To hire 1,500: BPO firm to open facility in Mactan

CEBU, Philippines - Manulife Group's outsourcing arm Manulife Business Processing Services (MBPS) is opening an 800-seat global shared service facility in Cebu at the Mactan Newtown and is expected to hire a total of 1,500 starting this year.

In a press conference yesterday MBPS vice president and general manager Gigi Mantaring announced the company's entry to Cebu, owing to the dynamic outsourcing industry in the province.

MBPS will occupy the entire Two World Center building or soon to be called Manulife Building, currently being constructed and set to be completed by June this year.

The Canada-based Manulife, one of the oldest life insurance firms in the country, operates its global shared service facility operations in the Philippines and China.

"The people are key to our success, and Cebuanos are very talented," said Mantaring adding that the Cebu facility opening is also meant to mitigate concentration risks due to natural resources.

MBPS started its operation in 2006 in Quezon City in Manila, and later expanded to Chengdu, China with 3,300 employees to date.

MBPS handles broad range of services for Manulife's global clients such as financial, investment, information technology, among others.

Mantaring said the company will hire professionals with financial degree backgrounds, or even fresh graduates. The facility is set to start operations in the third quarter of this year.

Megaworld first vice president Jericho P. Go said MBPS is the third BPO company to open at the 28.8-hectare township development launched last year.

"We now have three BPO locators in the township and all of them are first time locators in Cebu. This is a clear indication that several BPO companies are eyeing Mactan as their next hub, and that a Megaworld township remains to be their top choice," said Go.

By second half of this year, the offices of the 8 Newtown Boulevard will also start operations, offering an additional 35,000 square-meters of office space inventory. Once fully occupied, the tower will generate an additonal 10,000 employees in the township.

"This year, The Mactan Newtown will become a bustling cyberpark of Central Visayas, much like its predecessors, Eastwood City and McKinley Hills," Go added.

The Mactan Newtown has been declared a "Special Economic Zone" by President Benigno S. Aquino III under presidential proclamation number 407. This places the township development under the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA), which allows businesses inside to enjoy various privileges such as tax incentives and holidays.

Megaworld has earmarked P20 billion for the development of The Mactan Newtown in the next five years. (FREEMAN)