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INDIA,
the world’s largest service provider for businesses in
the West is turning to the second-largest location of
call centers—the Philippines, an executive of a firm
that installed the contact centers said late Tuesday.
The
“interest to invest” in the Philippines is spurred by
the dwindling capacity and supply of manpower in India,
as well as the increase in the number of companies in
the United States going to higher value process
outsourcing, said Gerry C. Topacio, executive vice
president and country head of Diversified Technology
Solutions International Inc. (DTSI).
“Today,
it’s not only business process outsourcing [BPO]: you
have knowledge BPO, legal BPO, aside from customer
relations management, and voice,” Topacio said. “And
that’s where we are strong.”
Topacio
said the attrition rate in India is higher than that in
the Philippines. “Given these components, many companies
in
India
are seriously exploring investing here,” he
added.
This
spells good news for DTSI, which tried to meet the
P1-billion revenue mark last year, but only hit P900
million, according to Topacio.
One call
center could easily bring $8,000 per seat, Topacio said.
This means a 100-seater—the minimum for a small-scale
center—would translate into a $800,000 in investment for
each company that comes to the Philippines.
Topacio
was part of a Philippine trade mission to Mumbai, India,
last week.
DTSI, a
Board of Investment-listed firm, claims it has installed
more than half of the total seats in the country.
Topacio
said that one of the largest call centers in India with
50,000 employees, has expressed interest in moving
operations to the Philippines. He did not name the
company.
DTSI
this year has a better chance of achieving its revenue
target as it recently signed up distribution agreement
with Systimax-brand cable maker Commscope Inc. Under the
agreement DTSI would distribute its cables in the
Philippines.
Topacio
said the partnership with Commscope would add 30 percent
to DTSI revenue this year. |
