Lack of office space may affect BPO sustainability–analyst

MANILA, Philippines — To keep up with the industry’s rapid growth, some business process outsourcing (BPO) companies flock to less-than-ideal places like shopping malls for lack of enough office space.

Such locations, however, may be inadequate in sustaining long-term business operations, according to research advisory firm XMG Inc.

In its Top 10 predictions for the Asia Pacific IT/BPO market, XMG warns that in offshore destinations like the Philippines and Vietnam, the scarcity of “proper” office space could affect business continuity.

XMG said in its report: “Early assessment has shown that several of these centers provide a critical service and may not have the facility to provide adequate safety for its large employee base, handle large losses, exposures or disasters, let alone the disruption of service.”

XMG’s advice to the industry, in general, is to pay closer attention to “public congestion and accessibility in and out of these locations.”

Oscar Sanez, head of the Business Process Association of the Philippines (BPAP), acknowledges the fact that there is not enough office space to accommodate continued expansion.

“In the last two years, we’ve seen 100-percent occupancy rate especially in different parts of Metro Manila. There is no denying the shortage,” Sanez said, asked for comment via telephone.

To address this issue, he said BPAP has formed a workgroup that includes executives from real estate developers. The goal, basically, is to push for standards and other requirements specific to BPO locators.

“At this point, everybody is on an expansion mode. What we are saying is that we need new sites but we need to make it right,” Sanez said.
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