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Welcome to Inside Outsourcing: The Outsourcing Week in Review
THE WEEK IN REVIEW
Managed services contracts worldwide hit a record $48 billion during the first half of 2022, almost double the amount of contracts made in the previous year. According to market intelligence firm IDC, 94% of these deals were made towards IT outsourcing, while six percent were for Business Process Outsourcing (BPO). IDC Global Services and Market Trends Senior Research Manager Supriya Kamath said that the push for a digital-first economy created opportunities for managed service providers to secure contracts with various companies. Most IT outsourcing contracts are focused on digital transformation, cloud migration, and technology modernization.
At the same time, China’s BPO market is projected to reach US$38.38 billion by 2030, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.3%. ResearchAndMarkets.com reported that the segment is growing due to international trade agreements, increased job opportunities, and the growing demand, especially in the BFSI (Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance), IT, telecommunication, and HR industries. Providing BPO-specific education and training also improved the English proficiency of locals wanting to enter the market.
Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) and IT security decision makers are likely to outsource their organizations’ security improvement. In a study by managed security services provider (MSSP) Nuspire, two-thirds of CISOs and IT heads believe that their organizations are vulnerable to attack, especially regarding cloud applications, end users, and cloud infrastructure. The business leaders believe hiring a third-party service provider will strengthen their tech optimizations and integrations. Nuspire Chief Product and Marketing Officer Michelle Bank said their latest research “shows that CISOs are putting their limited dollars toward staying up to date and optimizing existing technology.”
Analyst firm Gartner said that using conversational artificial intelligence (AI) in contact centers could cut labor costs by up to $80 billion in 2026. Daniel O’Connell, a VP analyst at Gartner, said that AI could help companies challenged by staff shortages and poor customer experience. However, Gartner’s report stated that the fragmented vendor landscape, complexity of deployments, and integration costs would result in lower adoption over the next two years. Big tech companies such as Microsoft, Google, Amazon, and Apple are now moving to democratize advanced AI for small businesses.
In other news, professional services firm Accenture recently completed its acquisition of Canada-based automation solutions manufacturing company Eclipse Automation. Accenture said that this deal would allow them to start building automated production lines that leverage the cloud, data, and AI, which can, in turn, help factories and plants shift into a smarter, more productive, sustainable, and safe environment. Eclipse’s team of 800 professionals will join Accenture’s digital engineering and manufacturing service team called Industry X. Meanwhile, talent gap solutions provider Digital Intelligence Systems (DISYS) is moving to buy IT recruitment agency MAKE Corporation. This move is part of DISYS’ overall growth plan of expanding its portfolio to IT staffing. The acquisition is set to close before the year ends with plans to integrate all of MAKE’s current operations into DISYS’ operating model.
Customer experience (CX), reporting, and analytics firm Aceyus announced the expansion of its partnership with intelligent cloud contact center provider Five9. This collaboration, said Aceyus, authorized Five9 as a reseller of Aceyus VUE solution on the Five9 CX Marketplace. Mike Ary, Aceyus CEO, President, and Co-Founder, said that the “scalability and adaptability of Aceyus VUE makes it an optimal data-management platform for Five9 to feature in its CX Marketplace.” For his part, Five9 SVP for Global Perner Sales Jake Butterbaugh stated that this partnership would enable them to directly offer a solution to aid in the visibility of critical data to their clients. Indonesia-based software firm Astro is the latest startup to close a $13 million Series A funding round. In an interview with TechCrunch, Astro CEO Jacqueline Samira said that this marks the launch of their platform to the public. Astro plans to use its new funds to develop a payroll solution for international employees outside the Astro network, improving Astro’s matching algorithm and “enhancing” its engineer marketplace.
BPO provider Teleperformance (TP) Philippines won four awards at the 19th Philippine Quill Awards. Organized by the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) Philippines, TP received recognition for its pandemic and nation-building efforts. TP Philippines COO Joey Marquez shared that these projects were a way for the firm “to give back not only to our employees but to Filipinos in need during the pandemic.” Moving forward, TP plans to continue prioritizing their employees’ health and safety as it continues to bounce back from the pandemic.
Congrats to the TP team!
IT services and consulting firm Wipro Limited announced the appointment of Wagner Jesus as Country Head and Managing Director for its operations in Brazil. Jesus joined Wipro three years ago as a non-financial business lead responsible for local and global accounts. Wipro Limited Americas 1 CEO Srini Pallia said that Wagner’s leadership “will continue to strengthen relationships with local teams, launch hyperscaler-centric innovation centers, and achieve best-in-class delivery to our clients.” Jesus, for his part, stated that he wants to focus on securing large local deals and significant transformational engagements.
Tech giant Facebook is reportedly laying off its contract workers hired through Accenture. According to a report by Insider, these workers are in charge of content moderation for both Facebook and Instagram. About 65 people have been reportedly removed from their jobs, while another 145 are expected to be laid off next week. An Accenture spokesperson declined to comment on the situation. However, she pointed out that it is “inaccurate to report that there are layoff actions” within the company.
Jamaica-born BPO company itel is looking for 500 additional customer engagement employees in Guyana. The new hires will work with some renowned brands in North America — particularly in retail, tech support, and healthcare. itel Country Manager Kailash Rao said he is “optimistic about bringing top international brands to the country” as Guyana boasts an investor-friendly government and a well-educated young talent pool. In South Africa, credit bureau TransUnion’s BPO center is on a hiring spree to boost job creation in the country. TransUnion VP of Operations and GCC Africa Head Avesh Singh said that the company’s “job creation story is [a] testament to the investment [they] have made and the flexible, always-on workforce we have across all our markets.” Since 2021, more than 500 South Africans have joined TransUnion — 70% of which are women.
While 92% of Asia Pacific (APAC) businesses agree that an adaptive culture and continuous employee upskilling are very important, only 30% said that their organization is “very prepared” for unexpected changes or disruptions future-proofing could bring. A study commissioned by software firm SAP SE stated that most companies struggle with slow decision-making, attracting the right talent, and retaining their staff. APAC companies are also found to have a ‘hierarchical disconnect’ regarding planning. SAP Asia COO Cathy Wards said that a “collaborative planning and forward-thinking mindset” is essential across the organization to keep ready for the future.
The remote and flexible-work revolution continues!
More than half (56%) of contact center agents in the United States (US) and Canada said they might leave their jobs if their organizations do not offer remote or flexible work. According to a poll by software firm Playvox, the benefits of flexible work arrangements — namely cost savings, health, safety, and increased job happiness — are stopping agents from returning to a full-time office setup. Playvox Chief Marketing Office Michelle Randall said that as more organizations adopt flexible and remote work for the long-term, progress can be made toward reversing the resignation rates that have long been associated with the contact center industry.
Further, four in 10 workers in Singapore choose happiness over employment. According to recruitment firm Randstad Singapore, more Singaporeans are searching for joy and meaning in their careers since the COVID-19 pandemic wrought changes in their daily lives. By age group, the young population (aged 18-24 and 25-34) are more ready to leave their jobs to search for happiness than mature workers (aged 45-54). Randstad explained that while younger employees are reforming their definition of success, mature workers have higher financial responsibilities and more established careers.
#Priorities!
Tuesday, September 6, 2022
NEWS THIS WEEK
05 September 2022
- Colombia to offer digital nomad visa in one condition – read article…
- 41% of Singaporeans choose happiness over employment – read article…
- Worldwide services contracts hit $48Bn in H1 2022 – read article…
- 56% of agents will “extremely likely” leave their jobs if remote work is not offered – read article…
02 September 2022
- Wipro Brazil appoints new country head – read article…
- AI to cut contact center labor costs by $80Bn in 2026 – read article…
- Aceyus, Five9 announce an expanded partnership – read article…
- DISYS moves to acquire MAKE Corporation – read article…
01 September 2022
- Accenture completes acquisition of Eclipse Automation – read article…
- Facebook lays off its Accenture contract workers – read article…
- itel to hire 500 people in Guyana – read article…
- Salary, job security are top job hunting factors for STEM grads in Spain – read article…
31 August 2022
- China’s BPO market to reach $38Bn by 2030 – read article…
- Hiremii introduces its AI cloud recruitment platform to the public – read article…
- CISOs, IT heads are most likely to outsource security improvements – read article…
- Only 30% of APAC firms are well-prepared for unexpected disruptions – read article…
30 August 2022
- TransUnion GCC Africa is on a hiring spree to address unemployment – read article…
- Startup firm Astro secures $13M in Series A funding – read article…
- Teleperformance hailed for its leadership in the European CX outsourcing industry – read article…
- APEC aims to enhance sustainability, inclusion – read article…
