The global market for outsourcing and offshore services is very competitive. Yet, Philippine call centers and other outsourcing companies are able to grab a bigger percentage of the world market since the year 2000. The good results for the country are the economic boom being experienced and the increase of job opportunities for the labor force.



Call Centers have sprouted everywhere in Metro Manila. Most of them are located in business centers such as Ortigas Center in Pasig, Eastwood Cyberpark in Quezon City, the Central Business District of Makati City, and several other areas in Pasay City and nearby areas. Call Center agents tend to be young professionals who are starting their way into the corporate ladder. As such, they are ambitious, dynamic and willing to give their best shot in working for these companies. In 2001, there were only about 2,000 call center employees. Who would have thought that such a number would grow exponentially to around 200,000?

As businesses from the United States, Australia and Europe continue to outsource basic services to companies in the Philippines, the outsourcing industry in the Philippines, call centers particularly are looking forward to several more years of growth. If you consider the robustness of the call center industry in the Philippines and the continuous patronage of different companies all over the world, you might wonder what makes Philippine call centers the preferred choice for outsourcing.

One factor that contributes to the boom in the Call Center industry is the culture of hospitality of the Filipinos. Because of this hospitality, it is not very difficult for Filipinos to be trained in the rudiments and basics of customer service. In fact, the popular maxim of going the extra mile is easily extended by a Filipino to anyone in need. In addition to this, Filipino society does have an important connection to Spain and to the United States.

Although the cultural ties with the US is stronger now, it nonetheless shares several features of the Spanish culture. Since most of the industries outsourcing to the Philippines are in the US, this presents a clear advantage because it becomes easier for most Filipinos to understand the varying accents and meanings that American English presents. Among the Asian countries, the Philippines is the one that can most easily relate with the cultures of the West. The ears of Filipinos can also easily distinguish and adapt to both British and American English.

Filipinos also have company loyalty, which enables companies to save money from the high attrition and turnover rates as is the case in a lot of countries. A call center staff is able to gain more expertise as he gets to practice his craft everyday of his life. This level of expertise will therefore work best for the staff and for the company as a whole.

As of today, the English skills of Filipinos are still among the best in the world. As such, companies do not need to spend thousands of dollars in elaborate accent training. A Filipino call center agent will be able to adapt well in his current situation.