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BPO industry sees 200% job growth in 2009: survey

abs-cbnNEWS.com | 03/05/2009 5:01 PM

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The Philippine business process outsourcing (BPO) sector sees a 200-percent growth in employment this year as the global economic crisis forces companies to turn to the low-cost sources, a survey said Thursday.

In an online survey conducted by the Business Process Association of the Philippines (BPAP), 95 percent of BPO executives and human resource managers indicated a positive outlook for job growth in 2009.

"With at least 97 percent of surveyed companies providing moderate to high-value services, and 95 percent expecting employment growth, the question for the industry whether current academic standards and curricula are aligned with the increasingly complex requirements of the BPO industry," BPAP research director Gigi Virata said.

The survey also said around 50 percent of respondents expect their workforce requirements to increase by over 15 percent.

BPO firms with workforces ranging from 1,000 to 15,000 employees expect an average increase in staffing requirements of between 6 and 10 percent, close to the average workforce increase expected across all sectors and respondents, the survey said. Small and medium-sized operations, on the other hand, are expecting employment to increase at the same rate.

The biggest growth is expected from companies that employ 5,000 to 10,000 personnel, with 33 percent expecting jobs to grow between 11 percent and 15 percent in 2009, the survey said.

Value-added services outsourced to BPOs were also seen to increase, with the survey indicating that the industry is beginning to grab higher-paying contracts from high-value BPO operations.

"Moderate to very high-value services ranging from financial analysis to knowledge management comprised 97 percent of the services offered by respondent companies," BPAP said.

The central bank has been closely watching the BPO industry since it has started becoming one of the country's biggest sources of foreign exchange. This year, the BSP said foreign exchange is expected to flow into the country mainly through BPO operations.