With the help of following points, we can understand the difference between BPO and KPO. BPO and KPO are the important buzzwords in the world of business. BPO stands for Business Process Outsourcing. KPO stands for Knowledge Process Outsourcing. KPO is more specific, specialized, skilled and knowledge-based system as compared to BPO.
BPO Vs. KPO: Difference between BPO and KPO
We can differentiate between these two terms with the help of following points to find which one is better.
Full Form
- BPO: Business Process Outsourcing
- KPO: Knowledge Process Outsourcing
Subset
- BPO: subset of outsourcing
- KPO: subset of BPO
Work Nature
- BPO: Contract of the responsibilities of some specific business processes or services to the third party
- KPO: outsourcing of core information-related business activities
Skills required
- BPO: Communication Skills, Basic knowledge & language
- KPO: advanced analytical skills, technical skills, high degree of specialist expertise
Categories
- BPO:
- Front Office – client interaction and customer support, Call centre services
- Back Office – internal business functions i.e. finance, accounting and HR
- other categories – Offshore and nearshore outsourcing
- KPO: intellectual property research for patent applications; equity research, business and market research, legal and medical services; training, consultancy, and research and development in fields such as pharmaceuticals and biotechnology; and animation and design
Focus/ Motive
- BPO: Cost Reduction or Cost Saving
- KPO: To get specialized Knowledge-based solutions, R & D etc. Not just Cost Reduction
Business processes
- BPO: Information technology-based (ITES-BPO)
- KPO: Not just IT based, Also includes specialized knowledge
Functions
- BPO:
- Document processing
- Data entry, Data analytic – Data/market/IP research
- Customer Service, Customer Support, Helpdesk
- Billing, verification
- Transcriptions
- Outbound/Inbound Calling, Market /Competitor research
- KPO:
- Engineering Designing, Drafting and Rendering – Mechanical, Structural, Architectural and Civil
- Legal Process Outsourcing (LPO)
- Technical Writing & Communications
- Remote IT infrastructure Management – Helpdesk, OS, Applications, Database Administration, Maintenance & support etc.
- Animation, 2D, 3D modelling etc.
Investment
- BPO: Low to Medium
- KPO: Medium to High
Qualification Required
- BPO: Basic Education is enough
- KPO: Competent & Specialised
Training
- BPO: Less Rigorous
- KPO: More Rigorous & sector based
Research before contract
- BPO: Less
- KPO: More extensive
Challenge
- BPO: Less
- KPO: More
Period
- BPO: Long-term
- KPO: Short-term nature as compared to BPO
Overall Revenue
- BPO: High as compared to KPO
Result
- KPO: better than Business Process Outsourcing
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