Global Economizing Initiatives Poised to Propel Philippine BPOs in 2023

Flexibility in work setups and an escalating worldwide necessity for outsourcing are the propellers of growth for Philippine BPOs.

MANILA, Philippines – In a world where some economies face stagnation and organizations enact cost-reduction tactics, the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) sector in the Philippines stands to gain.

Predictions from the IT and Business Process Association of the Philippines (IBPAP) indicate that the industry could amass revenues of $35.9 billion and total full-time employment of approximately 1.7 million in 2023.

IBPAP's survey reveals that 83% of BPO firms anticipate growth in 2023, despite a looming global recession, while 17% held a neutral stance regarding their predictions.

"Survey outcomes indicate that companies will persist in utilizing global business services in the current year as a strategy to further their cost-saving endeavors," stated IBPAP.

The survey hinted that future investments could emanate from sectors such as:

• Animation and game development
• Contact centers
• Cybersecurity
• Fintech
• Healthcare
• Internet service providers
• IT solutions
• Shared services

Cities such as Cebu and Davao are expected to persist as favored IT-Business Process Management (IT-BPM) destinations, with newcomers including Iloilo, Clark in Pampanga, and Santa Rosa City in Laguna.

Surpassing 2022 Objectives, IBPAP reports that the BPO industry outperformed its 2022 objectives. Full-time employees swelled by 8.4% or 121,000 in 2022, escalating the industry's total personnel count to 1.57 million.

BPOs also noted a 10.3% revenue surge, hitting $32.5 billion in 2022.

The swell in workforce and revenue has been linked to sectors such as banking, financial services and insurance, healthcare, retail, technology, and telecommunications.

As per Leechiu Property Consultants (LPC), IT-BPM comprised 466,000 square meters of office space uptake, accounting for 48% of the overall demand countrywide. This reflects an 81% upswing from the 257,000 sqm occupied by BPOs in 2021.

LPC highlighted considerable expansions beyond Metro Manila, particularly in cities like Cebu, Davao, Bacolod City, Pampanga, and Laguna. Over 70,000 new jobs were forged in these regions, a 17% increase from the preceding year. By the closure of 2022, 31% of the industry's workforce, or 486,000 workers, were stationed in these rural regions.

"Our focus on Roadmap 2028 is deliberate and dynamic. This approach underpins our aspiration of cultivating an industry workforce of 2.5 million and securing $59 billion in national revenues," shared Jack Madrid, the President and CEO of IBPAP.