To mark the 10th year of its business process outsourcing (BPO) business in the country, Accenture Philippines has launched a new initiative called ?Rural BPO? wherein the company partners with small BPO firms based in rural areas to provide training and employment to residents of the community and nearby areas.
So far, Accenture has trained 38 people in its first Rural BPO center in Tanjay, Negros Oriental in partnership with the Visayan Knowledge Process Outsourcing (VKPO).
As part of their training, the majority of the employees deliver work for Accenture, while others service VKPO?s clients.
As a result, Accenture?s Rural BPO program has opened up opportunities not only for rural-based Filipinos and their families but also for their respective communities, said Manish Sharma, senior managing director for Accenture operations global delivery and solution development.
At a press briefing at Accenture?s facility in Mandaluyong City, top company executives cited some of the socio-economic benefits to Rural BPO beneficiaries/VKPO employees and the Tanjay community:
? Average annual household income has increased by 33 percent, from P139,600 to P186,000.
? All employees have been able to open a bank savings account.
? With proof of stable employment and income, others have paid off loans or been granted loans.
? With an increase in purchasing power, they have been able to furnish their homes, while some have bought their own car.
? Employees are more confident now and are less stressed because their jobs are near their homes/families.
? A drop in migration to other cities.
Sharma added that Accenture hopes to expand its Rural BPO program beyond VKPO and Tanjay to help more people in the countryside and uplift their communities.
“Tanjayanons have a lot to be thankful for because this project not only opens doors for employment but also provides sustainable livelihood to many… As stewards of the Rural BPO project, Accenture and Visaya KPO promises greater opportunities and knowledge innovation,” said Butch Valenzuela, president and CEO of VKPO.
Global executives, led by group chief executive Michael J. Salvino, also joined the local crew in celebrating the 10th anniversary of the company?s BPO business in the country. Accenture, however, has been in the Philippines for almost 30 years now.
From a workforce of more than 300 people in the Philippines in 2003, Accenture has grown a hundred-fold in the past 10 years, to more than 17,000-strong for its BPO operations alone, and more than 32,000 for the whole of Accenture Philippines.
?This milestone reflects the dedication, hard work and high performance of our employees who have helped propel Accenture to become an industry leader,? said Benedict Hernandez, lead for Accenture?s delivery center for operations in the Philippines
From its first BPO engagement providing healthcare enrolment services in 2003, Accenture Philippines has grown to serve clients in key industries across North America, Europe and Asia Pacific.
It has also expanded its offerings to include technology-enabled cross-industry business process services, such as finance and accounting and HR, as well as industry-specific business process services, such as health, insurance and utilities administration.
?As a deliberate step to competitively position Accenture for strategic growth, we just renamed our BPO part of the business to ‘Accenture Operations’,? said Salvino.
?We believe that Accenture Operations clearly articulates what we do for our clients, both today and tomorrow. We operate using a very unique blend of technology, analytics and industry perspective to help our clients innovate and become high performance businesses,? he added.
