Cebu to overtake India in attracting high-value non-voice BPO investments

CEBU, Philippines - The Philippines is seen to overtake India in capturing the non-voice outsourcing investments in the next few years, as long more active promotions will be started highlighting the capability of the country to accept high-value BPO jobs.

Cebu, in particular, is moving towards attracting the non-voice BPO investors which will provide high-salary opportunity for professionals in different fields of expertise.

Cebu Investments and Promotions Center (CIPC) managing director Joel Mari S. Yu said that while Cebu has already made its name as the preferred location for voice-related BPO investments, it has to focus its promotions on inviting the high-value BPO investments in the Knowledge Process Outsourcing (KPO).

“We have to prove that we are more competitive than India in terms of quality and quantity. Right now, the Philippines is best for voice BPO, but there is bigger market in the non-voice segment,” Yu said.

KPO is the emerging segment in the outsourcing sector that Philippines has to yet to penetrate. Currently, this market is dominated by India.

This middle and higher level outsourcing service will need professionals such as financial analysts, people who have degree and masters in human resource management, and accountants, among others.

Cebu, on the other hand, has slowly attracted the software development investments, as it has proven to the existing software development companies, that talents here are far more competitive than that of India.

In a separate interview with Willem-Geert Lagemaat, chief executive officer of Lighthouse Holdings B.V., a new software development company recently opened in Cebu, he said that the firm found out that it is much easier to work with Filipino software developers than Indian.

Lagemaat said it is more difficult to deal with Indian software developers compared to Filipinos. “Culturally, it is easier to connect with Filipinos. The Philippines has long relationship with Europe and America. It did affect how people act and react.”

The Dutch outsourcing firm recently opened its software development and data processing facility in Cebu, its second facility in Asia.

According to Lagemaat, Cebu has huge potential to attract more outsourcing firms such as software development because of its   impressive and easy to deal with pool of talents.

Compared to Indians, Filipinos can communicate well with foreign bosses, also Filipinos can easily adjust with the culture-difference working with foreign clients.

Lagemaat mentioned the “90 percent problem” often experience by outsourcing companies based in India. He said Indian developers can complete job assignment 90 percent on time, but can’t usually solve the remaining 10 percent of the job.

Inability to communicate well with their foreigner bosses is one of the problems faced by outsourcing firms based in India, Lagemaat added.

For his part, Commission of Information and Communication Technology (CICT) secretary Ray Anthony Roxas-Chua said that the industry is now focusing on diversifying into the higher value-added non-voice services, such as software development, which will provide higher paying jobs to Filipinos. — Ehda M. Dagooc