BPO & Creative Industries
From The Report: Philippines 2019
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Ranking consistently among the top global providers of business process outsourcing (BPO), the Philippines is working to widen and deepen its portfolio of third-party digital services. Foreign companies delegating operations to providers in the Philippines generate roughly one-10th of the country’s GDP, indicating the degree to which BPO is fundamental to the stability of the economy. The industry is the primary avenue of employment and training for the middle class; the second-largest source of foreign currency earnings after remittances; and the driving force behind a network of ancillary transport and retail businesses. Thus, the BPO industry often acts as a bellwether for the country’s overall economic health. This chapter also contains interviews with Lito Tayag, Country Managing Director, Accenture Philippines; and Chair of the Board of Trustees, IT and Business Process Association of the Philippines; and Paolo Mercado, Founder and President, Creative Economy Council of the Philippines.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Outsource of pride: Promoting sector evolution through higher-value-added services and creative industry development
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Ranking consistently among the top global providers of business process outsourcing (BPO), the Philippines is working to widen and deepen its portfolio of thirdparty digital services. Foreign companies delegating operations to providers in the Philippines generate roughly one-10th of the country’s GDP, indicating the degree to which BPO is fundamental to the stability of the economy. The industry is the primary avenue of employment and training for the middle class; the second-largest source…

Interview

On the up: Lito Tayag, Country Managing Director, Accenture Philippines; and Chair of the Board of Trustees, IT and Business Process Association of the Philippines, on adapting to digitalisation
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Interview:Lito Tayag Which changes can the IT and business process management (BPM) industry implement in order to maintain a competitive edge on the global market? LITO TAYAG: While the IT-BPM industry has grown significantly over the past 15 years and is one of the main generators of jobs, economic inclusion and foreign currency inflows, the Philippines needs to move up the value chain of services in order to maintain its competitiveness. For the Philippines to remain a preferred outsourcing…

Analysis

Change in climate: The impact of tax reforms on business process outsourcing
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After nearly eight months of deliberations in Congress, the Tax Reform for Attracting Better and High-Quality Opportunities (TRABAHO) bill was approved by lawmakers in September 2018. The government’s Comprehensive Tax Reform Programme seeks to reduce the corporate income tax (CIT) rate starting in 2021 from the current 30% to 20% by 2029. This would bring the Philippines in line with its ASEAN counterparts, while rationalising the fiscal incentive regime and creating more job opportunities.…

Analysis

In the know: Growing investment in higher-value outsourcing services
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As with other business process outsourcing (BPO) and business process management (BPM) centres around the world, the Philippines is gearing up to face the significant challenges and opportunities presented by recent advances in automation. The IT-BPO industry in the Philippines generated $24.7bn in revenue in 2018, with call centres accounting for approximately half of the total. However, as automation does away with the need for many low-skilled jobs, greater attention is being paid to fostering…

Interview

Talent base: Paolo Mercado, Founder and President, Creative Economy Council of the Philippines, on establishing a more conducive environment for the creative economy to flourish
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Interview:Paolo Mercado How do you assess the opportunities and obstacles to developing strong creative industries? PAOLO MERCADO: The creative industry in the Philippines registered growth of 12.7% between 1999 and 2010, according to the Intellectual Property Office, which was significantly higher than overall GDP growth over the same period. In 2010 the industry generated around P640bn ($12.6bn) in revenue, which comprised 7% of the total economy. It was a very positive trend for a sector…