Revenues generated by the IT and business process management (ITBPM) industry grew by 10.3 percent and full-time employees (FTEs) by 8.4 percent in 2022 outperforming growth targets despite prevailing challenges on the economic, political, and social fronts, the IT and Business Process Association of the Philippines (IBPAP) reported.
According to the IBPAP, the industry’s revenues in 2022 reached $32.5 billion from $29.5 billion in 2021 and added 121,000 FTEs, bringing the industry’s total headcount to 1.57 million from 1.44 million FTEs in 2021.
“The IT-BPM sector outperformed the aggressive targets that Roadmap 2028 set for headcount and revenue growth,” said IBPAP in a statement adding that the 2022 performance marked historic milestones for the country’s dynamic and vibrant industry. The industry was projected to grow eight to ten percent in revenues and seven to eight percent in FTEs in 2022.
IBPAP added that the year 2022 will surely be remembered for the landmark breakthrough of achieving work flexibility through work-from-home (WFH) and hybrid work models, as well as the launch of the Philippine IT-BPM Industry Roadmap 2028.
“We’re working on Roadmap 2028 with purpose and momentum. That’s the only way that we can hope to achieve our goal of building the industry to a 2.5 million-strong workforce and generating $59 billion in revenues for the country,” stated Jack Madrid, IBPAP President and CEO.
“We still have a long way to go, but Philippine IT-BPM’s stellar performance in 2022 brings us closer to generating 1.1 million new jobs for Filipinos. It’s also a testament to the collective efforts that the private sector, government, and academe have exerted to retain the industry as an indispensable pillar of the economy.”
IBPAP noted that the boost in headcount and revenue may be attributed to growth in Banking, Financial Services & Insurance (BFSI), Healthcare, Retail, Technology, and Telecommunications.
There were also significant expansions in the countryside, particularly in Cebu, Davao, Bacolod, Pampanga, and Laguna. In fact, over 70K new jobs were created in locations outside Metro Manila—a 17 percent increase from the previous year. By the end of 2022, 31 percent of the sector’s total headcount or 486K FTEs were in the countryside.
Based on Roadmap 2028, the Philippine IT-BPM industry can reach 1.7 million FTEs and $35.9 billion in revenue in 2023.
Separately, in a 2023 survey carried out by IBPAP, it was shown that 51 percent were highly optimistic, 32 percent somewhat optimistic and 17 percent neutral. Results also showed that organizations will continue to outsource and use global business services this year as a lever to drive some of their cost optimization initiatives.
Investments, according to the study, are projected to come from the following sectors: Animation & Game Development, Contact Center, Cybersecurity, Financial Technology (FinTech), Healthcare, Internet Service Providers (ISPs), IT Solutions, and Shared Services. For the countryside, Cebu and Davao will continue to be popular IT-BPM hubs, while Iloilo, Clark (Pampanga), and Sta. Rosa (Laguna) will be added to the mix.
IT-BPM companies identified key business challenges. The top five were talent and skills gap;
cost pressures; more work going to competing locations such as India, Poland and South America; adapting to evolving customer needs and business models like hybrid and remote work; and inadequate supply of enabling infrastructure, particularly in the countryside.
Given these possible obstacles to IT-BPM’s growth in the country, IBPAP and its stakeholders in the industry, government, and academe must remain grounded on its four Acceleration Levers: Policy & Regulatory Support, Talent Development, Infrastructure Expansion, and Marketing & Brand Repositioning.
A lot of work has already been done on Talent Development, with a flagship initiative scheduled on April 26 and 27. The IT-BPM Talent Summit, which is organized by IBPAP in partnership with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Board of Investments (BOI), will feature face-to-face plenary and breakout sessions on Day 1 and a virtual career and job fair on Day 2. The two-day event aims to help the Philippine IT-BPM sector leap ahead on its agenda of establishing a national upskilling framework, expediting educational reforms, and generating 1.1 million new jobs for Filipinos.
“This is just the tip of the iceberg,” shared Madrid. “We have more partnerships, projects, and programs in the pipeline for Talent Development and the other Acceleration Levers and we don’t plan on letting up or slowing down because we realize that a lot is at stake here that’s beyond revenues, margins, or profits.”