The IT and Business Process Association of the Philippines (IBPAP) recently reported that the total headcount of full-time employees in the local IT-BPM sector is now at 1.55 million with total revenue valued at $32 billion driven by industry-wide stabilization and reinvigorated support from the public sector.
The trade body and advocacy group expects the figure to grow in the succeeding years, in line with its “Roadmap 2028” vision of a 2.5 million IT-BPM workforce producing $59 billion in revenue. To achieve sustainable growth in 2023, IBPAP encourages the entirety of the IT-BPM sector to show commitment with their key priorities moving forward.
“It is clearly within reach given our sector’s track record of agility, adaptability, and resolve. I do wish to underscore that we cannot stand alone in this crucial endeavor. There is lot at stake here, beyond revenues or employment,” IBPAP chairman Benedict Hernandez chairman said in a disclosure pertaining to Roadmap 2028.
IBPAP also cited recent developments surrounding Resolution No. 026-22 issued by the Fiscal Incentives Review Board (FIRB) which extended the adoption of the 70:30 Work-from-Home arrangement from September 13 to December 31, 2022.
The organization attributes this policy to the collaborative efforts of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA), and Board of Investments (BOI).
Beyond 2022, IBPAP will be expanding efforts in line with what it considers Acceleration Levers which include Policy and Regulatory Support, Infrastructure Expansion, Marketing and Brand Repositioning, and Talent Development.
“We were heartened to hear Pres. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. recently speak about improving collaboration between the public and private sectors for the continuous upskilling of Filipino workers and acknowledge the work of the IT-BPM industry in this endeavor. We have several initiatives underway to get these accomplished,” IBPAP president and CEO Jack Madrid said in a statement.
One initiative is through training programs embedded into Higher Education Institution (HEIs) curricula, greenlit by an inked Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), and designed by the IT-BPM sector to spur the population of industry-ready graduates.
Another example is the establishment of the IT-BPM Talent Hub career portal which enable employers to publish information about their respective organizations, hire talent through job openings, screen applicants, and directly engage with potential employees.
An extension of this project is the soon-to-be-launched revised work immersion program made in collaboration with IT service management company, Concentrix.
On a global scale, however, the IT-BPM industry’s hiring activities retreated by 43% in October versus the average between January in September this year, caused by global economy uncertainty and the Ukraine-Russia conflict. The same study, conducted by mid-management recruitment firm CIEL HR Services, also shows that hiring will rebound in the first quarter of 2023.
Additionally, in a statement made by Madrid earlier this year at the 14th International Innovation Summit hosted by IBPAP, the Philippine IT-BPM sector is also eyeing to create more impact through countryside development, digitally-enabled services, dollar revenue, high-complexity work, and indirect employment.
“While these activities are ongoing, we will work in parallel towards developing a strategic and operational framework for a national upskilling program that can be rolled out across the country. This is our big ambition for the Filipino talent who has been and will continue to be the backbone of the dynamic and vibrant IT-BPM sector,” he said.
Madrid concluded with an optimistic remark that the Marcos administration will be supporting IBPAP’s planned multi-year and multi-stakeholder cooperative efforts to equip the local workforce with knowledge in top skill areas required by an evolving business landscape.
