Haiyan effect: Location prioritized when outsourcing customer service

OABPO Blog Team Published on November 25, 2013

outsourcing-customer-service--
The Philippine BPO industry may not have suffered massive physical and operational damage from super typhoon Haiyan, but the disaster did affect investors who are outsourcing customer service to the country. The catastrophe has prompted companies to fortify their business plans by giving higher importance to strategic locations.

The typhoon that wreaked havoc on Southern regions spared Metro Manila, where the majority or 65% of the nation’s outsourcing firms operate. This left $16 billon’s worth of IT and customer service processes generally safe, including those being operated in areas such as Cebu and Davao that are only slightly affected by the typhoon.

Businesses with alternate locations in the capital and Southern regions are the ones that saw the least damage, and their example helped investors realize the importance of having multiple business sites in the Philippines. This enables operations to continue in other offices even if one location is rendered inaccessible or inoperative by a natural calamity.

Businesses planners, however, admit that avoiding operational halts brought by unforeseen incidents is more practical than lowering damage by allowing the destruction focus on one location. Tactically situating businesses in an ideal, calamity-prone area is still the smoothest route to take before outsourcing customer service to the country.

worker-pointing-to-bulb-with-building-background

This may have contributed to the development of IT parks in Davao and rise of office space occupancy rate in Metro Manila. Davao is being groomed to be the next outsourcing hub after the capital region, as investors see an asset in the city’s safe location and abundant workforce. The exodus to the South doesn’t seem to give a blow to Metro Manila’s property sector though; in fact, the metropolis has outpaced the rest of Asia-Pacific in terms of office space absorption.

Despite precise planning, however, prime locations can still be vulnerable to disasters.
“In the outsourcing industry, the main issues are not loss of life or property damage. The main issues are absenteeism due to family issues or volunteer work and also intermittent power grid issues,” said Gartner’s Vice President for Research, Frances Karamouzis.

What Karamouzis said is more than just a claim, but an actual truth that many saw in the midst of Typhoon Haiyan’s onslaught last November 8. Operations did go undisturbed, but some employees were unable to report to work due to transportation unavailability and problematic conditions the workers had in their respective homes.

The issue shed light on the importance of the government’s role in mitigating the effects of weather-induced concerns as well as the communication between private companies and the public. Large outsourcing vendors and associations are compelled to issue a public statement to avoid leaving their clients and local government units in the dark.

“This highlights the importance of considering the effectiveness of the government in a region under consideration as a sourcing location. After all, laws in and of themselves are no good without enforcement. A government’s self-commitment is heavily weighed against how corrupt the diversion of funds is taking place,” said Jerry Durant of consultancy firm NeoGroup.

The super typhoon brought about the awareness that heightened prevention and recovery measures of private individuals and businesses alike, but choosing the ultimate location is just the first step of the overall plan. This has to be well-executed using communication and cooperation between the business sector, the public, and the government.

Join us on facebook
Open Access BPO 2 days ago
Compared to most industries, #CallCenters are known for providing a fun and positive workplace for their employees.
But more than just making daily ops light and dynamic, the agents, the contact center, and the clients benefit from this: https://buff.ly/3NiWbEB

----------
Let's create a program hyper-customized for your brand's goals, needs, budget, and customer demands: OpenAccessBPO.com/get-started

#WeSpeakYourLanguage
#CustomerService #EmployeeEngagement
Open Access BPO 2 days ago
Efficiency in #CallCenters involves enhancing agents' #productivity and #satisfaction.

Check out these 5 tips to boost #EmployeeEngagement and productivity in #ContactCenters: https://buff.ly/46H48KE

----------
Learn how our training, employee engagement, and culture of diversity contribute to our high-quality #CustomerExperience: OpenAccessBPO.com/get-started

#WeSpeakYourLanguage
#CSat #CustomerSupport #CX
#CustomerService #CustomerSupport
Open Access BPO 3 days ago
#CallCenters are made up of people from different cultures or backgrounds.
Each one is likely to have differing workplace habits and values, all of which can result in conflicts.

Here are the top 10 causes of conflicts in the call center: https://buff.ly/3GsT0GL

----------
Connect with an #outsourcing firm that provides great employee training and management programs: OpenAccessBPO.com/get-started

#WeSpeakYourLanguage
#CompanyCulture #EmployeeManagement
Open Access BPO 3 days ago
As more consumers turn toward online channels, businesses are struggling to provide quality #CustomerSupport for their international customers.
Partnering with a reliable #MultilingualCallCenter has, thus, become a valuable strategy.

𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐨𝐩 𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐮𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐬 businesses must offer to remain competitive in global markets: https://buff.ly/4a7ocZp

----------
For #CustomerService and #BackOffice support in over 30 languages, contact Open Access BPO today: OpenAccessBPO.com/get-started

#WeSpeakYourLanguage
Open Access BPO 3 days ago
𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐮𝐝𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐭'𝐬 𝐮𝐩 𝐭𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐤𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐚𝐭 𝐛𝐚𝐲.

Luckily for you, #outsourcing can back you up in this battle.
Here's how call centers protect your customers from ecommerce fraud: https://buff.ly/47GJvPX

----------
Partner with an #outsourcing partner that keeps #InfoSec a top priority alongside great #CustomerSupport: OpenAccessBPO.com/get-started

#WeSpeakYourLanguage
#CustomerExperience #DataSecurity
#outsourcing #FraudProtection #FraudDetection
Open Access BPO 3 days ago
In celebration of 𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐆𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐌𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐡 this December, Open Access BPO Davao collaborated with the Philippine Red Cross - Davao City Chapter for a blood donation drive held last December 1, 2023.

Our collective efforts turned moments of compassion into life-saving contributions.

Thank you to all our OABPO Davao heroes who rolled up their sleeves–you've proven that a small act of giving can have a monumental impact.

----------
Open Access BPO actively promotes community involvement in the workplace by supporting the annual blood donation activity among other causes.

𝘗𝘩𝘰𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸𝘴 𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘖𝘈𝘉𝘗𝘖 𝘋𝘢𝘷𝘢𝘰 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘥𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘣𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦.

#WeSpeakYourLanguage
#OneWithHealth Philippine Red Cross
Open Access BPO