The Cebu province in Philippines is all set to become Knowledge Process Outsourcing (KPO) hub. The Business Process Association of the Philippines' (BPAP) former Chairman Bong Borja pointed out that in order to convert Southern Philippines into a MBA hub, Cebu is on the move to attract this high-level outsourcing service.

Borja, currently the Chief Executive Officer of call center giant Aegis People Support, said that although the BPO voice service promises immense potentiality, the KPO market is anticipated to greatly add to the employment generation as well as the investment revenue of the province.

KPO is the upward shift of BPO in the value chain. Old BPO companies that used to provide basic backend or customer care support are moving up this value chain. In addition to providing expertise in the processes themselves, it also involves low level business decisions. The fundamental theme of KPO is to create value for the client by providing business skill rather than process expertise. So KPO involves a shift from uniform processes to advanced analytical thinking, technical skills and decisive judgment based on experience. “These are the very expensive or high-paying type of outsourcing. I believe we have the talents and raw ingredients to attract the KPO market,” Borja said.

Though Philippines have few KPO companies, Borja still feels “we have only done a small number of KPO works.” British Ambassador Peter Beckingham, stated that knowledge outsourcing is one of the business sectors that will make the Philippines as the ideal offshore site for British companies.

“India obviously still has far more investment,” Beckingham said, but the arrival of British BPO firms is expected in the Philippines, as the country has earned reputation among British firms.

Source: Philstar.com