Outsourcing is going to be the next big mantra for Taj hotels and it does not have to look very far for an IT partner since sister company TCS is well equipped to handle its back office work.

Taj has been outsourcing reservations to TCS for a few months but is now in the process of making the entire process more sophisticated and plans to outsource other activities.

"The strategy is to get more sophisticated. TCS has the requisite skills," said Ajay Row, VP, Customer Relationship Management.

The Indian Hotels Management says it does not save any costs by outsourcing but it helps the company focus on its core business of managing and running hotels.

"We will outsource our standardised processes. Those that don't require personalised attention," said Ajoy K Misra, Senior VP, Sales and Marketing.

Loyalty programs

TCS sees big business opportunities in India's booming hospitality industry and says it is in talks with other hotel chains for similar outsourcing work.

But for now TCS is expecting to bag another deal from its sister company, Indian Hotels, this time to manage Taj's customer loyalty program.

Taj group is one of the first Indian hotel chains to outsource services such as reservations and loyalty programs. It will now take outsourcing to the next level so that it can focus on core areas.

TCS for its part sees a lot of potential in the hospitality industry. For now it accounts for 8-20 per cent of business but is expected to rise to 15 per cent in a couple of years.

( www.ndtvprofit.com)