Outsource Your Call Center to the Philippines

by: globalsky
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The Philippines is being viewed as the second destination of choice for call centers all over the world next to India, which is the biggest player in the outsourcing industry. This is because of the cheap cost of labor in India coupled with the information technology skills of Indians.

The Philippines, however, is quickly catching up with the gap because of the increasing labor in India and the increasing capabilities of Filipino call center agents and the technology skills needed in maintaining call centers and its IT infrastructures. In fact, several Indian call center companies have set up a subsidiary in the Philippines to boost the capabilities of the call centers in India. Through this strategy, companies that outsource their customer contact center can maximize profits and minimize costs.

Another benefit of outsourcing to the Philippines is the loyalty of call center agents to their companies. Attrition rate in India is around 50-70% because of the high level of competition among call center agents. In the Philippines, the attrition rate is way lower. Such loyalty benefits the company over the long run because the agents can increase their level of skills and know-how of the accounts they handle. For high attrition rates, the cost of training goes up and hurts the talent development of call center companies.
Cost is not everything, however. There is an old adage saying that you get what you pay for.As such, even in the presence of low labor costs, the quality of the customer service being rendered to customers calling in from all over the world should be ensured. Given the cultural barriers separating people of different nationalities, companies seeking to outsource their call centers should look at the way that Philippine call centers are addressing this issue.

Language issues and cultural barriers are being addressed through cultural sensitivity training, accent and culture training, together with a briefing of the idioms and metaphors being used by customers from all over the world.

The Philippine government is also doing its share in promoting the call center industry in the Philippines. It is enhancing the English language skills of Filipinos as well as the political and economic situation of the Philippines. Although there are a lot of news featuring different events that tend to undermine the good business environment in the Philippines, the businesses are generally unaffected in such instances. After all, one bad incident in the Philippines does not mean that the whole Philippines is experiencing turmoil.

A number of companies all over the Philippines are now reaping the benefits of outsourcing their call centers to the Philippines. There are over 100 call centers in the Philippines employing more than 200,000 employees. Filipino culture is essentially a hospitable one and this cultural trait translates well to excellent customer service.

Although the Philippines tend to be considered as the second option for outsourcing, this is expected to change in the next few years as the Philippine call center industry improves its infrastructures and the government enhances the English skills of the future members of the labor force.

About the Author

James Stinson is Owner and Founder of Global Sky Inc. He employs a team of 50 in a high quality call center facility based in the Philippines. For more info on outsourcing your project visit: http://www.global-sky.com  

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