Phl call center agents lead in absenteeism

MANILA, Philippines - The incidence of absenteeism in business process outsourcing (BPO) employees is higher in the Philippines and in Asia Pacific than the rest of the world due to odd work shifts, a global study showed.

In the study, research group Dimension Data, however, noted that agents in Asia Pacific, particularly in the Philippines, are tagged as “more patient” than those in other regions. Asian call centers scored 100 percent in customer satisfaction, higher than the global score of 84.5 percent.

The study showed that agent absenteeism rate in Asia Pacific, which includes the Philippines, is higher at 15.5 percent than the global rate of 14.9 percent.

“Agent absenteeism is higher in Asia because of graveyard shift. But attrition rate is lower in the region than globally,” Dimension Data general manager for customer interactive solutions Nagi Kasinadhuni said.

Kasinadhuni also said traditional contact centers in Asia are slowly being replaced by customer management centers as more organizations focus on expanding contact services beyond telephony and email offerings.

“The evolution of the contact center to a full service customer management center confirms that organizations view contact centers as profit generators,” he said.

The research also showed that improved service is the top priority commercial driver for contact center. “But navigating this evolution will require a strong focus on process automation,” he added.

“Smart devices are dramatically changing the communication landscape and enabling customers to help themselves and decide how, when and where they engage,” he added.

The local call center industry grew 21 percent annually in the last five years, from $2.6 billion in revenues in 2006 to $6.2 billion last year.

The same level of growth seen this year means a total call center workforce of over 400,000 by yearend and a revenue of over $7.4 billion.

The Contact Center Association of the Philippines estimated that the industry will continue growing at annual growth rate of 15 percent, reaching a revenue level of $14.7 billion and 816,000 jobs by 2016.