A survey years ago by Kelly Services Inc., a Michigan-based global staffing firm showed that the Philippines had already taken a sizeable chunk of call center jobs and answering services from India back then. Fast forward to today, it is very clear that this has become the norm and is trending even towards the Philippines playing a bigger role in the global call center outsourcing phenomenon.

The numbers are currently showing that the Philippines has undoubtedly surpassed India in the call center outsourcing industry, with low cost combined with very high value as the major reasons. India is no longer the first choice for companies in the U.S. who are looking to set up their call center operations and answering services abroad, mostly from businesses outsourcing their call center customer service and technical support overseas. What are the compelling reasons then, on why Filipinos are seen as the better call center agent / virtual assistant?

Was under US military rule

Historically, the Philippines is better-suited to dealing with American businesses because of the simple fact that the country was once under American rule. Much of the country’s pop culture, lifestyle, and sensibilities is heavily influenced by the U.S. and proves that the Philippines’ link to the U.S. is stronger than to anyone else in the world.

Better American English fluency and language skills

The Philippines still is the 3rd largest English-speaking country in the world and is very much in touch with trends in the language’s conversational use. Coupled with a strong cultural link to the U.S, this leads to better familiarity with North American terminology and language, as well as an acute awareness of the contemporary.

Very good education

The Philippines produces around 400,000 graduates every year, all well-trained and very competent in their chosen fields. But with a bit of an inadequate employment base, the high literacy rate is pushed towards employment overseas or underemployment. This huge pool of available workers has made the Philippines very attractive to businesses wishing to employ flexible high-quality call center staffing who sees call center positions as career choices and not just stepping stones.

Healthier and more inclined to do the work

Singaporean market research outfit ACA Research Inc. reported that Filipinos use less Sick Leaves than their Indian counterparts when employed by call centers, and are more devoted to their companies, having a much lower turnover rate in employment. They also exhibit a wonderful work ethic, not mindful of the time spent on work but oriented towards getting the job done instead. Training days are less, adult supervision is minimal, and the language barrier is more or less reduced to nil which makes outsourcing call center operations here almost a cinch.

A burgeoning industry

The Philippine call center industry has come a long way since the days when the first outsourcing company set foot in the country. With an increasing expertise in how the industry works, more sophisticated performance metrics, and better technology, the groundwork is being laid for a further surge in cornering the outsourcing market, most notably in the call center business. The U.S. has invested much in improving call center management skills in the Philippines that it is so much a reliable prospect now.

Similarity in legal and tax framework with the US

This is a strong element in why companies outsource their call centers to the Philippines more, and is sometimes overlooked, but should really be a huge factor in making the decision. It only serves to ease whatever administrative bottlenecks American businesses may encounter when setting up their offshore call centers in the country, a virtual luxury in the quest for global homogeny.

Strong government support

The Philippine government has prided itself in the country’s ability to provide excellent customer service with an adequate employment base and has turned its focus into making the Philippines a hotbed for call center outsourcing. Developments in technology and infrastructure, tax breaks, and similar incentives are being aggressively pushed to support the growing call center industry and make the country more attractive to foreign investors.

Clearly, outsourcing your call center answering services to the Philippines is more cost-effective, especially to companies that have customer service or technical support as a main cog in their business. With call center operations being labor-intensive but highly dependent on quality, a country blessed with a high number of workers with an exemplary pleasant attitude proves to be the winner.

Tags: answering services, Filipino workers, India, outsourcing, Philippine government, Philippines call center, top reasons, where to outsource

This entry was posted on Monday, June 15th, 2009 at 8:23 pm and is filed under Outsourcing your call center. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.