The Outsourcing Week in Review: Wednesday, October 30, 2019

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THE WEEK IN REVIEW

The Philippines has shot up 29 places in this year’s World Bank Doing Business annual report, and is now ranked 95 out of the 190 nations covered in respect of ease of doing business.  The country still lags behind most other Southeast Asian nations, however, and is also behind that its outsourcing rival, India, which is ranked at 63 this year, up from 77 in last year’s report. In light of this, president Duterte recommendation for more collaboration than competition between the two countries’ outsourcing sectors made during the recent state visit by India’s president Ram Nath Kovind, seems a wise one.

Many of India’s big outsourcing firms are already successful players in the Philippines market, contributing considerable expertise and employment. A number of them have just garnered prestigious awards for their global expertise. WNS Global Services, the Mumbai-headquartered BPM giant, won 10 Stevie Awards at the 2019 Annual International Business Awards, including the Gold Stevie Award for Executive of the Year in the Computer Services category; and Tata Consultancy Services was designated as a Leader in Robotic Process Automation Services by the Forrester Wave, a quarterly review of the sector by Forrester, a US technology analyst.  Still, uncertainties over the impact of the proposed Corporate Income Tax and Incentive Rationalization Act (CITIRA) resulted in Wipro Philippines saying it had putting on hold its local expansion plans.

In other market moves last week TaskUs, a California-headquartered customer experience outsourcing firm with operations in the Philippines, announced its plans to open its first facility in India. Another Californian company, 8×8 Inc has been recognized as a key Challenger brand in Gartner’s 2019 Magic Quadrant for Contact Center as a Service (North America) industry review.

Meanwhile, BPO office development continues apace, both inside and outside of the National Capital Region. According to Monique Pronove, president and CEO of Pronove Tai International Property Consultants, the total volume of new office space available in Metro Manila is expected to be up by 9% on last year’s final figure; with demand from the IT-BPM industry remaining strong. For environmentally-concerned BPOs looking for a suitable capital location, there is now the Arthaland Century Pacific Tower in Taguig, which has just been designated as the world’s first zero-carbon building. It has been awarded of an Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies (EDGE) certificate, making it the world’s only triple-certified green tower.

Outside the capital region, a new IT hub is under development as part of an extensive multi-use project within the Mactan Export Processing Zone, which is being developed by Cebu-based AppleOne Properties. Iloilo has also been recognized as the Philippines’ most business-friendly, highly-urbanized city outside the Metro Manila region by the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Upgrading and extending the skills of the workforce will be as important for growing the sector as having available office space. And it will be costly. At least PHP40 billion of government and private sector funding will be needed over the next five years for adequate skills training, according to the Information Technology and Business Process Association of the Philippines. Labor protests, meanwhile, against contractualization continue to rumble on. Last week, local labor groups that are part of the PAGGAWA workers’ alliance, sought to present their proposals for a ban to Silvestre Bello, the labor secretary, during a protest outside the headquarters of the Department of Labor and Employment.

Improving call center workers’ employment conditions and keeping them happy will also be good for business – according to a University of Oxford study. On average, workers were 13% more productive on those weeks when they described themselves as “very happy” compared to those weeks when they were “very unhappy”, claims the report.  What doesn’t seem to help workers relax, however, is to force them to switch off after work, according to another piece of research by the University of Sussex in the United Kingdom. It discovered that staff members who were not allowed to check work emails after hours were found to be more stressed than those who faced no such prohibition.

Wednesday, October 30, 2019

NEWS THIS WEEK

28 October 2019

• TCS Recognized as Leader in Robotic Process Automation Services Sector – read article…
• Philippines Climbs 29 Places in 2020 World Bank Doing Business Rankings – read article…
• Workers More Stressed When Forced to Disconnect From Work Finds UK Study – read article…

25 October 2019

• US$780 Million Needed for Upskilling Program Says Philippines’ BPO Trade Body – read article…
• WNS CEO Lauded at International Business Awards as Company Wins Big – read article…
• Demand and Supply Both Soar in Metro Manila’s Office Space Market – read article…

24 October 2019

• TaskUs Launches Rangreza as Dedicated India Division – read article…
• University of Oxford Proves Happy Workers Are More Productive – read article…
• Philippines Labour Alliance Pushes for Anti-Contractualization Legislation – read article…

23 October 2019

• Chamber of Commerce Votes Iloilo Philippines’ Most Business-Friendly City – read article…
• Taguig Office Tower Acclaimed as World’s First Zero Carbon Building – read article…
• 8×8 Awarded Challenger Status in Gartner‘s Contact Center Review for Fifth Year Running – read article…

22 October 2019

• Uncertainty Over Corporate Income Tax Act Sees Wipro Put Philippines’ Expansion On Hold – read article…
• Philippines and India Should Cooperate Not Compete in BPO Sector Says Duterte – read article…
• Dedicated BPO Facilities Under Development in Mactan Export Processing Zone – read article…

Read more Inside Outsourcing Newsletters here:

1. The Outsourcing Week in Review: October 23, 2019
2. The Outsourcing Week in Review: November 6, 2019