By means of Justine Irish D. Table, Reporter
THE PHILIPPINES contact center The industry is expected to account for 83% of total information technology sector revenues business process management (IT-BPM) industry by the end of 2024.
Mickey Ocampo, president of the Contact Center Association of the Philippines (CCAP), said the IT-BPM industry expects 7% growth in revenue and employment to $38 billion and $1.82 million, respectively, by the end of 2024.
In 2023, the sector ended with 1.7 million direct jobs and $35.5 billion in export revenue.
“Of the total revenue, the contact center sector covers 83% of the total revenue, which amounts to $31.5 billion and 89% of the total workforce, which is 1.62 million,” he said.
“These projections are in line with the growth targets of the Philippine IT-BPM Roadmap for the period 2022-2028,” he added.
CCAP’s revenues this year are slightly lower than the previous target of growing revenues by 9% to $32.16 billion. In 2023, the association’s members recorded revenues of $29.5 billion.
Mr Ocampo said the industry’s growth is driven by cost efficiency, availability of quality talent, infrastructure and strong government support.
“The advent of new technologies such as artificial intelligence, data analytics, cybersecurity and cloud solutions is creating new opportunities for the IT-BPM industry,” he said.
Mr Ocampo said contact center agents must be prepared to use these new technologies.
“The industry needs to move from traditional contact center services to more complex KPO (knowledge process outsourcing) based services, and a key factor is the need to upskill our workforce to adapt to these new technologies and maintain our competitive position,” he added. .
When asked how the industry is preparing for the expected protectionist policies under the Trump presidency, Mr. Ocampo said they are still taking a wait-and-see approach.
“The contact center industry in the Philippines has been able to progress over the years despite changes in US governance,” he said.
“It is still too early to determine any effects of the incoming Trump administration, but if we were to review the previous Trump administration, we do not foresee any adverse effects. Realistically, it will be a wait-and-see situation for a few months under the new government,” he added.
Donald J. Trump will be sworn in as the 47the President of the United States on January 20, 2025. He previously served as President of the US from 2017 to 2021, during which he embraced the “America First” policy.
Mr Ocampo said the US is still the country’s largest market for outsourcing services, especially for contact center services.
“While we continue to maintain its position as the preferred destination for contact center service, the industry must increase the availability of the talent pool entering the sector and the upskilling of existing talent as the adoption of new technologies and the transition to more complex technologies take place,” he added to.
CCAP expects its members to achieve revenues of $49 billion by 2028, in line with the 2028 IT-BPM roadmap, which expects the sector to reach revenues of $59 billion by that year.