Canada eyes Philippines for BPO needs

MANILA, Philippines—The Philippines can expect more Canadian firms to outsource their high-value business process outsourcing (BPO) requirements here, considering the good experience of Canadian firms that have already done the move.

Canadian Ambassador to Manila Christopher Thornley said the Philippines could move up from being a hub for voice services and become a destination of choice for higher-value BPO services.

“There are very good Canadian companies here who are doing BPO services. We have Telus, Manulife and Sun Life. I recently visited facilities in Cebu for Bombardier Transportation, which has shared services operations there. Atco Gas is also there. We would like to see [more high-value BPO services here],” he told reporters last Friday.

Telus International Philippines is backed by Telus International, a wholly owned subsidiary of Telus Corp., Canada’s second-largest telecommunications services provider.

It currently has more than 8,000 employees in the country spread across its five sites in Bonifacio Global City, Cubao, and Ortigas Center. The Philippines is the company’s largest offshore location.

Insurance firms Manulife and Sun Life both have “captive” call center operations, or call centers that service only their own requirements, in the country.