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Welcome to Inside Outsourcing: The Outsourcing Week in Review
THE WEEK IN REVIEW
Just three weeks into the new year and we are seeing investments, partnerships and bright economic forecasts. 2023’s really got us vibing.
The United States’ business process outsourcing (BPO) and tech investments in the Philippines which created a combined 1.5 million jobs in the past year are a “win-win” for both countries. Hank Hendrickson, executive director of private sector-led U.S.-Philippines Society said that they are optimistic about the investment climate in the Philippines and are looking forward to exploring a range of industries to further expand investments in the Philippines.
Recently, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) launched Strengthening Private Enterprise for the Digital Economy (SPEED), a five-year project that aims to promote economic growth by expanding and advancing the country’s digital ecosystem. Trade chief Alfredo Pascual said that this partnership can help empower small and medium enterprises in the country. The U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) is also extending its reach in the Philippines with the opening of a new office in the archipelago. U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines MaryKay Carlson said that their Manila office will focus on projects regarding supply chains, clean energy, infrastructure, and telecommunications.
On to another partnership, the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) is seeking the European Union’s (EU) expertise in digitalization through a possible partnership. DICT Undersecretary for Public Affairs and Foreign Relations Anna Mae Lamentillo said that the country can learn about building and improving digital infrastructure from digitally advanced countries.
Collaboration and cooperation is always a good idea!
The Philippines Economic Zone Authority (PEZA), together with the country’s delegation to the Joint Economic Bilateral Talks and Investment Promotion, presented initiatives to encourage Swiss firms to invest in the Philippines. Led by officer-in-charge Tereso Panga, PEZA underscored the country’s partnership with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). Meanwhile, Finance chief Benjamin Diokno is pushing for stronger strategic cooperation, resilient supply chains, and solid digital infrastructure among its Indo-Pacific peers. He said this is the “quickest path to shared prosperity and inclusive growth.” With the Philippines’ aggressive push to attract foreign investors, economists suggest that the country begin tapping into diversified markets to attract more investors. Ateneo de Manila economist Leonardo Lanzona said that the goal is to be able to expand our investments and trade in services.
In the post-pandemic world, work-from-home (WFH) policies determine a country’s competitiveness. This said PEZA is supporting the “institutionalization” of WFH arrangements. According to PEZA OIC Panga, the agency is committed to ensuring that information technology (IT) locators registered with them remain competitive. According to him, the majority of information technology business process management (IT-BPM) companies prefer WFH and hybrid work arrangements.
However, the real estate industry is taking the blow of these new work norms. Economic experts are expecting a slowdown in real estate investment trusts (REITs). Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael Ricafort said that hybrid work setup and the exit of Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs) temper the potential growth induced by the reopening of the economy. Despite this, office take-ups are projected to continue growing this year despite calls for more workplace flexibility, said COL Financial Group Inc. The online stockbroker stated that Metro Manila is expected to have a 20.5% vacancy rate this 2023 — with Makati and Pasay having the highest at 22%, followed by Ortigas at 17%.
On to new appointments. The Contact Center Association of the Philippines (CCAP) recently named Mitch Locsin as its new Chairman. Locsin is PLDT Enterprise’s First Vice President and Revenue Group Head. He is replacing founding member Benedict Hernandez.
Congrats!
Over in the Visayas, offshore call center services firm Select VoiceCom recently opened a recruitment hub in Cebu IT Park in a bid to hire locals.The American and Australian-owned firm is looking to hire around 400 professionals to join the company’s current staff of 850. The vacancies open are in the fields of telemarketing, lead generation, customer support, sales, and back-office administration.
The Philippines is set to host the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) information and communications (ICT) ministers’ and leaders’ meeting in February. The meeting will bear the theme “Synergy Towards a Sustainable Digital Future.” This gathering aims to underscore how ASEAN countries can collaborate and work towards building a human-centric approach in the use of ICTs within the region and to forge stronger partnerships in addressing key challenges.
Let’s see how the economy is doing. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) Monetary Board (MB) is expecting inflation to balloon further to 5.1 per cent, breaching the 4.5 per cent forecast. In December, the MB decided to keep its 2022 inflation forecast at 5.8 percent but raised that for 2023 to 4.5 percent from 4.3 percent. The estimate for 2024 was trimmed to 2.8 percent from 3.1 percent. However, DTI Secretary Pascual assures that the Philippines is “safe from recession” saying that “the situation here in the Philippines is different as the business landscape has been good overall” due to strong consumer spending.
Who would have thought something good comes from “spending”?
Thursday, January 19, 2023
NEWS THIS WEEK
18 January 2023
- PH office take-ups to continue growing in 2023, says COL Financial – read article…
- USTDA to open PH office this Q1 – read article…
- Converge to expand network with P2.64Bn budget – read article…
- Inflation likely to breach BSP’s official projection – economists – read article…
17 January 2023
- PEZA pushes WFH for IT-BPOs in PH – read article…
- Pandr Outsourcing holds blood-letting in PH province – read article…
- Diokno: PH needs deeper relations with Indo-Pacific neighbors – read article…
- Marcos’ ‘lack of transparency’ counterproductive to efforts to attract investors – read article…
16 January 2023
- PEZA lures Swiss investors, presents PH initiatives in meeting – read article…
- DTI, DICT e-commerce platform project delayed – read article…
- Trade chief assures PH is safe from recession – read article…
- Tech, BPO investments a win-win for US and PH – read article…
13 January 2023
- Hybrid work, POGO exit temper REITs growth, economists say – read article…
- PH to host ASEAN ICT leaders meeting – read article…
- PH should explore market diversification to attract investors, experts say – read article…
- SVC opens recruitment hub in Cebu – read article…
12 January 2023
- CCAP names Mitch Locsin as new Chairman – read article…
- DTI counts on USAID’s support in MSME digitalization – read article…
- DICT seeks EU expertise for digitalization – read article.
.. - Media federation calls for resolution over PEZA leadership mess – read article…
