In the course of my research about the economic zones, I stumbled into the evolution of Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) with some of the call centers levelling-up into Information Technology-Business Process Management (BPM).
Yes, Virginia, over the years the country continues to keep its lead in BPO with India close behind, then Poland, Malaysia, Argentina, Mexico and Brazil rounding the seven top countries.
From what I’ve gathered, through the years some of our call centers transformed into BPM services that focus on improving a client’s overall business process, its efficiency and productivity, thereby reducing operating costs, and minimizing errors by optimizing results.
And my favorite province Iloilo and favorite city Bacolod have emerged to be hubs for back-up operations of some IT-BPM companies. IXL is one such BPO that has evolved into BPM. Voila, surprise of all surprises, IXL is owned and managed by Adrian Funtelar, a fellow Rotarian from the Rotary Club Metro-Iloilo.
Adrian told me that for a little over a decade, IXL caters to the US market with seven agents offering services ranging from customer support (inbound calls, chat, email) to technical Support, IT services and staff augmentation, to software development, helpdesk, collections, as well as insurance claims.
Cool. Such transformation is essential to be able to keep the customers happy. But what’s this I heard in the business community that there seems to be a brewing conflict between the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) law and Administrative Order No. 18 (AO18) of 2019.
Issued in June 2019, AO18 orders a moratorium on the establishment of ecozones in Metro Manila and shifts development focus to areas outside of the metropolis with the end in view of accelerating rural progress through robust development of Special Economic Zones.
I remember distinctly former Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) Director General Charito “Ching” Plaza accepting the AO, emphasizing “a need for us to come together and attain a much inclusive growth for the country, especially as we bounce back from the effects of the pandemic.”
Fast forward to now, according to a muted source, PEZA has seemingly lifted the moratorium in select cities in the National Capital Region like Novotas and Valenzuela by reportedly giving the greenlight to P175.7 billion worth of investments.
To clarify, AO18 has not been repealed. EOs (executive order) and AOs are only valid when they are not contrary to the Constitution or laws such as CREATE. From what I learned through the years of covering in situations where conflicts arise between laws, newer policies make way for older ones
The end the story is before the Philippines can fully utilize the bullish growth of our IT-BPM’s services, which can potentially add an estimated 200,000 employment annually, as well as maintain our lead in the economic race, I believe it's imperative that concerned authorities iron out and reconcile the mandates of both laws.
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