BPO sector not fading just yet

CEBU, Philippines - The Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry in the Philippines is not waning just yet, in fact the country is bound to reap significant profit from the industry for a long time despite threats from the United States to restrict its companies from operating in other countries such as the Philippines. 

“The overseas economy is in survival mode. We do not expect that US will implement this plan,” said economist Eduardo R. Banaag, Jr.

Banaag who is also the first vice president for equity fund management of the PhilAm Asset Management Inc. (PAMI), said that the road is clearer for the Philippines to continue the upswing growth of the BPO sector.

In fact, he said in terms of call center sizes the Philippines has already overtook India in the last two years. 

While the global growth rate for BPO is only hitting 15 percent, the Philippines on the other hand registered a whooping 25 percent growth as of last year.

He said the Philippine economy is now being run by two strong legs, the BPO and the OFW remittances.

OFWs, the successful export commodity of the Philippines will continue to provide economic strength for the country, so as the BPO, he said.

This year, the Philippines is expected to get about 10 percent share of the total outsourcing market worldwide. Last year, it registered to have captured 9 percent of the global outsourcing market, he said.

Earlier, Business Process Association of the Philippines chairman Bong Borja said that the move of the US government to dis-incentivized companies that do outsourcing outside of their country, industry players believe that this pronouncement is largely “political.

According to Borja, outsourcing firms have their own contingency plans if ever the bill will be passed into law, although he said its possibility is far-fetched.

Borja said outsourcing is here to stay, companies all around the world are now doing everything to cut-cost and improve efficiency, outsourcing is one of the most effective ways to lower operational cost, and heighten competitiveness.

Besides, he said even if the US government will decide not to give incentives to companies that throw their services off-shore, it’s very difficult for the “business or companies” to be dictated upon.

“Cost efficiency is the name of the game now,” Borja said and policies cannot even stop this phenomenon.

Meanwhile, he said outsourcing players also believe that the economy in the United States is showing improvement saying “indicators are looking good.”

“I don’t think this is threat to the outsourcing industry. Although we are taking the issue very seriously. We believe that outsourcing will still win, because of its economics of globalization,” Borja said. —  (FREEMAN)