Largest Call Center Employers in the Philippines Indicate the Power of Global Site Selection Strategies

The Philippines has become a leading offshore destination for back office operations such as call centers, contact centers, shared service centers and software development. Initially, business process outsourcing (BPO) companies expanded into the country during the dot-com recession to access one of the largest, English-speaking countries in the world with extremely low labor costs. Today, the Philippines has transitioned into a global hub of over 1.1 million call center workers and attracted brand name companies such as JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, UnitedHealth Group and Citibank. 

The increasing role of site selection in corporate strategic planning

The massive growth in the Philippines clearly illustrates how site selection has been integrated into traditional corporate strategic planning. Due to the acceptance of nearshore and offshore locations, companies are able optimize their footprint and shift different types of functions to the right geography to increase efficiencies and drive cost down by 50% or more when compared to operating in the U.S. These companies typically conduct comprehensive site selection studies based on a critical location factors such as labor availability, labor cost, geo-political risks, business climate, real estate and economic incentive conditions.

The Philippines has become an offshore destination of choice but is facing some challenges

The Philippines has become an offshore destination of choice for voice-related, English-speaking operations. It also has rapidly grown into a hub for shared service centers and IT services such as software development and engineering. Despite its tremendous success, there are challenges that need to be closely monitored and evaluated during the site selection process. The challenges faced by the Philippines include increasing wage inflation, escalating employee attrition, political problems, natural disasters, terrorism, increasing real estate costs, limited availability of economic incentives and the entrance of the online gaming industry. It is critical to understand the impact of these challenges on your company as you analyze offshore destinations for expansion.

Business process outsourcing employers dominate the Philippines

Site Selection Group, with the assistance of our long-time site selection partner in the Philippines, Leechiu Property Consultants, located some of the very first call centers in the Philippines for BPO companies like RMH Teleservices (now Alorica) and InfoNXX (now KGB).  These companies were pioneers in expanding into the Philippines. The BPO industry now dominates the labor market and has become a major economic driver in the country. The below table identifies the largest BPO companies in the Philippines and illustrates the sheer magnitude of the BPO industry in the region.

Largest Business Process Outsourcers in the Philippines

Source: Leechiu Property Consultants, IBPAP

*Concentrix and Convergys merger approved in October 2018.

Captive in-house call center and back office employers continue to expand

The CEO of JPMorgan Chase would never have imagined 20 years ago that his company would have 15,000 back office employees in the Philippines. This clearly indicates how corporate location strategies play a significant role in how companies are strategically trying to manage costs and increase profitability on their own without outsourcing. The following list of the largest captive, in-house call center employers in the Philippines proves the success of the region.

Largest In-House Call Center Employers in the Philippines

Source: Leechiu Property Consultants

Conclusions

The success of the Philippines proves how global site selection has become a staple part of corporate strategic planning. Finding the optimal balance of site selection factors will continue to define how companies strategically grow their footprint to maximize profitability and deliver the highest level of service.