Leading IT company expands in Clark

CLARK, Pampanga – The economic crunch may have affected a number of firms, but not Cyber City Teleservices, Ltd. (CCTLL) – a leading IT company in Clark – as it readies investment plans for multi-million-peso expansion program in an effort to generate more jobs here in the next two years.

CCTLL, now in the process of hiring about 600 new employees, is completing another facility that will have a 200-seat call center in a new building they recently got via a new lease from the state-owned firm.

The firm’s expansion stemmed from sound investment policy adopted by Clark Development Corp. (CDC) since the assumption of Arroyo administration, giving investor-locators the confidence and assurance of improved business activities inside the ecozone.

CCTLL, an American firm and the biggest call center north of Manila, is expanding due to spate of success it has had since its start of operations in 1998. According to CCTLL senior vice-president Gorge Sorio, the success of the firm can be attributed to the support being provided by the state-owned firm, the sound business environment in Clark, and the proficiency of Pampanga-based workers in the English language.

Sorio said the firm started with 30 workers in 1998, including management. Today, Cyber City employs some 1,300 workers and is expected to increase the number of employees to about 7,200 in less than three years.

Sorio said the firm, operating on a 24-hour, three-shifts-a-day in the entire year, expects to complete the construction of additional 1,800 seats (equivalent to 7,200 call center agents) in a span of two and-a-half years. The expansion, according to Sorio, would also mean additional new job opportunities for fresh IT graduates that would man the additional equipment and other call center facilities.

The expansion and the hiring of additional manpower would cost the firm about $25 million, on top of the $30 million they have committed to infuse at the Clark ecozone, Sorio said.

Jonathan Rosenberg, chairman of CCTLL, said he chose as the site for their business because of the Kapampangan’s familiarity with conversation styles of US-based customers since the ecozone was once the biggest American facility outside mainland.

"Since most of our clients are based in the US, knowing the culture of the US would be easy for the residents (especially the call center agents) of nearby Clark since they’re accustomed to it (referring to US culture) already," said Sorio.

"Most of our call centers agents are already familiar with Halloween, Thanksgiving Christmas, and other US holidays where we would no longer tell them what is the celebration is all about," he said.

There are more than 50 call centers in Metro Manila, Laguna and Cavite. Most of Cyber City’s clients are based in the US and the additional manpower needed will provide better service to its US-based clienteles.