European Companies Show Keen Interest in the Philippines' IT Services
The Philippine business mission to Europe was met by a dozen of companies eager to do business with the Philippines' IT and IT-enabled firms, according to the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM).
Pasay City, Philippines (PRWEB via PR
Web Direct) August 2, 2005 -- The Philippine business mission to Europe was
met by a dozen of companies eager to do business with the Philippines' IT and
IT-enabled firms, according to the Center for International Trade Expositions
and Missions (CITEM).
According to CITEM, "The response from the business
community in Europe was encouraging. We have to keep them in our radar screen if
we are to remain competitive in the business process outsourcing (BPO) space."
Local enterprises which visited Europe operate in various IT outsourcing
areas such as contact centers (Advanced Contact Solutions (ACS), Vision X, and
Teletech Holdings, Inc.); contact center solutions and technology (Alliance
Technologies and Diversified Technology Systems Inc.); financial services and
accounting, publishing and transcription (SPI Technologies, SENCOR);
architectural and engineering requirements outsourcing (Environments
Collaborative) and project management of outsourcing needs (Invent
Asia).
Forrester Research estimated that the UK will account for
three-quarters of all European offshore outsourcing within five years. The
report also said that offshore service spending in Western Europe will grow from
EUR 1.1 billion in 2004 to EUR 3.6 billion in 2009, with the UK accounting for
76 percent of that amount.
Aside from the growing outsourcing demand in
Europe, other factors driving the need for technology-enhanced BPO are:
increased bundling of horizontal offerings (e.g. F&A combined with HR and
supply management), demand for more sophisticated services beyond mere process
execution, moving up the value chain in global delivery, requirement for
technology boost and expertise in application and information management, and
increasing prevalence of mega deals and acquisitions.
To date, Dutch
companies with outsourced processes in the Philippines are Getronics, ING Group,
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and ABN AMRO. Meanwhile, British companies with
outsourcing operations in the country are Standard Chartered Bank, Sykes and
Ambergris Solutions.
The Philippine delegation, led by Trade Assistant
Secretary and CITEM executive director Felicitas Agoncillo-Reyes, met with
Universal Marine BV, SOLLAND, Allied Aircraft Assistance Worldwide Association,
KLM, Sommer Holding Ltd., Digital Port (Information Center) Rotterdam, Logica
CMG, HSBC, Express Gifts London, National Outsourcing Association (London),
INTELLECT (UK IT Association), Mitial Research International, Arcware Solutions,
Ltd., MRA Marketing Solutions.
Some of the potential business leads
gathered from the mission were business processing deals with Logica CMG,
Express Gifts and the Emirates Group.
Logica is a major global force in
IT services and wireless telecoms, with around 21, 000 people across 34
countries. In the Philippines, Globe and Sun Cellular are among Logica's clients
for SMS and MMS. The company has an offshore development center in India serving
different verticals like telecom, financial services and energy and utilities
among others.
Express Gifts Financial Services Director Nasser Malik is
also looking into opening up a 200-seat contact center in the Philippines to
take order calls for home shopping and other call types.
Other business
prospects for the Philippines gathered during the mission were a 500-seat
contact center requirement for outbound calls; F&A such as payroll services
for insurance company with office outside the UK and a networking relationship
with Digital Port Rotterdam as link to ICT users with outsourcing requirements.
The McKinsey Global Institute recently noted that a new competitive
dynamic is emerging. "Early movers in offshoring improve their cost position and
boost their market share, creating new jobs in the process. Companies who
resisted the trend saw increasingly unfavorable cost positions which eroded
market share and eventually end in job destruction." Offshoring, the study also
noted, is a powerful way for companies to reduce costs and improve the quality
and kinds of products they offer consumers, allowing them to invest in
technology and create jobs.
During the mission, the Philippines likewise
participated for the first time in Outsource World London, a two-day conference
and exhibition featuring 70 exhibitors from 10 countries.
"The
Philippine participation in Outsource World is part of our aggressive trade and
investment promotions in Europe in which the BPO market continues to grow in
size," CITEM officials said.
The government's international promotions
agency also added that it was worth noting how most of the European companies
intended to do business with the Philippines while the rest gained insight into
the local market.
In 2004, the Netherlands was the Philippines' 3rd
largest trading partner while the UK is the 16th largest.
The
Philippines is the third largest English-speaking nation in the world outside
the United States and the UK. Filipino IT professionals are also highly
trainable with a learning curve of six to eight weeks.
The Philippines
has the largest pool of quality accountants in Asia, with 105,000 graduates of
finance, accounting and management every year, increasing by about 3,000 yearly.
During the first quarter of 2005, there were about 113, 300 licensed accountants
in the country. The U.S.' Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) rank
Filipino accountants as "among the best in the world."
According to the
IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook, the Philippines is number 4 source of IT
professionals in the world.
The Philippine business mission to Europe
was organized by CITEM, the Board of Investments (BOI), in coordination with the
Philippine Trade and Investment Center in Rotterdam and London. The project is a
component of the ICT-Europe Trade and Investment Promotion Program under the
Philippine ICT Business Development Team.
Media Contact:
Maffy
Carandang
Publicity Services Division
Center for International Trade
Expositions and Missions
+638312201
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Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/8/prweb268413.htm