Stream Global Services spreads outs BPO businesses
The policy of Stream Global Services, an up-and-coming BPO firm, to spread out its operations with a view to ultimately emerge as the country’s leading private sector employer has roused hopefulness for the local industry. In fact, the latest merger between Stream Global System, a firm listed with the NYSE, and eTelecare Global Solutions, a firm supported by Ayala, has been publicized to have formed one of the biggest as well as most viable firms in the Philippines BPO industry.
Quoting Scott Murray, Stream Global Services chairman and CEO, a website reports that the BPO firm offers sales, technical support and customer services to a number of reputed multinational firms from the company’s 50 centers located in 22 countries across the globe. Precisely speaking the company handles over 100 million emails, voice and chat contacts from clients across the globe annually. According to Murray, the company plans to make a lot more investments in the Philippines during the current year and is presently evaluating potential sites with a view to increase its present in the country. Presently, the BPO firm has around 12,000 personnel on its rolls located at eight centers in the Philippines – two in Cebu, two in Quezon City and one center each in Mandaluyong, Makati, Muntinlupa and Clark, Pampanga.
It may be noted that the expansion plans of Stream Global Services are consistent with the Business Processing Association of the Philippines (BPAP), which has predicted a 26 per cent growth for the BPO sector in the country keeping in view the revival of the economies following the recent economic slump worldwide. Statistics released by BPAP show that the BPO industry procured approximately $7.3 billion in terms of revenue during 2009 – fulfilling its annual growth target of 30 per cent in spite of preliminary apprehensions over weakening demands for outsourcing services owing to fiscal mess in the financier nations.
Quoting information provided by BPAP, Murray said that the workforce in the BPO industry increased by approximately 19 per cent to 446,000 during the closing of 2009 in comparison to the numbers in the previous years. According to the projections of the Department of Trade and Industry, the workforce is expected to swell to anything between 650,000 and 900,000 at the end of 2010. Murray was of the opinion that with the kind of talent pool it possesses, the Philippines possesses the potential to outdo India as the most important outsourcing destination worldwide. Substantiating his view, Stream CEO said that the Philippines possessed a large talent pool that was capable of delivering back-office services to high-value customers as well as had the potential to provide superior technical support.
In fact, the BPO industry in the country had generated the largest amount of revenues compared to all industries in the Philippines during 2009. It earned profits to the tune to $5 billion – a 22 per cent increase from it performance in the previous year.