Outsourcing services
to the Philippines

There can be many misconceptions and concerns when transitioning internally managed business services to outsourced, third-party providers. Choosing to outsource these services internationally can further heighten these points of contention.

By contracting workforce talent across the globe and by targeting labour markets which offer highly skilled, well-educated workers at a lower cost, organisations can control their costs without sacrificing quality.

Based on the 2010 IBM Global Locations Trend Report, the Philippines has taken the lead as the top choice for outsourcing all over the world and has always been ranked as one of the best outsourcing countries. Reasons include:

Time difference is not an issue

• Filipinos are flexible on time and are willing to work varied schedules to accommodate client needs. Clients based in Perth benefit from this as the Philippines and Perth are in the same time zone.

English language proficiency

• The Business English Index (BEI) is a study designed to calculate global workers’ English competency in the workplace.
• A BEI score of 1.0 indicates the ability of people to communicate and read only through simple English statements, while a score of 10.0 indicates equivalency with native English speakers; the Philippines was given a score of 7.95; the Philippines was given a score of 7.95.
• English is also widely used and spoken in the Philippines. Not just for business, but in schools, shopping centres and at home, making it a language that many are familiar with.

Highly skilled talent

• The Philippines is one of the largest outsourcing providers offering talent across a multitude of fields, not just call centres. These include areas such as human resources, customer service, financial services, legal transcription, software development, virtual assistance, animation, graphic design, content writing and marketing.

Outstanding work ethic

• Business owners invest in Filipino teams due to their core competencies, excellent work ethic, values, integrity, loyalty, service-oriented mindset, and the friendly working atmosphere that they seem to foster in any organisation’s culture.

Quality & cost-effective

• Although outsourcing to the Philippines produces a low-cost alternative to businesses, it doesn’t mean quality is jeopardised.
• Performance efficiency led the Filipino outsourcing industry to grow from 400,000 employees in 2011 to 1 million, which made up 1% of the population in 2014.

Strong government support and cultural compatibility

• As outsourcing services are considered valued economic and primary revenue generators for the Philippines. The Philippine Government recognises the potential of these organisations and provides additional support and infrastructure
• As a country that was colonised by foreign forces, Filipinos were influenced with ethical values, traditions, customers, behaviours, and ways of life that correlate with many foreign cultures, giving them the edge against other nationalities as an outsourcing provider.