Sutherland Global Services and Sitel Operating Corporation, two of the biggest players in the global BPO industry are facing each other in court next year over allegations of stolen business.

The case stems from claims by Sutherland that Sitel has stolen its trade secrets, resulting in the loss of at least one major client potentially worth hundreds of millions of dollars in services. The client in question is presumed to be T-Mobile US Inc.

The trial, which has been set for April 23, 2023, in Austin, Texas is the latest development in the court battle that has gone on for more than a year between the two customer experience (CX) organisations. 

The trial will be held without a jury.

The appointed judge will be in charge of evaluating the evidence and have final say on the matter. Nearshore Americas reports that the proceedings began when Sutherland launched legal action in mid-2021, filing a lawsuit in the US District Court, Western District of Texas, Austin Division.

Conspiracy theory regarding Sitel’s involvement

Sutherland claims that Sitel “conspires with former Sutherland employees to steal and improperly use Sutherland’s trade secrets”, resulting in Sitel acquiring an advantage while competing for at least one contract with an unnamed major customer. The defence admitted in court filings that Sitel had no active business with this customer prior to the summer of that year, when the contract was awarded.

It has been reported that neither the complaint nor the defence’s response identifies the customer by name. Nevertheless, a source familiar with the case indicated that it is telecom giant, T-Mobile, one of Sutherland’s largest clients.

According to Nearshore Americas, “the contract that Sitel allegedly won using confidential trade information from Sutherland would have been worth at least US$50 million a year for voice services and a big sales component.” The exact amount could climb to hundreds of millions, depending on how long the contract runs and considering potential payout increases for performance and managed volume.

Two former Sutherlands employees at the centre

At the centre of the case are two former Sutherland employees, Ratul Sengupta and Keith Lee, as well as Mike Small, who previously served as Sitel’s CEO in the Americas until October of 2021, several months after the complaint was filed. All three are listed as defendants in the lawsuit, alongside Sitel.

While Sitel is the biggest name among the defendants, the allegations nevertheless spring mainly from the interactions between two people: Ratul Sengupta and Mike Small.

Sutherland alleges that Sengupta and Small coordinated to acquire confidential corporate information while Sengupta was still employed by Sutherland and just months before he went to work for Sitel. This would have resulted, allegedly, in Sitel using the information to proposition and, in at least one instance, win business with Sutherland clients.