3 Clark companies among top global BPO firms

Saturday, July 30, 2011

CLARK FREEPORT -- Three of the business process outsourcing (BPO) companies inside the Freeport zone were among the top 100 global outsourcing firms ranked by the Association of Outsourcing Professionals (IAOP), the Clark Development Corporation (CDC) learned recently.

In a report received by CDC president Felipe Antonio B. Remollo, three of the 100 global outsourcing firms are located inside the Freeport. These incude Sutherland Global Services Phils. Inc., which was ranked 29 by AIOP; Stream Global Services - ranked 27; and NCO Group, 54th.

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Accenture, a US-owned firm based in Manila, has been ranked No. 1 for four consecutive years as the world's best outsourcing provider.

The Global Outsourcing 100 is designed to help companies compare and select service providers using an objective methodology that mirrors the evaluation process a buyer would use to select a provider.

In the reports, the top markets of the local information technology-BPO (IT-BPO) are the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, European Union countries, Asia and Australia.

Of the more than 62,510 workers inside the Freeport as of June 2011, the BPO-related industries employed about 11,304 persons where a total of 2,235 workers are employed at Sutherland; Stream (formerly America On Line), 558; and 1,767 workers for NCO.

In Clark, the BPO industry is the second biggest sector that provides employment in Clark, with 18 percent of the total number of employees here.

The Industrial-Electronic sector is still the biggest with more than 12,000 workers, representing 20 percent.

Although not included in the top 100, IQor Philippines Inc. is still the biggest BPO firm as of June 2011 in Clark with 2,767 workers; while Cyber City Teleservices Inc. (the pioneering call center industry in Clark) employs 1,817 workers to date.

Because of the continued growth, BPO firms in Clark are set to expand this year up to early next year with a target of more than 5,000 more workers for the major contact centers here.

There are at least 27 BPO firms in Clark and they are hoping more BPO firms are expected to locate inside the former US-run Clark Air Base, according to Remollo.

According to the Business Processing Association of the Philippines, the county has been the most preferred destination of choice for global outsourcing this year and it hopes to stay on top of the choice. (Reynaldo G. Navales)