Polaris Consulting & Services Ltd, a Chennai-based digital transformation solutions and services company, plans to sell its business process outsourcing (BPO) division, which employs nearly 1,200 people.

“The BPO division was not strategic to our business. We would like to be a niche player in the BFSI segment,” said NM Vaidyanathan, Chief Financial Officer, Polaris.

The division contributed around 1 per cent of Polaris’ revenue, and it was not profitable, he told BusinessLine . Most of the employees are located in Chennai while some in Hyderabad and Gurgaon providing mainly call centre service to clients in telecom and banking sectors, he said.

The company’s board has given its in-principle approval to hive-off the BPO division. It will not be hived-off as a Polaris subsidiary but sold to a third party. A sub-committee will be formed and an advisor will be appointed soon to carry out the sale. “We want to do the sale as soon as possible,” he said. Post PolarisFT de-merger as software and product companies, the BPO division did not fit in the product division too, he said.

Net profit down 4%

Meanwhile, Polaris reported a 4 per cent drop in net profit to ₹47 crore during the second quarter ended September 30, 2015, as against ₹49 crore in the same quarter last year. Revenue grew by 9 per cent to ₹519 crore (₹477 crore).

Selling and marketing expenses increased by 27 per cent to ₹83 crore (₹65 crore).

NM Vaidyanathan, Chief Financial Officer, Polaris, in a press release said the company’s approach towards growth plans and cost plans has resulted in 9 per cent growth in revenues. “We are balancing the levers of investments in key accounts along with cost optimisation efforts. We expect this momentum to continue.”

During the quarter, the company added four new clients. The company ended the quarter with a total employee strength of 7,648 (excluding BPO division), the release said.

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