BPO firm invests P2B in new building in Cebu

CEBU City—A business process outsourcing firm (BPO) has invested P2 billion in a two-story building in Cebu, its first company-owned building in the country.

The energy-efficient building of Aegis PeopleSupport is located on a 3,000 square-meter property within the Asiatown Information Technology Park in Barangay (village) Lahug, a premier destination for BPO companies locating in Cebu City.

Aparup Sengupta, Aegis managing director and global CEO, said the move shows Aegis’ seriousness in investing in the Philippines.

“The Philippines took the offshore leadership position in the world. It is the de-facto destination, especially for North American customers. Hence, it is strategic for us to come here,” Sengupta said.

Rajiv Ahuja, Aegis president for Association for Southeast Asian Nations and Australia-New Zealand, said the decision to build the first tower in Cebu was a result of the city’s continuous ability to provide the skilled workforce preferred by both local and international clients.

“We love the Filipino workforce. We love the warmth you bring to the table. That is why it is not surprising that you have enjoyed the status of being a preferred destination,” Ahuja said.

As of October 2011, the company has 12,000 employees in its facilities in Manila, Cebu and Baguio. It aims to reach 15,000 employees by yearend.

Globally, Aegis employs more than 50,000 in 12 countries located in 50 locations. It is wholly owned by Indian business conglomerate Essar Group.

Chief people officer SM Gupta said that the country’s BPO sector has been growing at 23 percent in the last three years, higher than the global average of 15 percent.

This growth will translate to the employment of 400,000 workforce on top of the current 600,000 working in various BPO companies.

With rapid growth, Sengupta said the availability of good labor force remains a challenge for the Philippines as the BPO sector continues to face a double-digit growth.

He said they saw this situation as Aegis evolved from a call center company to one that provides complete customer life cycle management.

“Talent pool in metro cities is drying up. This is where the Philippines will see a challenge. We have two options—figure out a way to get the talent to work in these cities or go to the cities where we can have those talents,” explained Sengupta.