The BPO industry in the Philippines during the pandemic

The BPO industry in the Philippines started in the 1990s. Due to the government’s optimistic and serious support, outsourced customer service to the Philippines has flourished. From that time until 2019, BPO became one of the two legs in the country’s economy. The other comes from the transfers of foreign Filipino workers or OFWs. The BPO industry contributed $ 26 billion and employed 1.3 million workers in more than 1,000 outsourcing companies.

But when the COVID-19 pandemic struck in 2020 and affected people’s lives around the world, many companies were hit hard. On March 16, 2020, when President Duterte placed the entire nation, especially Metro Manila and the neary cities in the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ), many companies were forced to implement a minimal workforce. Or worse, they went bankrupt in many cases. As a result, many became unemployed. In the midst of the economic crisis, however, one industry in particular flourished – it is the outsourcing of business processes.

Due to its importance to the economy, outsourced customer service in the Philippines is one of the few industries that may continue to operate despite the closure of society. Due to the quarantine restrictions, it still had some effect and some changes in the outsourcing companies. They could not maintain normal staffing levels. The majority ofoutsourcing companies allowed their employees to work remotely, such as working from home or hotels (paid for by companies). There are customers from abroad who allow their business functions to be done at home, such as online customer service and support. On the other hand, some clients did not match the work set because they believed that jobs could be done more efficiently in the office environment rather than at home. So, some BPO employees had a struggle to go to the office and at home due to the shutdown of public transport. It was also reported that 15 outsourcing companies in the country had cases of COVID-19 outbreaks, with more than 20 employees affected by the virus.

We are now in 2021 and the pandemic is not over yet. Many companies pick up the pieces and try to rebuild. Outsourcing customer service in the Philippines has proven to be the backbone of the economy as they continue to work and provide more jobs to the Philippines. Although a slowdown in consumer activity in some foreign countries had a negative impact on the Philippines’ outsourcing industry in the short term, the country can look forward to building competitive advantages in addition to English-language knowledge and customer service skills. Probably one of the reasons why outsourcing of business processes is important to the government. And that opportunity can lead to continuous growth in the outsourcing industry.

Outsourcing customer service is best done through Onlinefactory.