Global BPO leader selects RP as host for international operations

A global leader in providing business process outsourcing (BPO) solutions has chosen Manila over several other locations worldwide to host its newest offshore operations.

The Resource Group (TRG), headquartered in Washington DC, launched yesterday TRG Philippines with no less than President Arroyo and key Cabinet members in attendance. Initial investment in the local subsidiary reached $5.95 million (around $7,000 per workstation) which is expected to increase to $24.5 million in the next 18 months.

TRG chief executive officer Zia Chisti said the Philippines represented a formidable site for TRG’s BPO operations "given the excellent human capital and infrastructure in the country, and provide our blue-chip customer base truly global service delivery options with superior service and significant cost benefits."

In Manila, TRG’s resources include a 36,000-square feet facility with 850 workstations in the heart of Ortigas. The facility enjoys a state-of-the-art fully redundant information technology infrastructure. TRG is opening a second center this year in Makati with at least 1,500 workstations.

According to Shuja Keen, TRG global business development head, plans are afoot for another 1,200 to 1,500-seat facility in the next 18 months to be located either north or south of Manila. This will bring TRG’s total number of seats in the Philippines to 3,500.

TRG Philippines is around 70 percent owned by TRG in Washington while the balance of 30 percent is owned by the International Finance Corp. (the investment arm of the World Bank) and AIG International. Parent firm TRG’s stocks are publicly traded in the Karachi Stock Exchange and Keen revealed that they are looking at additional listings in Nasdaq and in Dubai.

Keen told The STAR that as early as 2003, TRG has been looking at several countries including India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Mauritius, and the Philippines to host its BPO operations. "But we chose the Philippines not only because our clients prefer it but also because Philippine call centers have been providing excellent service and it’s easy to do business here," he said.

"Our target is for TRG Philippines to become the best performing center in the world in terms of the quality of service that we provide," Keen emphasized. TRG is present in seven countries worldwide.

At present, TRG Philippines will have mostly American clients but according to Chris Hollamby, managing director of TRG Europe, the latter will be bringing its first customer to the Philippines – a major United Kingdom telecommunications company – by March.

"This is just the first of a string of European clients that we will bring to Manila," Hollamby told The STAR. The UK client will probably add another 25 seats to the Philippine operations.

The Philippine call center and BPO industry has traditionally relied on American clients and Hollamby is optimistic that bringing in this UK-based telco will soon make the Philippines a favorite outsourcing spot for European companies.

TRG specializes in BPO services for the automotive, financial services, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, insurance, technology, retail and e-commerce, telecommunications, consumer products and public sector. According to the Forrester Research, TRG is best suited for customers who want to customize their contact center solutions according to their specific business requirements.

TRG’s expertise covers the following BPO services: analytics and risk management, software development and customization, customer acquisition, optimization and retention, document processing and management, marketing and design and billing and payments.

It services Fortune 500 companies and has over $170 million in revenues. TRG operates in 29 locations across seven countries namely US, UK, Philippines, Pakistan, Morocco, Canada and France. TRG also enhances the profitability of its portfolio companies by leveraging its back-office offshore facilities in Asia.

TRG is the recipient of the 2006 Philippine Marketing Excellence Award for the Most Outstanding Call Center (inbound) which will be formally awarded on Feb. 26.

TRG Philippines began when the international BPO firm TRG approached in September last year Callworx in the Philippines set up by Arnold Bagabaldo on the possibility of acquiring his company. Bagabaldo agreed and he is now TRG Philippines managing director owning shares in the company acquired through swapping shares of Callworx.