Through a press briefing with TELUS International President Jeff Puritt, BPO and Call Center Company Telus International Philippines Inc. said it would expand its operations by 800 seats next year. This would mean additional call center jobs for Filipinos.

The company is keen in identifying their next facilities in Manila that would be established by 2011 and will soon have some provincial facilities by 2012. The company remains positive toward Philippine human capital resources. At present, Telus Philippines has facilities in the cities of Pasig, Taguig, and Quezon, employing almost 9,000 individuals.

Javier Infante, Telus Philippines president and CEO, who was also in the press briefing, said that the company will soon open opportunities for its workforce toward completing undergraduate and postgraduate degrees via the Telus International University. He said that some 40 percent Telus Philippines employees were “forced to enter into the workforce” before completing their undergraduate studies because of economic reasons.

Because of this, the company will offer CHED-recognized degrees in business management, entrepreneurship, and information technology in Quezon City and Taguig through its tie up with the top universities in Manila. This move is expected to improve the employee-retention rate of Telus Philippines. Telus Philippines is now in talks with at least five Manila-based universities on the education and training of student-employees.

Some 50 students are already lined up to start the program who have proven their “merit and tenure” in the contact center company. Infante said it will support interested team members through a subsidized loan program. “We can subsidize close to 50 percent of their education expenses,” said Puritt. He also said that immediate family members of employees may also take advantage of the education program on “discounted” terms. The company will invest millions of pesos annually to support this trendsetting project.

TELUS is known in the industry for providing unique and rewarding benefits to its employees that is being copied later on by other companies. Incidentally, TELUS Philippines won the ICCT’s BPO Employer of the Year award for 2009.

In the news:  Outsourcing firm Aegis PeopleSupport (Philippines), Inc. wants to hire an additional 1,200 employees as the company continues to expand operations in the country.  The outsourcing company also wants to tap the domestic market to make use of its facilities during daytime.

Revenues of PeopleSupport are expected to be at par with the industry benchmark of about a 20% increase for the year with more clients from the United States, the firm’s top executive said.

“Given the world economic environment and how fluid it is right now, I think we still remain to be bullish with the business. We are gearing for expansion,” Rainerio M. Borja, president of Aegis PeopleSupport, said in an interview.

Aegis PeopleSupport already occupies two floors at the Rockwell Business Center in Ortigas, noted Liza C. Lamzon, assistant vice-president for strategic programs. “We will exercise the intent to take an additional three floors,” she added.

Mr. Borja said the office configuration was about 350 to 400 seats per floor, which will increase manpower by as much as 1,200.

He said the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry thrives in economic ups and downs as foreign companies continuously look for more economical ways to do business.

Aegis PeopleSupport has three thrusts under its growth programs: organic growth through more clients, acquisition, and domestic market expansion. The domestic program has shown good performance, executives said.

“We just started the domestic business recently and we registered significant growth … the domestic business has proven to be a viable growth engine for us,” Mr. Borja said.

Securing local clients is expected to increase the efficiency of the outsourcing firm, he added.

Mr. Borja said the company uses 100% of facilities at night, the peak period for call centers, but not at daytime.

The outsourcing firm can also expand operations in non-real time, non-voice services, which can be done during daytime, he added. “I can see the [revenue] ratio changing over time especially in the next two to three years where the domestic space is growing,” Mr. Borja said.

Ask about the firm’s outlook for full-year revenues, Mr. Borja said: “I think you will see us grow slightly faster or in line with the industry growth.”

The Contact Center Association of the Philippines expects the industry to grow revenues by 23% this year to $6.15 billion. For the Business Processing Association of the Philippines, outsourcing revenues are expected to rise by as much as 30% to $9.4 billion.

“At some point, we want to double our business here, it is just a matter of when,” Mr. Borja said.

Services of Aegis PeopleSupport include customer prospecting and acquisition, customer care, order processing, and data management.

High-value BPO firm, StarTek Philippines, recently launched its new job site, featuring job openings from all StarTek sites in the Philippines, the United States, Canada, and Costa Rica. The recruitment portal, which is open for both internal and external applicants, provides details on entry-level to management positions.

“The goal of the StarTek job site is to make job hunting easier for applicants,” said Aleth Montalvo-De las Armas, StarTek Philippines recruitment director. “We want to share the opportunities for career growth in the Philippines, and in our other locations, which is why we created a standalone recruitment portal dedicated to the jobs available in different locations.”

The new job site features maps of StarTek locations around the globe, including the two StarTek hubs in Makati and Ortigas. Both sites are expected to hire at least 700 by year’s end, and the website is part of its ongoing efforts to ramp up and fill its seats.

In addition to job details, the StarTek job site highlights the company’s corporate environment, which is a unique feature aimed at attracting employees who not only fit the StarTek culture, but who also look for long-term growth in the BPO industry.

“The StarTek culture is the best incentive we have for hiring. Aside from job details, the website features what makes StarTek a great place to work and grow in—from benefits and opportunities for advancement, recognition, and financial incentives to our work-life balance, culture of inclusiveness, and community involvement,” added De las Armas.