Joe Issa Says Timely Facilitation of BPO Could Potentially Stem Rising Unemployment

Executive Chairman of Cool Corporation Joe Issa says he is pleased that the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry is showing increased interest in the Caribbean, stating it is timely and should be facilitated as it could halt rising unemployment in the region.

Pamela Coke-Hamilton  

Joseph “Joey” Issa

“I am pleased that the region is attracting the interest of the BPO industry. It is a trillion dollar business that should be facilitated in earnest as it has the potential to reduce the rising unemployment seen in the Caribbean last year.

“Specifically, the region must give priority to putting in place the necessary infrastructure, workforce training and incentives to attract outsourcing services.

“It pays off in the end because BPOs do not only employ large amounts of workers but also quality workers, which raises earnings for workers and the country.

“Also, in most cases the appropriate training is provided by the BPO companies, with young people, among whom unemployment is highest, being the target for such training,” said Issa.

Issa, who has previously expressed concern over recent United Nations reports of rising unemployment in the Caribbean and Latin America, was directing his comments at a Gleaner article, in which executive director of the Caribbean Export Development Agency (CEDA), Pamela Coke-Hamilton, revealed that an investor perception survey initiated by CEDA in the final quarter of last year, had shown that nearly half of the respondents were considering outsourcing to the Caribbean.

According to the article, Coke-Hamilton told an outsourcing conference held in Jamaica in December, that indicative results of the survey show that investors are developing a multi-destination strategy based on the attractions of nearness and language.

She was reported saying that the survey showed the need for Caribbean markets to address developmental issues, including more incentive packages, and the provision of more data or market research on the BPO sector.

Regarding the pitch being made to investors, she reportedly cited the Caribbean’s 13 million-strong and qualified workforce and its nearshore destination which gives it a similar time zone as New York with daily flights from key markets, and relative to Miami is anywhere between 45 minutes to three hours away.

Speaking on the time lag for investments to materialise, Suzette Hudson, Caribbean Export’s senior adviser for investment promotion, reportedly told the Financial Gleaner that it can take anywhere from 18-24 months, suggesting that “from the event in December, we can see investments in the sector by early 2019, as we had some excellent leads and interest from BPO operators in expanding throughout the region.”

Among the nations attracting the increased interest of investors, she cited Belize and others which offer Spanish and English, Grenada, and St Lucia. She said, “there is also an interest in linking financial services with outsourcing, and smaller territories like Curacao are taking advantage of this by connecting with the Netherlands and positioning themselves in the fintech and cybersecurity market.”

Based on 2015 data across nine countries – The Bahamas, Barbados, the Dominican Republic, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Suriname, Belize, and Trinidad & Tobago – the BPO industry is said to comprise more than 200 delivery centres and 74,000 agents.

According to Caribbean Export, between 2010 and 2015, the industry grew by an average of 17 percent, and that BPO and other professional services generated over US$2 billion in revenue in 2014.

In its online BPO booklet, Caribbean Export reportedly wrote: “Calculations show that companies in the region generate close to US$25 million in revenue for every 1,000 agents. The level of profit is around 7 percent for call centres, and close to 15 percent for non-voice, back-office shared services.”

It put the value of the global BPO market at US$1 trillion and the size of the cross-border outsourced services traded between countries at an annual US$88.9 billion in 2015. The value of Jamaica’s sector at that point, based on revenues generated, was reported to be US$400 million.

The most significant share of this revenue is said to go to the Asia-Pacific region, which dominates the market for outsourced services with a near 70 percent share, followed by Europe with 10 percent, Canada 9 percent, and Latin America with 9 percent.

“Among the noticeable trends in the global BPO industry is the focus on new, innovative offerings, for example in contract structuring, with BPO providers becoming more creative in landing mega-sized and multi-year outsourcing deals,” the booklet reportedly noted.

According to the Gleaner, it added that among the recent trends seen are, “smaller BPO engagements, with clients splitting a deal into smaller, more specialist providers, as opposed to using one large provider; and more flexible location solutions – for example, agents working from home, onsite, nearshore or offshore – are now possible, thanks to technological advancements.”

Joe Issa Congratulates Nigel Clarke on Elevation to MP

Civic leader Joe Issa has congratulated Nigel Clarke after winning the latest by-election to represent the people of St Andrew North Western in parliament.

Nigel Clarke

 

“I think Nigel will make an excellent member of parliament for the people of St Andrew North Western. Although he is not from the area, this will not stop him putting hundred percent effort in the job.

“He is a bright and intelligent man committed to making a difference in people’s lives and their community. To me, he is worthy of his constituents’ confidence, and I am sure he will live up to it,” said Issa, who continues to give service to the St Ann parish through the chamber of commerce.

According to the Observer report Clarke, the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) candidate – who is a former Opposition senator and now serves on the Government’s Economic Growth Council and chairs the board of the National Housing Trust – polled 4,448 votes from the 112 ballot boxes to the 2,812 votes polled by People’s National Party (PNP) candidate Keisha Hayle, delivering a sound beating to the Padmore Primary School principal.

The JLP leader Prime Minister Andrew Holness reportedly told ecstatic Labourites in ‘Sherlock’ — a JLP stronghold in the constituency — that they have made the party one seat stronger in Parliament.

Holness said that by the history of the constituency, represented by former Member of Parliament Derrick Smith for 29 unbroken years, and by the work of Labourites in the electorate it was always the case that Clarke would win, though that fact was not taken for granted.

Clarke, who also addressed Labourites, mentioned that there is no honeymoon period for him. He told the jubilant crowd that the work in the constituency begins today, according to the report.

“I have listened, and I have heard, and I understand your concerns, and with the support and help of all of my colleagues on the platform, I am going to work on your behalf. We went out, and we asked you to ring the bell for Nigel, and that is what you did; you rang the bell for Nigel. I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart,” he was quoted as saying.