Non-voice, complex services seen as next BPO growth driver

MANILA, Philippines – While traditional voice-based business process outsourcing (BPO) will continue to contribute substantially to the growth of Philippine BPO, non-voice, complex services are expected to be the principal engine of growth for the industry.

Business Process Association of the Philippine (BPAP) industry affairs executive director Raymond Lacdao said they anticipate growth in non-voice, complex IT-BPO services of 20-25 percent over the next five years.

“Voice-based services will grow at a rate of 15 to 20 percent,” he said, adding that IOS 2011 was designed to focus attention of the industry on the potential of non-voice, complex IT-BPO services, and to increase the global visibility of the Philippines’ capability for delivering these services.

The Philippines will host the Third Annual International Outsourcing Summit (IOS), a landmark event for IT-BPO industry, with sessions led by over 70 expert speakers and panelists speaking to over 300 international delegates.

According to organizers, the summit provides a platform to assess progress towards development goals provided in the IT-BPO Road Map 2011-2016, which projects potential annual growth of up to 20 percent over the next five years, generating 1.3 million direct jobs, 3.2 million indirect jobs, and $25 billion in revenues. The event is organized by the BPAP.

This year’s summit also includes a session on how the industry can extend its leadership in the industry through innovating new services, including research and development.

“Last year, we became the global leader in voice BPO. But we are rapidly transitioning to non-voice, complex services delivery. We want to demonstrate that the Philippines has a very high capability in this area, including emerging complex services,” Lacdao said.

Session speakers and panelists represent a variety of industry stakeholders. They include Ralph Guggenheim, founding member of Pixar Animation Studios and CEO of Alligator Planet; Paul Robinson, vice president for finance process – expenditure, Shell Shared Services Asia BV; Jackie O’Leary, vice president of customer operations, Everything Everywhere.

Also speaking are John Wheeler, vice president for strategy and emergent technologies, SPi Global Content Solutions; Kush Kamra, vice president for global service delivery, global capability sourcing, MetLife; and Jim Cross, MD, head-national medical policy and operations, Aetna.

Influential industry executives representing other country industry associations will attend IOS to pitch their own capabilities. They include Armand Angeli, co-founder and president of the European Outsourcing Association; Sergio Pessoa, director of marketing and international markets of the Brazil Association of Software and Services; and Valentin Makarov, president of the RUSSOFT Association.

Alfredo Ayala, president and CEO of LiveIt Investments Ltd. and BPAP chairman, will moderate an “emerging markets” panel on the first day of the summit. –Mary Ann LL. Reyes (The Philippine Star)