BPO investments to largely benefit employees — BPAP

The Business Processing Association of the Philippines (BPAP) expects the private sector to invest $800 million a year and spur the creation of 200,000 jobs annually in the run up to 2016. Investments in talents are essential to sustain its brand as "the sunshine industry," said Oscar Sanez, BPAP chief executive officer, said Tuesday. "We are not a capital-intensive industry like mining firms. Investments are needed to recruit people," he said in a press briefing for the 2nd International Outsourcing Summit in Pasay City. Sanez pointed out that the BPAP is "refocusing its talent development program" as the group sees backroom non-voice operations growing faster than voice operations. "Those in the healthcare, finance, and accounting will be important for our growth. They are in a better position to fill in the more than 216,000 jobs a year [in BPO]," he said. The association estimates direct employment in the outsourcing industry to hit 530,000 this year, up 19 percent from the 440,000 jobs generated last year. The Philippine outsourcing industry has registered a compounded annual growth rate of 30 percent since 2006, with an estimated $9 billion in revenue this year, said Gaurav Gupta, country head for India of the US-based Everest Group. The information technology and the BPO sectors account for 4-5 percent of the Philippine economy , Gupta said, citing data from Roadmap 2016 on the Philippine BPO sector. The Philippine economy grew 7.9 percent as measured by the gross domestic product growth in the first half the year. "We have to communicate domestically, not just externally, that we need more people in the talent pool. Demand is less of an issue," BPAP chair Alfredo Ayala said. The contact center industry is the third-largest contributor to the economy in terms of net import earnings after the overseas Filipino workers and tourism, according to him. Ayala said he is looking forward to the day the industry would equal the OFW remittances of 10 percent of the GDP. This is achievable once the talent issue is resolved, he added. — VS, GMANews.TV