Cost arbitrage & ROI calculator
How much does an India center actually save — and in which month?
Five-year cost in India versus United States, United Kingdom, European Union and two more HQ regions, with the working shown: where the money goes, when you break even, and what changes under BOT, DIY and outsourcing. As of Q3 2026.
The calculator
Cost arbitrage & ROI calculator
Five-year cost of an India center versus HQ, with the working shown
as of Q3 2026
- HQ, five years
- $79.6M
- India, five years
- $30.3M
- Saving
- 62%
- Break-even
- month 7
Break-even includes 5 setup months, $0 one-time cost and $1.6M of setup-month opportunity cost.
Where the money goes — steady-state year, $5.3M
- Compensation$3.4M
- Workspace$360K
- Compliance & entity$180K
- IT & security$240K
- Leadership premium$272K
- Attrition backfill$204K
- Partner fee$612K
| Model | Five-year cost | Break-even | You own it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Build-Operate-Transfer | $30.3M | month 7 | Yes |
| Do it yourself | $28.6M | month 17 | Yes |
| Outsourcing | $35.7M | month 5 | No |
Assumptions: HQ fully-loaded cost per seat from Talpro's client baselines by region; India compensation from Talpro benchmarks by city and level, scaled by the city cost index; rents from JLL/Colliers bands; statutory tables as of Q3 2026; HQ inflation 3%, India 8%. Ranges, not quotes — the feasibility call replaces every number with yours.
And how long?
The BOT timeline simulator.
A dependency-based milestone plan across the five stages, as ranges. Drag the headcount and watch Scale stretch; tell it the entity already exists and watch Establish collapse.
BOT timeline simulator
From signature to the keys — as ranges, gated by exit criteria
as of Master-agreement ranges
Transfer-ready
16–23 months from signature
Advise
Board-approved case and city
wk 4–8Gate: Board-approved business case and city.
Establish
Entity live — can employ and invoice
wk 10–18Gate: Entity can lawfully employ and invoice.
What shortens this: An existing entity removes this stage from the critical path.
Build
Site head in place
wk 14–28Gate: Site head and first leadership layer hired.
What shortens this: A named site head at signature shortens Build by four to six weeks.
Build
First 25 seats occupied and secured
wk 16–30Gate: First 25 seats occupied, secured and audited.
Scale & run
100 hires
wk 28–49Gate: 100 seats at the agreed quality bar with attrition inside the SLA.
Scale & run
200 hires
wk 44–73Gate: 200 seats at the agreed quality bar with attrition inside the SLA.
Transfer
Transfer-readiness score met
wk 70–99Gate: Agreed headcount, productivity and attrition milestones held for two consecutive quarters.
Transfer
Keys handed over; ninety-day shadow begins
wk 74–107Gate: Client leadership runs the center independently.
Ranges are the typical ranges stated in Talpro master agreements for each stage, with hiring velocity by city from documented engagements. Every node is gated by its exit criterion, never by a date.
FAQ
What the numbers include, and what they don't.
What does "fully loaded" include in the India figure?
Compensation by role family and city, workspace (flex or Grade-A), statutory and entity costs (PF, ESI, professional tax, secretarial, audit, DPO), IT and security, a leadership premium, attrition backfill and — for BOT and outsourcing — the partner fee. Setup months are charged as opportunity cost.
Why is the break-even later than the per-seat saving suggests?
Because a center is not productive on day one. The model charges the setup months at a quarter of the seats' HQ-equivalent output and adds any one-time cost before counting savings, which is why DIY breaks even later than BOT despite a lower steady-state fee.
Are these quotes?
No. They are ranges from Talpro benchmarks and public rent and statutory tables, refreshed quarterly with a visible as-of stamp. The feasibility call replaces every number with yours and produces the assumptions sheet.
Can I get the full model?
Yes — the full model and the assumptions sheet are sent by an engagement leader from a named mailbox when you request them on the page.