CEBU, PHILIPPINES – Nearly 1,000 executives from both local and international business process outsourcing (BPO) companies gathered in Cebu City for the 8th Contact Islands 2024 conference.
The event, held at the Fili Hotel in Nustar Cebu, aims to address the pressing challenges facing the BPO industry.
Addressing industry challenges
The conference, which began on July 24 and spans three days, is organized by the Contact Center Association of the Philippines (CCAP). This umbrella organization represents 154 member firms within the Philippine IT-BPM industry.
Key issues on the agenda include cybersecurity, infrastructure development, worker upskilling, taxation uncertainties, artificial intelligence (AI), and macro-economic conditions.
Mitch Locsin, chairman of CCAP, highlighted the importance of the conference during a press briefing, stating, “Various challenges and opportunities are emerging that further make this year’s Contact Islands conference timelier and more interesting than ever.”
CCAP board director Haidee Enriquez noted the industry’s shift towards niche jobs in knowledge process outsourcing (KPO), such as e-finance and accounting, healthcare, medical coding, and cybersecurity.
Growth and future prospects
The IT-BPM sector in Cebu continues to show robust growth, with expectations for increased investments and expansion of existing outsourcing companies.
Enriquez emphasized the resilience and continuous evolution of the industry, saying, “The customer experience that our industry provides is the embodiment of our collective vision and concerted actions.”
“Through the years, the Philippines, being the primary provider of excellent contact center and outsourced business processes to the world, has served as the heart of customer experience. We have already weathered numerous storms, but we have to continuously and relentlessly face many more inevitable and unexpected challenges.”
According to data from global research company Everest Group, the contact center and IT-BPM sector posted a $29.5-billion revenue in 2023, about 83% of the $35.5 billion revenue of the entire IT-BPM industry.
The sector also employs 1.51 million full-time employees, which constitutes 89 percent of the 1.70 million FTEs in the entire IT industry.
