Although the coronavirus pandemic triggered huge global economic downturns, the business process outsourcing industry has miraculously thrived well through it all. While many industries have felt the negative financial impacts of the virus occurrence, causing massive unemployment, and companies having to either halt or shutdown operations completely, BPO companies have consistently grown throughout 2020… and are expected to continue growing in 2021.
The Philippines has always been one of the top outsource destinations worldwide, with a large resource of English-proficient and young professional talent, as well as an availability of cheap labor. The BPO industry in the Philippines has been a key economic pillar through the years, affording thousands of jobs each year for citizens in the country. As such, strong government support is being given through a 3-year support plan to boost the global competitiveness of the Philippine outsourcing industry. Local business experts expect the BPO sector to be worth more than US$26 billion by the end of the first quarter of 2021, with a growth of up to 7%; a stark contrast to the state of other industries, post-quarantine.
The survival of BPO companies amidst the pandemic crisis can be attributed to their high integration of digital advancements to continue operations despite the physical limitations imposed by quarantine protocols. This capacity to go beyond physical limitations to do business has been the edge that BPOs have had over other industries during COVID-19. Even through the pandemic, BPOs have had the capacity to hire masses of new professionals; and have now been continuing to build infrastructure across the Philippines to house even more operations in locations that will create jobs outside city centers as well, transforming these locations into new digital hubs.
Digital transformation has been embraced by companies in an accelerated pace in the past year, and constant advancements are being made in tools that can further optimize online business processes and communication. The future is clear that digital technology will be a mainstay in business operations across industries worldwide… and will only keep growing and advancing, with the need for more flexible and geographically-independent means of transacting.
A huge factor in the ability to continue business has been the rapid shift to work-from-home setups. These setups have allowed BPOs to access a larger pool of talent, with greater flexibility and capacity in terms of working hours, to provide wider customer service capacity. Some hurdles still remain, however, in internet availability and reliability, power issues, and satisfactory workspace at home.
Yet the work-from-home setup, which the Philippine Economic Zone Authority has allowed outsourcing companies to continue with until September of this year, has enabled 90 percent of outsourcing employees to continue with their jobs amidst the health crisis. Due to positive results from remote work setups, there is a high prediction that many companies will soon be turning to hybrid models of work, incorporating a flexibility of both home and office work for employees.
To conclude, the BPO industry has remained strong, and will continue growing as a key industry for the Philippine economy. Through its digitally-adept business processes, it has proven to withstand the test of the global health crises and calamities of 2020. We can be somewhat confident that the future remains bright for the Philippine BPO industry, in continuing its outsourcing and offshoring services for many more years to come.
We at Ezy Outsourcing Hub have continued growing and improving our facilities and business processes as well amidst the pandemic. With our years of expertise in outsourced manpower, prime serviced office space procurement, and offshore business solutions, we are equally confident that we can help your business continue to grow in 2021. We have withstood the test of time, and we would be happy to see your business do so too, with our support. Inquire with us today.
