas. We’ve listed only a fraction of all offshore providers, and more will certainly stake a share of the domestic market down the road.

We hope this look at offshore providers helps you, the buyer, better evaluate the young FAO market. As always, FAO Today would like to hear from provider companies that were omitted but have made inroads into the U.S. market, as well as buyers who have suggestions on how to make this list even more useful in your outsourcing ventures.

Ajuba International www.ajubanet.net
Ajuba launched its operations five years ago, establishing itself as a global provider of healthcare revenue cycle outsourcing services. Although it is headquartered in Charlotte, NC, Ajuba currently has more than 1,000 employees with operational centers in the midwest and Chennai, India. Ajuba provides accounts receivable services for hospitals, medical groups, and medical billing companies and has experience in managing debt portfolios.

Services Offered: Healthcare billing and revenue cycle outsourcing: scheduling, patient registration, insurance eligibility verification, medical coding, charge capture, claims transmission, insurance follow-up, government follow-up, payment posting, self-pay follow-up, denial management, refunds processing, credit balance resolution, and provider enrollment and credentialing.

Caliber Point Business Solutions www.caliberpoint.com
Caliber Point is the independent BPO arm of Hexaware Technologies with state-of-the-art BPO facilities in Mumbai and Chennai. Caliber Point provides end-to-end outsourcing services, and its 1,000 associates deliver front- and back-office solutions. With more than 10 years of offshoring experience, Caliber Point has expertise in process consulting, transition management, shared-services center set-up, transaction processing, and document management. Hexaware Technologies is a $ 118 million global provider of IT and BPO services, focusing exclusively on outsourcing and offshoring.

Services Offered: Payment processing; loans and mortgages; check processing; order management; contract management; financial and SOX reporting; tax management; accounting: and accounts receivable, accounts payable, general ledger maintenance, and reconciliation.

Equinox Corp. www.equinoxco.com
Equinox, with headquarters in Irvine, CA, specializes in financial services. Equinox is a fully-owned subsidiary of i-flex Solutions, a provider of IT and outsourcing solutions. Equinox utilizes a combination of process expertise, offshore resources, and Six Sigma methods to deliver cost savings. Equinox’s multiple operation centers in India are equipped with state-of-the-art voice and data technology, which connects back to two U.S. data centers. Before expanding into financial service areas, Equinox began with mortgage servicing and processing. It also delivers selective outsourcing services in specialized areas of financial services.

Services Offered: Financial services solutions in the following: banking, mortgage and consumer finance, securities and capital market, and insurance.

ExlService Holdings, Inc. www.exlservice.com
EXL is an offshore BPO provider with five delivery centers located in India and a total capacity of 5,400 workstations per shift. The integrated global delivery platforms are supported by a state-of-the-art and scalable infrastructure, and its leadership team has extensive experience in the banking, financial services, and insurance industries. EXL offers finance and accounting services managed by more than 100 specialists with widespread experience managing operations and projects for large finance and accounting outsourcing engagements.

Services: Accounts payable, accounts receivable, billing, general accounting, collections, fund transfer administration, treasury and cash management, payroll, and tax accounting and maintenance.

Genpact www.genpact.com
Genpact, the GE offshoot formerly known as Gecis, is a provider of business and technology services to global clients. Genpact employs more than 25,000 associates specialized by industry. With 24 operations centers in India, China, Hungary, Romania, Poland, Mexico, the Philippines, and the U.S., Genpact provides sales and marketing analytics, customer service, supply chain and procurement, financial services operations and collections, finance and accounting, information technology services, and enterprise application services and program management. In India, Genpact operates out of 10 sites and employs more than 19,000 in Gurgaon, Delhi, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Bangalore, and Kolkata—making it one of the largest, global business services and technology solutions companies in India.

Services Offered: Cash disbursement cycle solutions, general accounting and reporting solutions, planning and performance management services, treasury services, audit and projects services, revenue cycle solutions, reconciliation services, employee services, and taxation services.

HCL Technologies www.hcbpo.com
For 30 years, HCL Enterprise has offered a range of IT services globally and comprises two companies—HCL Technologies and HCL Infosystems. HCL Technologies provides software-led IT solutions, BPO, and remote infrastructure management services. Since 1997, HCL Technologies has focused on technology and R&D outsourcing before going public in 1999. HCL’s BPO focuses on telecom, retail, financial services, logistics, and utilities, offering CRM services, order-to-cash, procure-to-pay, supply chain management, and finance and accounting.

Services Offered: Accounts payable, accounts receivable, fixed assets, travel and entertainment, general accounting, closing processes, and reconciliation.

ICICI OneSource www.icicionesource.com
ICICI OneSource (I-OneSource) is headquartered in Mumbai, India and currently has more than 8,000 employees across 12 state-of-the-art centers in India, the U.S., and the U.K. The BPO company reported $123 million in revenues in its last fiscal year. I-OneSource offers back-office processing and call center and transaction processing capabilities for a complete range of solutions including customer acquisition, customer care, claims processing, collections, reconciliations and investigations, research and analytics, and information services.

Services Offered: Customer acquisition, customer care, transaction processing, billing and collections, and business research and analytics.

Infosys Technologies, Inc. www.infosys.com
With more than 58,000 employees worldwide, Infosys (formerly Progeon) provides BPO and IT services to global clients globally. Headquartered in Bangalore, India, it created Infosys BPO in 2002 as the outsourcing subsidiary of Infosys Technologies. Infosys BPO provides outsourcing solutions across several vertical and horizontal focus areas and operates in India, the Czech Republic, China, and the Philippines. Infosys’ Offshore Development Center acts as an extension of its clients’ internal team. It operates global development centers in the U.S., Canada, the U.K., and Japan.

Services Offered: Accounts payable, accounts receivable, collections and credit management, billing and invoicing, fixed assets, general ledger, finance planning and analysis, tactical procurement, strategic procurement, and compliance and performance management.

MphasiS www.mphasis.com
MphasiS is a global IT and BPO services company formed in 2000 after the merger of the U.S.-based IT consulting company MphasiS Corporation and the Indian IT services company BFL Software Limited. MphasiS is headquartered in India and the U.S. and has 25 offices in 9 countries with international delivery centers in China and Mexico; it has a staff of more than 12,000. Its centers in Bangalore, Mangalore, Pune, Noida, and Ahmedabad offer English language support, and its Tijuana, Mexico facility offers Spanish and bilingual solutions to target the U.S. Hispanic market. MphasiS has traditionally served the banking, financial services, insurance, and technology industries but more recently expanded into the healthcare and telecom industries. MphasiS delivers customized onshore, nearshore, and offshore solutions.

Services Offered: Customer interaction management; claims processing and payments; research and content management; finance and accounting (general accounting, financial analysis, accounts payable, accounts receivable, general ledger, tax services, and shared services); tax and compliance; offshore program management services (OPMS); and financial services (reporting and control systems, billing compliance services, and cost management).

Nipuna Services Limited www.nipunaservices.com
Nipuna was formed by Satyam Computer Services Limited, a global IT consulting and services provider, in 2002 to address the growing BPO market. Nipuna serves the insurance, healthcare, pharmaceutical, banking and finance, manufacturing and automobile, media and telecom, and energy and power industries. With services such as claims processing, policy issuance, and premium accounting, Nipuna offers 60 business processes to 27 global customers. Its global delivery centers are located in Hyderabad, Bangalore, and Chennai and connect with global customers through a state-of-the-art network. Nipuna also offers front-office services such as contact centers for customer service, product support, and helpdesk.

Services Offered: Finance and accounting services include accounts payable, accounts receivable, fixed assets, disbursement, operations, financial reporting, and reconciliation.

Outsource Partners International www.opiglobal.com
Outsource Partners International, Inc. (OPI) specializes in finance and accounting services to public and private companies as well as non-profit organizations. OPI manages recurring transactions as well as processes such as regulatory compliance, preparation of financial statements, and SEC reporting. OPI delivers F&A business process solutions that comply with the complexities of Sarbanes-Oxley. OPI’s “onsite, offshore” delivery model involves 20 to 40 percent of total personnel remaining onsite at the client.

Services Offered: Accounts payable, general ledger accounting, bank reconciliations, tax compliance, credit and bad debt collection, customer invoicing, accounts receivable, purchasing, travel and entertainment expense processing, regulatory compliance and reporting, cost and inventory accounting, and financial reporting.

Patni Computer Systems www.patni.com
Patni is headquartered in Mumbai and is a global provider of information technology services and business solutions. With more than 12,000 professionals servicing clients across diverse industries, Patni has been a vendor to 200 Fortune 1000 companies for 20 years. Patni has 23 sales offices across the Americas, Europe, and Asia-Pacific and multiple offshore development centers in eight Indian cities. It has long-term, offshore development center relationships with clients and a major U.S. bank, a subsidiary bank of a large insurance company.

Services Offered: Travel and expense processing, payment processing, accounts receivables and collections, accounts payable, vendor management, and general and financial accounting.

Tata Consulting Services www.tcs.com
As part of the Asian conglomerate, the TATA Group, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is an IT consulting and business process outsourcing organization. Since 1968, it has delivered IT services to its global clients. TCS is present in 34 countries across six continents, offering a range of services across diverse industries. TCS currently offers BPO services from eight delivery centers across the world: Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore; Budapest; Missoula, MS; Peterborough, U.K.; Santiago, Chile; and Montevideo, Uruguay. TCS clients have the option of choosing to operate from onshore, near-shore, and offshore facilities. TCS offers an array of transaction-based, IT-enabled services including inbound call centers, back-office support, engineering services, and database services.

Services Offered: Finance and accounting: accounts payable, accounts receivable, cash management, fixed asset accounting, and general ledger reconciliation; banking and financial services: payment processing, loan/mortgage processing, credit card operations, and securities back-office processing; and supply chain: procure to pay outsourcing, vendor management, spend data management, and purchase analytics.

Vsource, Inc. www.vsourceasia.com
Vsource Asia was created from a combination of the wholly owned operating subsidiaries in Malaysia, Japan, and Taiwan of Vsource, Inc. Operations began in Malaysia in 2000 with the opening of its first center of excellence. That same year, the Vsource Asia signed its first regional business process outsourcing contract. Since then, the group has rolled out operations in Osaka, Japan and Cyberjaya, Malaysia.

Services Offered: General accounting, credit, collections, payables, payment systems, and reporting requirements.

Wipro Technologies www.wipro.com
Wipro is a global services provider with more than 2,000 domain consultants and 500 technology consultants across North America, Europe, and Japan. Headquartered in Bangalore, India, Wipro delivers technology-driven business solutions from more than 40 centers of excellence and employs more than 10,000 workers. Wipro BPO provides a range of services from customer relationship management to back-office transaction processing.

Services Offered: Order to cash cycle: credit management, order management, invoicing, collections, and helpdesk support. Plan to result: reconciliations, fixed assets accounting, project accounting, and general ledger accounting. Procure to pay cycle: purchase order validation, invoice verification, accounts payables, employee T&E, vendor management, contract management, and query resolutions. Compliance reporting: SOX reporting and dash boards, U.S. GAAP compliance, and VAT claims.

WNS Global Services www.wnsgs.com
WNS Global Services provides business process outsourcing services for several industries, including travel, insurance, financial services, healthcare, professional services, manufacturing, distribution, and retail. WNS delivers end-to-end service offerings across consulting, BPO, and IT solutions including finance and accounting, human resources (payroll and benefits administration), research, and analytics.

Services Offered: Purchase-to-pay cycle, order-to-cash cycle, account-to-report, banking and treasury cycle, fixed assets cycle, general accounting cycle, and management reporting cycle.

Zensar Technologies www.zensar.com
Zensar offers end-to-end solutions through a global delivery model, which delivers 24/7 service. Headquartered in Pune, India, Zensar has operations and a customer base in 18 countries, including software development centers in India and China and a marketing presence in the U.S., Europe, and Asia Pacific regions. Zensar is established in key verticals of manufacturing, retail, logistics, financial services, telecom, and utilities. Zensar BPO provides transaction processing services in the domains of finance and accounting, retail, insurance, and healthcare.

Services Offered: Purchasing, accounts payable, accounts receivable, order administration, expense reporting, reconciliation, and GL.