Sri Lanka – excellent hub for BPO of conveyancers, but lacks talent
Mr. Nigel Hay
While it’s very differently challenging to recruit conveyancers in the UK, Sri Lanka is an exceptional hub for business process outsourcing (BPO) of conveyancers. Though there are enough and more law graduates who have the paper qualification, the knowledge and the ability to learn new technology, it lacks the right talent to grasp customer expectations, says Adam Gamage Brooker, Director Muve Colombo in an interview with the Business Times.
Mr. Brooker said, “It’s very challenging to recruit conveyancers in the UK. While living in the UK you have some appreciation for conveyancers. It’s a very different challenge, but not the easiest. In Sri Lanka there are enough and more graduates to recruit for Muve Colombo, but there is always one key element missing within the puzzle. The graduates have the paper qualifications, the knowledge and the ability to learn the technology. For us it’s about educating them on the expectations of the customer in other markets.”
Mr. Adam Gamage Brooker
Muve being a UK-based 1.3 million pound fundraised company, the business model is successful because of what is being built in Sri Lanka, added Mr. Brooker. Muve Colombo was started in 2017 with just three people and the company has grown to 45 in January 2020. With the current recruitment programme the target is to recruit 200 people by the end of 2021.
Mr. Brooker stressed, “Though COVID-19 has affected many industries globally, there are still companies that are less affected like us recruiting people. We are looking at attracting the best in the industry.”
Muve Colombo, Senior Manager Learning and Development and HR, Nigel Hay said, “As for the learning and development, we invest heavily on ongoing learning and development programmes to enhance our personnel. Learning begins with a carefully designed three-day induction programme that recognises and welcomes all new recruits as part of our Muve culture. Induction takes you from welcome starter packs, to live company videos where you get to meet our directors in the UK. Then you learn about who we are, what we do and our values, which we want you to embrace and uphold as part of team Muve Colombo. Then we take those first steps in understanding the process of conveyancing. To this we add a healthy mix of customer service, communication and English language development.”
“We also provide ongoing learning interventions for all personnel. These one-on-one sessions, delivered on an individual basis, provide personalized communication and language development support where necessary. We also provide English language writing workshops to assist our specialized legal support teams that communicate via email and post. Learning interventions are delivered via three separate channels; classroom, online learning management systems and on the job training sessions. 70 per cent of learning is hands-on-job related experiences and on the job training, to ensure our personnel receive the very best when it comes to preparing them for their current as well as future roles within the organisation. 20 per cent of learning is derived from interactions with others, such as co-workers, pod leads and managers and 10 per cent from formal learning events,” he added.