Interview with Robert Godziszewski, Infosys BPO Poland

Why do employers look for candidates who speak foreign languages?

Robert Godziszewski: In the first decade of 2000, it was clearly visible that knowledge of the English language is a must in order to find a job in a corporation, especially in the BPO/SSC sector. Currently, we can observe market trends which pushed this requirement for foreign languages even further, and fluency only in English maybe not enough. Production corporations have become more and more aggressive in their outsourcing strategy in order to reach for higher reduction of their fixed costs. This has resulted in the situation that transactional activities which require only knowledge of English are moved towards India and activities which require advanced knowledge and expertise or proficiency in specific languages are being handed over to Polish organizations where the cost of employment is still lower. Due to Poland's close proximity to other European countries, it is feasible to find employees who speak other languages than English in the Polish labour market. Thanks to this, the BPO/SSC sector in Poland can maintain the proper level of employment (despite shifting the jobs to India) or even increase it. Thanks to this, clients of outsourcing organizations can accomplish their targets related to cost reduction, which enables them to increase the focus on driving their business.

How does the BPO/SSC sector help young people to become professionals? How could they use their new skills in the future?

The BPO/SSC sector enables young people to freely improve their skills in the area in which they feel comfortable. Many organizations give you a wide variety of opportunities where you can find the most suitable set of roles and responsibilities. However, it doesn’t stop at finding the one and only role. Gaining work experience is an advantage of each kind of job which you will find in any kind of company. Corporations from the BPO/SSC sector not only provide their employees with opportunities to increase the hard skills from day-to-day work but also invest in their hard skills gained during advanced post-graduate studies like ACCA, CIMA, MBA, etc. Such organizations like ACCA or CIMA also try to align their offers with the BPO/SSC sector. Thanks to such initiatives, you may become a very knowledgeable and experienced professional who will be highly valued in the labour market.

What is the brief history of Infosys BPO in Poland? Why did Infosys BPO choose Lodz to invest in Poland?

Infosys BPO decided to enter the Polish market via the acquisition of a Shared Service Centre which was developed by Philips Electronics, starting from 2003. At the time of take-over in 2007, the headcount was on an approximate level of 700 employees. During the last 7 years, employment grew towards more than 2,300 employees. Such growth possibilities were recognized by Infosys BPO due to various aspects. One of them is the location of Lodz. When you take a look at a map of the world and zoom in on Europe, you will notice that in the middle of Europe (which “starts” from the Cape of St. Vincent in Portugal and “finishes” on the Ural Mountains in Russia), you can find Poland. When you zoom into Poland, you will notice that Lodz is located in the middle of the country. This drives to a simple conclusion that Lodz is in the middle of Europe. However, in the BPO environment, it is the employees that are, in fact, the key factor of growth. As Lodz is an academic city, there is a significant resource pool of fresh graduates who are eager to start their careers. Infosys knew that investing in Lodz will bring business growth, which resulted in the fact that Infosys BPO Poland in Lodz is the biggest Infosys centre outside of India.

Is Infosys BPO Poland a good place to work for young people who take their first steps in the job market?

In fact, Infosys BPO Poland is an excellent place for young people who would like to start their career in the areas of Finance and Accounting, IT, Sourcing and Procurement and many others. During their first days, each new employee has an opportunity to join quite a unique set of training which will help him or she gets acquainted with outsourcing processes, different IT landscapes and systems, Infosys House Rules and the way of working. Later on, each employee will also go through quite a big variety of training related to client-specific processes and soft skills. During day-to-day work, everyone gains expertise in their particular area of responsibility, but this can be extended to other areas by taking part in improvement projects, short and long-term assignments in client’s locations or horizontal/vertical progressions and promotions. By taking yourself outside your “comfort zone”, you can significantly increase your various experiences and your value in the labour market. However, working in Infosys is not only about your career. You can also take advantage of the wide social package, which is granted by the company or involve yourself in various initiatives led by the employees, which will bring you lots of fun and relaxation.