Teletech to open more centers in RP

Teletech Telesystems Inc., one of the largest business process outsourcing (BPO) companies in the country has announced it will be opening at least three more centers in the country as it expects to grow by 20 percent next year.

In an interview over the weekend, Kenneth Tuchman, Teletech chairman and chief executive officer, said that their target is to employ 25,000 individuals by 2009.

In order to accommodate this, he said they would have to build “several facilities.” Construction for one center outside Metro Manila is currently ongoing.

Tuchman refused to say where the new BPO facility will be, saying only that the focus of Teletech is to expand outside Metro Manila.

By the end of 2008, Teletech expects to have under its employ 20,000 people. In order to make room for the additional 5,000 people they will hire next year, Tuchman said they would have to build more centers also outside Metro Manila.

Despite of bleak predictions on the world economy next year, Tuchman said they remain upbeat in the prospects of the BPO industry in the country. “We are confident that there will be no reduction in staff. We are growing and we will continue to be hiring in a big way,” he explained.

He said Teletech expects to expand faster than the industry average which is pegged at 20 percent to 25 percent annually. “We are the fastest growing BPO,” he noted.

However, he said this is not to say that Teletech has not been hit by the financial crisis plaguing most nations worldwide.

Since 2004, the company has been growing between 25 percent to 40 percent. This year’s projection is considerably lower.

Meanwhile, the government has assured that investments in the BPO sector will receive tax breaks and other incentives as it is one of the anchor’s of the Philippine economy.

For this year, the Board of Investments (BOI) has already included BPO investments in the Investments Priorities Plan (IPP) under selected export services.

The BOI is looking at building a highly competitive business environment to attract investors and increase profitability while providing a stable policy framework for long-term economic benefits.–Ma. Elisa P. Osorio, Philippine Star