Top Three Reasons to Outsource to the Philippines
Some startups and small businesses choose to outsource because they may want to save money while trying to get their companies off the ground. Others may have already established their brands in their respective industries. But, they would like to take advantage of outsourcing’s less money-oriented benefits, such as having a bigger workforce to source the best and brightest talents from. Whatever the reasons may be, these three are the most cited by businesses that outsource to the Philippines.
#1 Businesses are assured of continuity in their operations without delay.
It’s likely your offshore staff has irregular work schedules. The hours may be arranged in such a way that gaps in your work calendar are filled. For example, a team of customer support specialists will always be there to handle requests from your customers no matter the time of day and even during weekends and holidays.
You may hire night shift employees in your area, but it will be difficult to find a crew who will work for you on weekends and holidays. To compensate, you can outsource to the Philippines where staff work in a different time zone and are willing to work beyond their official hours and on holidays. You won’t hear Filipino outsourcing staff complain because they know they’ll be compensated and recognized for their hard work.
#2 Turnover rate among Filipino outsourcing staff is around 8% lower than in India and at least 20% lower than in the United States.
According to an ASEAN Briefing paper, the turnover rate for customer support positions in India is around 28 percent, which is eight percent higher than the turnover rate in the Philippines for the same jobs. In the United States, the turnover rates for call center workers range between 30% and 45% on average.
Research studies indicate that the rate of turnover varies by area of the country, employment factors in a specific region or city, and by industry. There is a much higher turnover rate in routine, order-taking positions or in outbound telemarketing where burnout is high. Turnover is lower in more specialized, higher level jobs and also lower in union environments.
Employees are likely to stay with the company for more than a year to test the waters. When that happens, there’s a greater possibility that they’ll stay for more than 2 years.
Most employees of outsourcing firms in the Philippines consist of Millennials. They often base their career decisions on the value and meaning they find in their work. They prefer working for an employee-centric company, and for a client that’s worth their loyalty and hard work. Once they’re sure of this, they’ll stay with you as long as you needed them.
#3 Hire highly skilled workers with a prescribed focus on certain areas of your business.
Outsourcing is now entering its evolutionary phase. The kinds of work provided by service providers are more complex and versatile than the routine tasks done by most call center workers. In this evolving niche, employees are seen as knowledge specialists and they work on jobs in knowledge process outsourcing. In simple terms, you’ll be getting a custom team that serves as an extension of your organization.
Clients can expect their offshore staff to work only for them doing tasks that are specific to their business. None of the procedures and workflow systems can be modified to fit another team’s needs or to satisfy another client’s demands. Each client gets a custom outsourcing solution that works.
Bonus Reason: You’re not just cutting down costs when you outsource to the Philippines.
It’s not just savings, but a whole set of financial and socioeconomic advantages that will not only boost your company’s chances of growing and expanding its reach but will also make a sustainable impact on the lives of the people you outsource to.
At the very least, you’ll be getting lower hourly rates compared to wages being paid in the United States now. Most outsourcing companies offer ‘all in’ hourly rates. These rates do not include taxes and cost of benefits, such as health care, sick time, vacation etc. Because of the low turnover rate, you’ll be saving a lot in training and productivity costs.
At most, your outsourcing decision will have a long-lasting effect on the people you work with. By and large, it will affect the social and economic conditions of the country you’re outsourcing to.
Source: Rethink Staffing on Vimeo
Outsourcing companies have their in-house HR personnel take care of the recruitment and retention processes. This means you have lower administrative costs associated with human resources management.
There will always be someone to watch over your offshore staff. A team leader will be there to keep them motivated and implement disciplinary measures. An operations manager is there to apply changes to workflows to improve productivity and increase efficiency.
You’re also kept updated with daily, weekly or monthly reports on your staff’s performance. This is in addition to the regular meetings held to strengthen your working relationship with your team.
